Japan's million-yen idea to tackle demographic decline | The Week UK

The most densely populated cities the world: Mumbai, India tops list

Elzy Kolb

24/7 Wall Street

Americans living in big cities like New York or Los Angeles are familiar with the stress of overcrowded streets and sidewalks and the lack of parking. It’s nearly impossible to find a spot to spread your beach blanket at Coney Island in the summer, and the long wait to cross the George Washington bridge connecting Manhattan with the borough of Fort Lee in New Jersey should be a crime.

But take a look at the crowds from another perspective: In the United States, we don’t actually know anything about real overcrowding – not a single American city ranks among the top 50 most densely populated urban areas in the world. At the other end of the spectrum, these are the least densely populated places in the world.

A variety of factors help explain the high density of these cities, where it seems impossible to walk without bumping into pedestrians every second: more births than deaths, people moving to cities for jobs or forced off rural land by natural disasters, skyrocketing land prices, to name a few.

Population density is determined by the number of residents who live within a given land area – usually a mile or kilometer. According to the United Nations, as of 2016, about 55% of the world’s population lives in urban areas. This is expected to grow to 60% by 2030, with one in three people living in cosmopolises with at least 500,000 residents – maybe in some of the world’s 33 megacities.

In time for the World Population Day, marked every year on July 11 to raise awareness about urgent population issues, 24/7 Tempo identified the most densely populated cities in the world, using data from CityMayors Statistics, a global source for urban statistics.

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50. Tokyo/Yokohama, Japan

• Population density: 12,296 per square mile

• Population: 33,200,000

• Square miles: 2,700 miles

Tokyo is the capital of Japan, and people flock to the city since it is the country's political and business center. In addition to the many workers who call the region home, there is a thriving student population, thanks to more than a dozen internationally ranked universities. Young people move to Tokyo to further their education, and stay for the available internships and jobs. Despite the crowds, the quality of life earns high marks for safety, public transportation, leisure activities and culture.

49. Porto Alegre, Brazil

• Population density: 12,439 per square mile

• Population: 2,800,000

• Square miles: 225 miles

Porto Alegre, the capital of the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, is one of four Brazilian cities among the 50 most densely populated metro areas. It is one of the nation's top regions for commerce and industry, as well as education and finance. As the name suggests, it has a busy port, plus jobs in tech, agriculture, manufacturing and more.

48. Barcelona, Spain

• Population density: 12,579 per square mile

• Population: 3,900,000

• Square miles: 310 miles

Barcelona isn't too far behind Madrid when it comes to Spanish cities with the greatest population density. The capital of Catalonia is a beloved destination for tourists, with an estimated 30 million-plus visitors taking to Barcelona's beaches, streets and cultural sites in 2017. Though the out-of-towners pump billions of euros into the local economy, some residents, including elected officials, are declaring a strong preference for refugees over tourists, noting that migrants become part of the community, while short-term visitors destabilize it.

47. Moscow, Russia

• Population density: 12,649 per square mile

• Population: 10,500,000

• Square miles: 830 miles

The largest country on Earth by area, Russia's overall population density is a mere 23 people per square mile when you take all of that vast space into consideration. But the headcount density is radically different in the crush of the capital city, where more than 12,000 people share each square mile. Moscow is the northern-most megacity on the planet, and also the coldest. It has one of Europe's largest economies, and low living costs compared to other major cities.

46. Buenos Aires, Argentina

• Population density: 12,801 per square mile

• Population: 11,200,000

• Square miles: 875 miles

Argentina's capital city is among the world's busiest ports; its varied economy includes government, commerce, industry, technology and culture. Agriculture, including grain exports, is among the leading businesses, with the Buenos Aires province being one of the top 10 wheat producers on Earth; the world's largest livestock market is located in the capital city.

45. Sapporo, Japan

• Population density: 12,981 per square mile

• Population: 2,075,000

• Square miles: 160 miles

Even though there's not much elbow room around Sapporo, the megapolis shows high potential for renewable energy development. One of three Japanese areas among the 50 most densely populated places on Earth, Sapporo is the capital of the Hokkaido prefecture. It has a thriving international port, well-regarded universities and research institutes, IT industry, and a cool factor due to its recognition as the first Asian city chosen as a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the field of media and arts.

