In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed, the republics that it had conquered had become 15 independent nations. Among those republics were those that had made up the Soviet’s “Iron Curtain” Border. Some of those countries were Russia, Ukraine and Armenia. (Module 30, 1204). 

An Army officer, Colonel Joseph Mobutu, established his power in 1965. He ruled the country he renamed Zaire for 32 years.  He maintained his control through force and a one-party rule. He was finally overthrown in 1997 by rebel leader Laurent Kabila after months of civil war. After this, the country was renamed the Republic of Congo. (Module 30, 1191).

The Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990, was a huge deal because it was like a giant space camera that could see farther and clearer than any telescope on Earth, it was able to give scientists estimates of how old our universe really was.

On September 11, 2001, Arab terrorists hijacked four planes heading to California, which then caused two of the planes to crash into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. With all of the fuel inside of them, the planes became destructive, deadly missiles that weakened the building so heavily, they crumbled to the ground in less than two hours. All of the passengers on the planes died, almost 3,000 workers and visitors in the Twin Towers, 340 firefighters died, and 60 police officers died. 9/11 showed the sacrifice that many people had to save others and how they didn’t even think twice to risk their lives. pg. (1300, 1301)

He was assassinated in December of 2007 after returning from exile abroad. She was already facing political challenges after becoming prime minister, so her death ended up a political win for Musharraf in the end. (pg. 1172)

This event is so significant because Manmohan was a Sikh, making him non-Hindu, which was a first for India. This made history the first time India had a prime minister who was not Hindu. Even though this would make it seem like people were becoming less judgmental of different religions, the tensions of it still boil over in episodes of violence. (pg. 1171)

Two young lovers from completely different backgrounds meet and fall in love on the ill-fated maiden voyage of the unsinkable R.M.S. Titanic. The movie Titanic was a global event because it depicted the actual boat Titanic crash in an iceberg in a movie form. https://vocal.media/geeks/why-was-the-titanic-movie-so-popular 

Nirvana’s Nevermind was so popular in the 1990s because of its popularity by blending punk, hard rock, and pop elements that created a sound that stuck with audiences. https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20210922-nevermind-at-30-how-the-nirvana-album-shook-the-world. 

Beanie Babies, the small, pellet-filled stuffed animals created by Ty Inc., gained immense popularity in the late 1990s, driven by a combination of marketing, artificial scarcity, and a booming collector market. https://www.history.com/articles/how-the-beanie-baby-craze-came-to-a-crashing-end

The Chicago Bulls winning 6 NBA championships in the 1990s solidified Michael Jordan as the Greatest Basketball player of all time, it also revolutionized basketball all over the world, even countries like China love basketball too this day because of the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s. https://vdgsports.com/the-90s-basketball-impact-on-nba-culture/ 

The World Wide Web is a global, interconnected network of information that is accessible through the Internet. It's a system of hypertext-based documents and other resources that can be accessed over the Internet. It was first popularized in 1990 when Tim Berners-Lee created it.  https://www.britannica.com/topic/World-Wide-Web 

Everyone recognizes this movie for its different way of approaching a superhero and it was known as a movie that changed superhero cinema culture heavily. The Joker got his time to shine in the spotlight, making for an excellent, sadistic, inherently evil villain who worked as a foil to Batman. On the other hand, Harvey Dent was a great example of a compelling, believable fall from grace. Dent's transition from the "White Knight of Gotham" to the sinister Harvey Two-Face was exceptionally done with somewhat believable albeit evil motivations.

https://screenrant.com/why-the-dark-knight-holds-up-15-years-later/

 She first caught the world’s attention with the songs “Just Dance” and “Poker Face,” her first two singles and her two most successful Hot 100 hits, both topping the chart. People were taken aback by her eccentric and crazy personality matched with her ear catching and genius music. 

https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/lady-gaga-the-fame-pop-stardom-8470910/

Low-rise jeans, with their waists sitting low on the hips, became a major trend in the early 2000s, popular first by celebrities like Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, and Paris Hilton. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low-rise_(fashion)#:~:text=The%201990s%20revival%20of%20low,but%20this%20declined%20after%202007. 

McBride finished as the tournament's leading scorer with four goals, tallying a penalty in a group stage win against Cuba before recording an impressive 12 minute hat trick during the first half of a 4-0 quarterfinal win against El Salvador. The goal haul earned him tournament MVP honors, and the USMNT won the confederation championship for only the second time. 

https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2022/06/20-years-later-usmnt-players-remember-run-to-2002-world-cup-quarterfinals

In the early 2000s, the iphone features became more and more advanced. Features like Internet connectivity, text messaging and a built-in camera paved the way for the standard smartphone. Every year after, Apple has continued to impress us with all the new creative designs that enhance the look of the phone.

https://www.verizon.com/articles/Smartphones/milestones-in-history-of-apple-iphone/

This trend is characterised by a nostalgic, retro aesthetic that harkens back to the early 2000s when the internet was still relatively new and smartphones were just starting to become mainstream. https://www.thedailystar.net/life-living/fashion-beauty/news/what-y2k-fashion-and-why-it-getting-popular-3209391

MySpace rose to prominence in the mid-2000s, driven by its unique features and cultural impact. The platform was initially launched in 2003, but its popularity soared in 2005 when it was acquired by News Corp for $580 million. https://historytimelines.co/timeline/myspace 

The Furby, launched in 1998, became a global sensation, selling over 40 million units in its first three years and sparking a collector craze. https://www.livenowfox.com/news/furby-history-iconic-toy 

Fanny packs gained mainstream popularity during the 1990s in the United States, Europe, and other parts of the world. They became a common fashion accessory for tourists, runners, and people seeking practical, hands-free storage for belongings. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/580585/fanny-pack-history-and-resurgence 

