Five Most Important Events/Occurrences in History...

[nellikin]

How about the last ice age creating a land-bridge between North America and Russia, allowing colonisation of the Americas? Then the end of the ice-age and concurrent warming enabling higher production and hence expansion of human populations, both in numbers and territory. May not have been that good for the world in general, but certainly key to human expansion.

Must also mention the development of agriculture and animal husbandry, allowing humans to transition from hunter-gatherers to sedentary farmers. This also enabled farmers' produce to support others in society and hence gave birth to kleptocratic hierarchies and their associated armies. Ahh the sweet birth of modern civilisation.

[Randydeluxe]

1. The big bang.

2. Abiogenesis on earth.

3. The mitochondrial merger.

4. The emergence of photosynthesis.

5. The K-T asteroid impact.

[RuleBritannia]

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, Austria-Hungary on June 28, 1914.

His death would lead to the First World War, and in turn the rise of communism, the Second World War and Cold War.

[Coito ergo sum]

1. The big bang.

2. Abiogenesis on earth.

3. The mitochondrial merger.

4. The emergence of photosynthesis.

5. The K-T asteroid impact.

Those are great, events, but all of them are pre-historic and the OP concerns historical events.

[nellikin]

So when does history start?

[Bruce Burleson]

#1 has to be a joke, just like the "Great" State of Texas, home of the two fattest cities in the US!

That is a racist comment, as everyone knows that the main reason Texas has a lot of fat people is because of its superior Tex-Mex food. But at the Battle of San Jacinto, marinated beef fajitas wrapped in flour tortillas, covered with sour cream, grilled onions and pico de gallo, and drizzled with garlic butter, had not yet been invented. Most of the Texans were skinny, living on beef jerky. That's why they were so damn angry.

I stand by my assessment of the Battle of San Jacinto as a significant event that led to the modern world. If you visit the San Jacinto monument, the world's tallest phallic symbol, the video they show you says the same thing, so it must be true.

http://z.about.com/d/houston/1/0/o/0/-/ ... nument.jpg

[RuleBritannia]

So when does history start?

"History" normally only covers human affairs, not natural ones.

[nellikin]

I guess the recent earthquake in Chile wasn't historic then...

[Bruce Burleson]

I guess the recent earthquake in Chile wasn't historic then...

Well, the earthquake certainly affected humans, so it was history. History is confined to the story of humankind.

Well, you can have natural history, but that is another history.

[nellikin]

So the end of the last ice-age heralding a time of greater primary production and leading to the devlopment of agrarian civilisation - historic event or not?

[Bruce Burleson]

So the end of the last ice-age heralding a time of greater primary production and leading to the devlopment of agrarian civilisation - historic event or not?

Human history is recorded. Was there a written record of some sort of the last ice-age? Cave paintings?

[RuleBritannia]

So the end of the last ice-age heralding a time of greater primary production and leading to the devlopment of agrarian civilisation - historic event or not?

It's an historic event because it's in the past, but you wouldn't be taught about it in history class, more likely geography or geology .

[Lion IRC]

The rise of self consciousness. (Palaeolithic age)
The ministry of Jesus of Nazareth (Axial age)
The investiture controversy. (Middle age)
The rise of the university. (Middle age)
The rise of the corporation
Quantum weirdness and the death of the theory of everything. (Post modern age)
The rise of New Atheism (Second renaissance of religion)

Lion (IRC)
PS - I should have probably put something about maths/counting in there as well.

[nellikin]

The rise of self consciousness. (Palaeolithic age)
The ministry of Jesus of Nazareth (Axial age)
The investiture controversy. (Middle age)
The rise of the university. (Middle age)
The rise of the corporation
Quantum weirdness and the death of the theory of everything. (Post modern age)
The rise of New Atheism (Second renaissance of religion)

Lion (IRC)
PS - I should have probably put something about maths/counting in there as well.

Too true - considering you suggested 7 things and were only asked for 5

[normal]

I look at most of the suggestions, and they seem very trivial to me. Maybe I don't think human history is important.