44. Tel Aviv, Israel

• Population density: 13,150 per square mile

• Population: 2,300,000

• Square miles: 175 miles

The second largest city in Israel, Tel Aviv is the country's top destination for new immigrants from the United States, Africa, Russia, Ukraine and elsewhere. While some gravitate to the city for religious reasons or for asylum, others are attracted by the booming economy and business opportunities. Tel Aviv leads the world in the number of per capita startups, and has the highest gross domestic product investment in research and development.

43. London, UK

• Population density: 13,210 per square mile

• Population: 8,278,000

• Square miles: 627 miles

More than 300 languages are spoken by students in London, the capital city of England, where foreign-born migrants make up a sizable chunk of the population. However, the U.K. also has a high rate of internal migration, with London a revolving door of people arriving to take advantage of business opportunities, jobs, high salaries and the seductive lure of the big city. Others leave the metropolis to raise families or in search of a lower cost of living.

42. Madrid, Spain

• Population density: 13,430 per square mile

• Population: 4,900,000

• Square miles: 365 miles

The largest city in Spain as well as its capital, Madrid is among the most densely populated metropolitan areas in Europe. Besides being known for its sports teams, cultural institutions, history and architecture, the city is among Europe's biggest financial centers, a hub of international business and commerce, as well as Spain's main manufacturing center. Most of the nation's wealthiest neighborhoods are located in the capital city.

41. Ankara, Turkey

• Population density: 13,772 per square mile

• Population: 3,100,000

• Square miles: 225 miles

More than half of Turkey's borders are coastal, but the landlocked Ankara is its capital. It ranks second to Istanbul in size and industrial importance. Government is the biggest business, followed by manufacturing of everything from food products to construction materials and tractors. Ankara recently opened the largest hospital in Europe, with more than 3,600 beds, 12,000 employees, and eight divisions specializing in various types of medicine.

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40. Athens, Greece

• Population density: 13,953 per square mile

• Population: 3,685,000

• Square miles: 264 miles

With a written history going back more than three millennia, Athens is one of the oldest cities in the world. The Greek capital continues to be the heart of the country's political, cultural, financial and economic life. The ancient city was recently rated highly on a list of cheap European vacations, cited for its antiquities, museums and charming neighborhoods for dining and shopping.

39. Guadalajara, Mexico

• Population density: 15,210 per square mile

• Population: 3,500,000

• Square miles: 230 miles

One of three Mexican cities among the top 50 most densely populated areas in the world, Guadalajara is the capital and the largest urban area in the state of Jalisco. It has gained a reputation as the Silicon Valley of Mexico, with a sizable talent pool of coders, engineers and programmers, along with startups and venture capital. Besides that, Guadalajara is known for its tequila and mariachi bands.

38. Osaka/Kobe/Kyoto, Japan

• Population density: 16,592 per square mile

• Population: 16,425,000

• Square miles: 990 miles

Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto comprise the most densely populated region in Japan; each is the capital of its prefecture, and the combined area is known as the Kansai region. The major industries include manufacturing, distribution, finance and high tech. Attractions such as temples, castles, shopping, and dining abound in the region.

37. Bangkok, Thailand

• Population density: 16,668 per square mile

• Population: 6,500,000

• Square miles: 390 miles

Thailand's capital as well as its most densely populated city, Bangkok is the country's center of government, finance and industry. While the majority of the residents are of Thai ethnicity, the city has a variety of districts with Chinese, Indian, Japanese and Arab populations. While numerous sites give Bangkok high marks for quality of life, citing affordable cost of living, vibrant culture, good education and job opportunities. On the down side, its air pollution is among the worst on Earth.

36. Monterrey, Mexico

• Population density: 17,303 per square mile

• Population: 3,200,000

• Square miles: 185 miles

Monterrey is the capital of the Mexican state of Nuevo León, which has the nation's strongest economy. Construction and manufacturing surged in the state in 2018, and foreign direct investment (FDI) increased 127% over the previous year. The local unemployment rate hovers around 3.5%. But Monterrey isn't all work and no play – the city currently features a lively nightlife, plus outdoor activities and cultural institutions, and the World Cup is on the schedule for 2024.

