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The modern world

The modern world: a chapter of the Turning Points of History Book, with the moments, people and dates that shaped the world.

10 cards · History

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Each Zap teaches up to 5 new cards, so you learn the deck a few at a time.

Checked by the Brain Zap team · reviewed 26 Oct 2026

Sources: World history (Encyclopaedia Britannica), World History Encyclopedia

Preview

  • Year the First World War began

    Show answer: Year the First World War began

    1914

    Learn more: The killing of Franz Ferdinand pulled Europe's alliances into a war that lasted until 1918.

  • Year the Second World War ended

    Show answer: Year the Second World War ended

    1945

    Learn more: Germany surrendered in May and Japan in September; tens of millions of people had died.

  • Organisation founded in 1945 to keep world peace

    Show answer: Organisation founded in 1945 to keep world peace

    United Nations

    Learn more: It replaced the failed League of Nations and now has 193 member states.

  • First person to walk on the Moon

    Show answer: First person to walk on the Moon

    Neil Armstrong

    Learn more: 'That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,' he said as he stepped down.

  • First human in space, in 1961

    Show answer: First human in space, in 1961

    Yuri Gagarin

    Learn more: He circled Earth once in 108 minutes, a Soviet win in the space race.

About this topic

The twentieth century brought two world wars, the United Nations, the end of empires, the space race and the fall of the Berlin Wall. Leaders such as Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela showed what peaceful protest could win, and the World Wide Web connected the planet. Dates are easier to remember once you know the story behind them, so every card comes with the reason it mattered.

This is a chapter of the Turning Points of History Book. Each card asks one question, with a hint before you answer and a short reason after. Once you know most of this chapter, the next one starts arriving in your Daily Zap.

All 10 cards

  1. Year the First World War began

    1914

    Learn more: The killing of Franz Ferdinand pulled Europe's alliances into a war that lasted until 1918.

  2. Year the Second World War ended

    1945

    Learn more: Germany surrendered in May and Japan in September; tens of millions of people had died.

  3. Organisation founded in 1945 to keep world peace

    United Nations

    Learn more: It replaced the failed League of Nations and now has 193 member states.

  4. First person to walk on the Moon

    Neil Armstrong

    Learn more: 'That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,' he said as he stepped down.

  5. First human in space, in 1961

    Yuri Gagarin

    Learn more: He circled Earth once in 108 minutes, a Soviet win in the space race.

  6. Year the Berlin Wall fell

    1989

    Learn more: Crowds crossed freely after 28 years of division, and Germany reunited less than a year later.

  7. Led India's non-violent struggle for independence

    Mahatma Gandhi

    Learn more: India became independent in 1947, and his peaceful protest inspired movements worldwide.

  8. South Africa's first Black president

    Nelson Mandela

    Learn more: Elected in 1994 after apartheid ended, he worked to reconcile a divided country.

  9. Gave the 'I Have a Dream' speech in 1963

    Martin Luther King Jr.

    Learn more: His peaceful campaign helped win the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed segregation in the US.

  10. Invented the World Wide Web in 1989

    Tim Berners-Lee

    Learn more: He gave it away for free, so anyone could build a website, and it changed how the world shares knowledge.

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