Britney Spears was already a huge idol in the early 2000s and everyone knew her name naturally.  This specific album of hers matched the early 2000s vibe perfectly with its funky beat. This record ended up going on to sell over 10 million records in America alone. She became the first female musician to reach that particular goal post with her first two records.

https://americansongwriter.com/on-this-day-in-2000-britney-spears-changed-the-pop-world-with-oops-i-did-it-again/

Amy Winehouse’s unique voice was definitely a major factor in how intrigued everyone was with her and her album. This album also was infused with an old jazz style and had elements of an older style of music which sucked people in and got them listening. It was something very different from the early 2000s usual Y2K, bright colored aesthetic which caused fans to have a very positive reaction to the album. 

https://en.as.com/entertainment/why-back-to-black-is-so-popular-amy-winehouses-best-selling-album-from-2008-n/

Dr. Dre’s The Chronic gained global popularity in the 1990s due to its perfect production, Dr. Dre started the rise of G-funk, and this album was able to expose rap to a wider audience who wasn’t really into rap at the time.

https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/dr-dres-the-chronic-10-things-you-didnt-know-119366/ 

The Bodyguard soundtrack gained global popularity because of its massive success in the film, Bodyguard. Whitney Houston’s voice and talent inspired the generation to become like her. Her most famous song in the album was “I was Always Love You,” which became a global phenomenon. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/event/article-7035965/How-staggering-success-Bodyguard-soundtrack-saved-career-singer-Nick-Lowe.html 

In 1992 were held in Barcelona, and it was one of the most popular Summer Olympics of all time. These Olympics were popular because they marked the end of the Cold War, the absence of boycotts for the first time in three decades, and the emergence of new countries competing like Croatia and Slovenia. https://www.olympics.com/en/olympic-games/barcelona-1992

The 1990 FIFA World Cup was held in Italy, and it captured global attention because of the dramatic matches, like underdog stories like Cameroon’s historic run and iconic moments like West Germany’s victory and England losing in penalty kicks. It was even more popular because people around the world were able to watch it on television. https://sameershekhawat98.medium.com/5-most-iconic-players-from-the-1990-fifa-world-cup-8e155ef287b2

The Devils' victory was considered somewhat unexpected as they were the second seed in the Eastern Conference, while Anaheim was the seventh seed in the Western Conference. People watching around the world has the craziest reaction to this game, and they still remember it to this day because of the impact it had on them at the time. https://pucksandpitchforks.com/25-years-later-jason-arnott-s-stanley-cup-winning-goal-still-brings-joy-to-devils-fans

Woods won 11 events, including three professional majors in the same year, and also became the first player since 1936-37 to win the PGA Championship in  many years. Woods won five times, including the Masters, in 2001 and eight times worldwide. He won five times again on tour in 2002, and seven times worldwide, and was the tour’s leading money winner for the fourth consecutive year.

https://tigerwoods.com/biography/

The movie Jurassic Park became a global blockbuster because of its special effects most movies in the time have not seen before. The cultural atmosphere of dinosaurs. The movie included CGI that no one has seen before. https://www.strandmagazine.co.uk/ 

This Star Wars movie was so popular in the 1990s because of its anticipation from the previous movie, Return of the Jedi, which was made 16 years before The Phantom Menace. https://www.midlandsmovies.com/why-the-phantom-menace-is-still-the-best-star-wars-prequel 

Before the release of the movie, cinema wasn’t all that good and it was seen as “dead.” But people said that Gladiator had everything a movie needed. Lavish sets, groundbreaking visual effects, a compelling story, a legendary director, action, romance, iconic characters, and even a memorable score from Hans Zimmer.

https://screenhub.blog/2024/03/12/what-made-gladiator-a-big-deal-screenhub-entertainment/

Everyone recognizes this movie for its different way of approaching a superhero and it was known as a movie that changed superhero cinema culture heavily. The Joker got his time to shine in the spotlight, making for an excellent, sadistic, inherently evil villain who worked as a foil to Batman. On the other hand, Harvey Dent was a great example of a compelling, believable fall from grace. Dent's transition from the "White Knight of Gotham" to the sinister Harvey Two-Face was exceptionally done with somewhat believable albeit evil motivations.

https://screenrant.com/why-the-dark-knight-holds-up-15-years-later/

The MP3 Format is a highly popular digital audio file format known for its efficient compression, allowing for smaller file sizes without significant loss of audio quality. It became so popular in the 90s because of its ability to compress audio files significantly without a noticeable loss of sound quality, making it ideal for online distribution and storage. https://www.macprovideo.com/article/itunes/the-rise-and-fall-of-mp3 

The first text message was sent in the UK on December 3rd, 1992, the message said “Merry Christmas” Neil Papworth was the person who sent the first message to Richard Jarvis. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/december-3/first-sms-text-message-sent 

Facebook was first released in 2004 and sold an “ad” of it to a small business to promote the app. But even then, facebook was the foundation of the social networking experience even without News Feed existing just yet. Little did everyone know, facebook would end up being one of the biggest social media platforms to exist.

https://www.cnet.com/pictures/facebook-then-and-now-pictures/

While bluetooth was created in the mid 1990s, the first bluetooth iphone was created in the early 2000s which skyrocketed its popularity. Bluetooth wire headphones and bluetooth things that could connect to your phone were all created during this time and caught the interest of the media which caused a craze for it.

https://www.bakerdonelson.com/Bluetooth-Headsets-Are-SO-2000s--Heres-What-Employees-Are-Wearing-in-2014-01-16-2014