The top 20 moments that shaped the world - in pictures

The British Council has produced a new list of the top 80 moments and trends across global politics, culture, science and education, that reflects the view of between 749 and 1,249 adults aged 18 to 65 with a minimum level of secondary education in Brazil, China, Egypt, Germany, India, Japan, Russia, South Africa, the UK and US. The polling was conducted by YouGov

80 landmarks in 80 years: the people and events that shaped our world

  • 1. The invention of the worldwide web in 1989-90

    Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the world wide web, photographed in his office in 1998.
    Tim Berners-Lee, 43

  • 2. The discovery of a method of mass production of penicillin, 1943

    Pharmacists fill culture flasks with the nutrient solution on which the penicillin mould is grown in 1943.
    Pharmacists fill culture flasks with the nutrient solution on which the penicillin mould is grown in 1943

  • 3. The widespread availability of home computers

    A 1980s UK Spectrum magazine advert.
    A 1980s UK Spectrum Magazine advert

  • 4. The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948

    Eleanor Roosevelt, holding the Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, which she helped to draft.
    Eleanor Roosevelt, holding The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights in 1948, which she helped to draft.

  • 5. The terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 on New York (the World Trade Center) and Washington DC; and the emergence of terrorism as a major international phenomenon

    Looking up from the location of Church and Fulton streets.
    11 Sep 2001, New York, NY, USA --- Looking up from the location of Church and Fulton streets both of the Twin Towers burn and exhaust large plumes of smoke approximately 25 minutes prior to the collapse of the South Tower

  • 6. The rise in global awareness of the importance of environmental protection/conservation

    Vivienne Westwood campaigning with Greenpeace at Glastonbury in 2014.
    6. The rise in global awareness of the importance of environmental protection/conservation Vivienne Westwood campaigning with Greenpeace at Glastonbury in 2014.

  • 7. The influence of Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) on South African and international politics and society

    Mandela stands at the window of the cell in Robben Island prison, where he was incarcerated for more than two decades.
    Nelson Mandela stands at the window of the cell in Robben Island Prison where he was incarcerated for more than two decades.

  • 8. The breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991

    Soviet army tanks parked in Moscow’s Red Square after a coup briefly toppled the Soviet president, Mikhail Gorbachev.
    Soviet Army tanks parked in Moscow's Red Square after a coup toppled Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.

  • 9. The invention of the atomic bomb and the explosion of atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima (6 August 1945) and Nagasaki (9 August)

    A mushroom cloud rises more than 60,000 feet into the air over Nagasaki.
    A mushroom cloud rises more than 60,000 feet into the air over Nagasaki

  • 10. The move towards greater equality for women in many parts of the world

    Striking female machinists from the Ford plant in Dagenham attend a women’s conference on equal rights in industry in 1968.
    Striking female machinists from the Ford plant in Dagenham attend a women's conference on equal rights in industry in 1968.

  • 11. The spread of English as a global language

    Sign outside a shop in France.
    Sign outside a shop in France.

  • 12. The growth and influence of social media

    Barack Obama’s tweet on 7 November 2012 in Rome after his re-election as US president.
    Barack Obama's tweet on November 7, 2012 in Rome after his re-election as US president

  • 13. Satellite technology and its impact on the way many people live

    A communications satellite.
    13. Satellite technology and its impact on the way many people live globally A communications Satellite.

  • 14. The Holocaust in Nazi occupied Europe

    Families forced out of their house by Germans, in the ghetto of Warsaw, Poland.
    Families taken out by the force of their house by the Germans, in the ghetto of Warsaw, Poland.

  • 15. The development and widespread adoption of the mobile phone

    Young monks gathering around smartphone in Bagan, Myanmar
    Young monks gathering around smartphone at bagan, Myanmar

  • 16. The human genome project, completed in 2001, which mapped the genetic structure of the human body

    A visitor views a digital representation of the human genome at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.
    A visitor views a digital representation of the human genome at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

  • 17. Deng Xiaoping and his ‘Open Door’ policy, which from 1978 onwards started the economic transformation of China

    Tourists stand in front of a painting of the late leader of the Communist party.
    Tourists stand in front of a painting of the late leader of the Communist Party.

  • 18. The invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939, marking the beginning of the second world war

    A newspaper vendor displays posters of the headlines announcing Adolf Hitler’s invasion.
    A newspaper vendor displays posters of the headlines announcing Adolf Hitler's invasion of Poland

  • 19. The development of nuclear energy

    Atomic power plant poster circa 1939
    Atomic Power Plant poster circa 1939

  • 20. The work and influence of the physicist Albert Einstein, 1879-1955

    Einstein photographed on his 72nd birthday, 14 March 1951
    Einstein photographed on his 72nd birthday, March 14, 1951
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