35. Khartoum, Sudan

• Population density: 17,770 per square mile

• Population: 4,000,000

• Square miles: 225 miles

Khartoum is the capital of Sudan. Political unrest is rampant in this northeastern African nation. Last spring, the military ousted autocratic leader Omar al-Bashir, and since then, Khartoum has been the site of often-violent demonstrations, with at least 11 people killed during June 30 protests this summer. American travelers are urged to stay away from the area because of terrorism and civil unrest.

34. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

• Population density: 17,704 per square mile

• Population: 10,800,000

• Square miles: 610 miles

Though capital cities are often a country's most densely populated area, that's not the case in Brazil. Rio de Janeiro regularly attracts attention for special events such as the recent Copa America tournament and the annual carnival celebration, believed to be the biggest in the world. Though tourism plays an important role in the city's economy, oil, agriculture, banking, fishing and finance are all major industries as well.

33. Dalian, China

• Population density: 18,310 per square mile

• Population: 2,750,000

• Square miles: 150 miles

All eyes were on Dalian at the start of July, as the northeastern China city hosted the 2019 World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions, or Summer Davos Forum. This is the seventh time the forum has been held in Dalian since 2007. The forum, which typically draws about 2,000 participants from around the world, has elevated the city's profile internationally, and spurred infrastructure development, including new roads and building reconstruction. Dalian aims to increase its importance as an international trading center.

32. Istanbul, Turkey

• Population density: 19,991 per square mile

• Population: 9,000,000

• Square miles: 450 miles

Not only is Istanbul the most densely populated city in Turkey, it is also the largest transcontinental city in the world, with its well-packed footprint landing in both Europe and Asia. The city, which is known for having some of the worst traffic in the world, is looking to the sky: It's currently building the world's largest airport. In recent years, Istanbul has become a destination for hundreds of thousands of Syrians, with Turkey ranking as the country taking in the most refugees worldwide.

31. Recife, Brazil

• Population density: 20,837 per square mile

• Population: 3,025,000

• Square miles: 145 miles

With two ports, a thriving IT industry, agriculture and manufacturing, Recife is the major business and economic powerhouse of northeastern Brazil. The capital of the state of Pernambuco, the city is the second largest medical center in the country. With hundreds of hospitals and clinics, thousands of beds, and the latest medical technology, it serves patients across a large area. Unfortunately, Recife also has a high crime rate, including homicides, earning it a place on the list of most dangerous cities in the world as well.

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30. Lahore, Pakistan

• Population density: 21,236 per square mile

• Population: 5,100,000

• Square miles: 240 miles

The capital of the Punjab province, the second largest province by area, Lahore is Pakistan's second most populous city, with less than half the population density of the nation's capital city, Karachi. Punjabi, Urdu and English are the most commonly spoken languages in Lahore. The metropolis is the nation's engineering hub, producing cars, heavy machinery, steel, chemicals and more. Industry, traffic, crop burning and solid waste disposal all contribute to making this regional capital one of the world's most polluted cities.

29. Singapore

• Population density: 21,628 per square mile

• Population: 4,000,000

• Square miles: 185 miles

Often referred to as an economic tiger, Singapore, an island city-state, boasts a high gross domestic product per capita, low unemployment, and thriving electronics and pharmaceutical industries. The city often has superlatives linked with its name: It's among the most expensive city in the world (it's a three-way tie with Paris and Hong Kong), the world's most competitive economy, and – perhaps surprisingly, in such a high-rise environment – the city with the most trees, to name just a few of its attributes.

28. Santiago, Chile

• Population density: 21,683 per square mile

• Population: 5,425,000

• Square miles: 250 miles

On a clear day, you have a good view of the Andes Mountains from Santiago, Chile's capital city. The fourth most densely populated city in South America is also home to the continent's tallest building, the Gran Torre Santiago, standing almost 1,000 feet high. The city has the country's greatest concentration of industry, which includes clothing, shoe and textile manufacturing; banking and a stock exchange; and mining and metallurgy.

