Get a unique and rewarding view of world history by immersing yourself in these 24 thought-provoking lectures on the discoveries, inventions, upheavals, and ideas that shaped the modern world. You'll embark on a far-reaching journey around the globe - from China to the Americas to New Zealand - to shed light on how two dozen of the top discoveries, inventions, political upheavals, and ideas since 1400 have shaped the modern world. Professor Liulevicius tells the amazing story of how life as we know it developed - at times advancing in one brilliant instant and at other times, in painstaking degrees. Starting in the early 15th century and culminating in the age of social media, you'll encounter astounding threads that weave through the centuries, joining these turning points in ways that may come as a revelation. Some of the events presented here include the voyages of Christopher Columbus, the emergence of the printing press, the American Revolution, the theory of evolution, and the discovery of penicillin. Throughout, you'll be able to make parallels and links across centuries and continents. For example, you'll see how the building of the Berlin Wall intersects with the space race; trace how the Anglo-Dutch trade wars led to China's subjugation; and consider whether the Westphalian system of territorial sovereignty established in 1648 still applies in cyberspace as the Internet nullifies borders.