27. Mexico City, Mexico

• Population density: 21,750 per square mile

• Population: 17,400,000

• Square miles: 800 miles

Mexico City, situated more 7,300 feet above sea level, is North America's highest capital city, as well as its most densely populated metropolitan area. It is also the world's largest Spanish-speaking city, and one of the largest financial centers on the continent. Mexico City has a large immigrant and expatriate population from the around the globe, including the U.S., Canada, Europe, the Caribbean and elsewhere. Warm weather, good food and a lower cost of living are among the attractions.

26. St Petersburg, Russia

• Population density: 22,069 per square mile

• Population: 5,300,000

• Square miles: 240 miles

Located just below the Arctic Circle in the far northwest, St. Petersburg served as the capital of the Russian Empire for more than two centuries, until Moscow took over the honors in 1918. St. Petersburg remains a huge and important city 100 years post the Bolshevik revolution, and its historical district was named a UNESCO world heritage site in 1990. In addition to its major Baltic Sea port, the city is known as a Russian cultural center teeming with theaters, concert halls, palaces and museums, and architectural wonders. The Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines is a unique venue, featuring vending machines and games that were the Soviet equivalent of Pac-Man, with an ideological component.

25. São Paulo, Brazil

• Population density: 23,294 per square mile

• Population: 17,700,000

• Square miles: 760 miles

São Paulo is Brazil's most densely populated area, one of the most crowded metro areas in the Southern Hemisphere, and the world's largest Portuguese-speaking city. The capital of the state of the same name, São Paulo is the financial capital of Brazil. It is also a major export center, dealing in products such as soybean, coffee, raw sugar and corn.

24. Hyderabad, India

• Population density: 23,545 per square mile

• Population: 5,300,000

• Square miles: 225 miles

In a 2018 report, Hyderabad was credited with having the highest gross domestic product growth among 20 cities in emerging Asia-Pacific nations. The city, which is the capital of the state of Telangana, was rated second among nine Indian cities for employment growth rate over two years. For the fourth straight year, Hyderabad was named India's top city for standard of living.

23. Shenyang, China

• Population density: 24,013 per square mile

• Population: 4,200,000

• Square miles: 175 miles

This northeastern Chinese industrial city is located a little more than 300 miles from the North Korea border. The capital of Liaoning Province, Shenyang's main products include cars and auto parts, construction materials, chemicals, steel and agricultural products. Unlike Northeast China's other provincial capital cities, Shenyang's population has grown in recent years, with the increase attributed to job seekers, increased college enrollment and more families having second children.

22. Baghdad, Iraq

• Population density: 23,901 per square mile

• Population: 5,500,000

• Square miles: 230 miles

Following the defeat of the Islamic State last year, Baghdad residents reported that life was starting to feel somewhat safe and normal. People who had fled during more than a decade of war and upheaval began returning to their hometown, the capital of Iraq. The economy in Iraq had been picking up in recent months.

21. Cairo, Egypt

• Population density: 24,400 per square mile

• Population: 12,200,000

• Square miles: 500 miles

Cairo is among the most densely populated cities in Africa, with its ongoing growth attributed to the disparity between the annual birth rate (30 births per 1,000 people) and death rate (7 deaths per 1,000 people). Egypt's capital city has such a perennial housing shortage that for decades residents have occupied every viable bit of space, including among the above-ground tombs in the el-Arafa necropolis, also known as the City of the Dead.

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20. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

• Population density: 24,500 per square mile

• Population: 4,900,000

• Square miles: 200 miles

Ho Chi Minh City's population is more than double the population of Hanoi, Vietnam's capital and the next largest city. Migrants are attracted to the city for job opportunities in manufacturing, business and tourism, and by the per capita gross domestic product, which is twice as high as the national average in 2016. The country is investing in infrastructure improvements, such as Ho Chi Minh's metro rapid transit network, to help Vietnam preserve its status as one of the world's fastest growing tourist destinations.

19. Bangalore, India

• Population density: 26,191 per square mile

• Population: 5,400,000

• Square miles: 206 miles

Bangalore is one of the world's least expensive cities. Nevertheless, it's standard of living was rated among the best in India in a recent report, which may explain why much of the population growth in Bangalore is due to migration from other Indian states. The capital of the state of Karnataka, Bangalore is home to many tech companies, earning it the nickname of the Silicon Valley of India.

18. Tianjin, China

• Population density: 27,158 per square mile

• Population: 4,750,000

• Square miles: 175 miles

China's largest coastal city, Tianjin has the biggest port in the northern part of the country. Besides being a major transport and shipping hub, the city is also a manufacturing center, producing cars, textiles, metalwork and chemicals. Tianjin is China's fourth most densely populated city, with growth expected to continue over the next decade.

17. Jakarta, Indonesia

• Population density: 27,138 per square mile

• Population: 14,250,000

• Square miles: 525 miles

Employment opportunities and a high standard of living are among the factors causing people from across Indonesia to migrate to the capital city of Jakarta. About half of the population is thought to have actually been born in the city. The growth, which is predicted to continue, has brought problems, including the worst air pollution in Southeast Asia. Auto emissions and coal-fired power plants are among the main sources of the hazardous air quality.

16. Tehran, Iran

• Population density: 27,372 per square mile

• Population: 7,250,000

• Square miles: 265 miles

Migrants are behind the population growth in Tehran. Most of the newcomers to the capital of Iran come from other cities within the country. However, reverse migration could be on the upswing, with residents becoming concerned about environmental problems and fewer economic opportunities. Though Tehran is an old and interesting city, Iran ranks high on the list of countries the U.S. government doesn't want you to visit, citing a high risk of kidnapping, arrest and detention.

15. Manila, Philippines

• Population density: 27,307 per square mile

• Population: 14,750,000

• Square miles: 540 miles

Based on employment growth and gross domestic production per capita growth between 2014 and 2016, Manila has a solid place on the list of top-performing metro areas, according to a study published in 2018. The densely populated city had employment growth of 5.7%, and GDP per capita of 5.5%, landing it among the 10 top performers on Earth. While the solid financial outlook may contribute to growth, Manila could become a destination for dedicated shoppers: The Philippine capital is the site of the biggest Ikea store in the world, which is set to open in 2020.

14. Kinshasa, DRC

• Population density: 27,612 per square mile

• Population: 5,000,000

• Square miles: 181 miles

Migration from rural areas, high fertility rates, and widening of the city's boundaries have contributed to the burgeoning population in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. With a life expectancy of just over 50 years, millions of people facing food insecurity, and 85% of the population believing their government is corrupt, the DRC is considered one of the world's most miserable places to life.

13. New Delhi, India

• Population density: 28,600 per square mile

• Population: 14,300,000

• Square miles: 500 miles

There's always a trade-off: New Delhi is one of the least expensive cities in the world, but it also has some of the worst air quality. Improved infrastructure, education and standard of living have attracted people from all over the country to India's capital. Technology, banking, transportation and government are the biggest employers in this densely populated metro area.

12. Beijing, China

• Population density: 29,827 per square mile

• Population: 8,614,000

• Square miles: 289 miles

Population growth in the Beijing megalopolis comes from a variety of sources, including migrants moving to the nation's capital in search of opportunity, and the easing of restrictions limiting families to only one child. One of the oldest capital cities in the world, Beijing's urban problems include air pollution, dealing with domestic waste, and traffic congestion.

11. Lima, Peru

• Population density: 30,419 per square mile

• Population: 7,000,000

• Square miles: 230 miles

The densely populated Lima is the financial and industrial hub and capital city of Peru. Fishing and mining (gold, copper, zinc and lead) are among the region's main businesses. Manufacturing and tourism are other revenue generators. Lima will be in the spotlight this summer as it hosts the 2019 Pan American Games.

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10. Shanghai, China

• Population density: 34,718 per square mile

• Population: 10,000,000

• Square miles: 288 miles

For more than two decades, Shanghai has been among the fastest growing urban areas in the world. Migration is behind much of the population expansion, with people from other regions of China flocking to the area. Shanghai is the world's busiest container port; major industries include financial services, tech, wholesale and retail, real estate, transportation, construction, and manufacturing.

9. Bogota, Colombia

• Population density: 35,000 per square mile

• Population: 7,000,000

• Square miles: 200 miles

Located at more than 8,000 feet above sea level, Bogota is among the highest capital cities on Earth. The country's center of government and industry, Bogota is aiming to become one of the greenest cities on the continent. A member of the World Green Building Council for the past decade, Bogota has tightened its building codes, made a priority of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and improving sustainability.

8. Chennai, India

• Population density: 37,223 per square mile

• Population: 5,950,000

• Square miles: 160 miles

The capital of Tamil Nadu state, Chennai is a governmental, industrial and cultural center in southern India. Much of the growth in the megalopolis is from migrants moving from rural areas in the state in search of jobs, though Chennai is also a destination for people from throughout the nation. In recent weeks the region has faced a water shortage, as four of the largest reservoirs are virtually dry from lack of rain.

7. Taipei, Taiwan

• Population density: 39,263 per square mile

• Population: 5,700,000

• Square miles: 145 miles

Though there's no doubt that Taipei is among the most densely populated places on Earth, there's some concern that the headcount may actually begin to drop. A low birth rate and aging population are fueling fears of a future dwindling workforce and decline in productivity that could slow technical innovation and take a toll on the economy.

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6. Seoul/Incheon, South Korea

• Population density: 43,208 per square mile

• Population: 17,500,000

• Square miles: 405 miles

Low birth rates have caused Seoul's population growth to level off somewhat. But there's not likely to be much room to roam in South Korea's capital for the foreseeable future. The city's population density is about twice that of New York City and four times higher than that of Los Angeles. The region has the distinction of having one of the best-run airports in the world, Incheon International.

5. Shenzhen, China

• Population density: 44,464 per square mile

• Population: 8,000,000

• Square miles: 180 miles

There are a lot of "mosts" associated with Shenzhen. Though not a capital city, it is the most densely populated region in China. It is also the location of four of the world's tallest buildings. As of 2017, Shenzhen ranked 6th among cities with the most electric cars on the road. And as of 2017, Shenzhen-based Huawei was 49th on the list of the most valuable brands in the world.

4. Lagos, Nigeria

• Population density: 47,027 per square mile

• Population: 13,400,000

• Square miles: 285 miles

The one-time capital of Nigeria, Lagos is the most densely populated region in Africa. Among the reasons for the overcrowding is the influx of job seekers from rural areas, and refugees from countries like Togo and Cameroon fleeing to the mega-city. The cost of living in Lagos is among the lowest in the world, but the country as a whole has some of the poorest health statistics, including a life expectancy of just over 53 years of age and an infant mortality rate of almost 67 per 1,000 live births.

3. Karachi, Pakistan

• Population density: 49,000 per square mile

• Population: 9,800,000

• Square miles: 200 miles

The former capital of Pakistan, Karachi is the most crowded city in the Muslim world. Migrants and refugees from Bangladesh, Burma, Uganda, Iran and Afghanistan have moved into the area. Migrant workers from other regions of Pakistan add to the density. Though Karachi ranks among the least expensive cities for expatriates, it's also rated one of the least livable, with a drop in standard of living likely, according to a 2018 study.

2. Kolkata, India

• Population density: 61,945 per square mile

• Population: 12,700,000

• Square miles: 205 miles

There's a lot going on in the planet's second most crowded megalopolis. In addition to being a financial and manufacturing center, Kolkata has a major port and thriving tech sector. Nevertheless, problems with severe air pollution, poverty and infrastructure need to be addressed in the capital city of West Bengal state.

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1. Mumbai, India

• Population density: 76,790 per square mile

• Population: 14,350,000

• Square miles: 187 miles

Tens of thousands of people find themselves packed into each square mile of the most crowded urban area on Earth. Regardless of the overall dearth of space, the good life is alive and well in Mumbai, which has one of the greatest populations of mega-millionaires. From traffic congestion to huge landfills to breathtaking architecture, Bollywood movies and urban parkland, Mumbai is a city of contrasts and surprises.

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Tens of thousands protest on Okinawa to close key U.S. bases in ...

Kirk Spitzer

USA TODAY

TOKYO — Tens of thousands of protesters Sunday on Okinawa called for the closure of all U.S. military bases on the strategically important island, following last month's rape and murder of a 20-year-old woman in which a U.S. base worker is the suspect.

It was one of the largest anti-U.S. base protests in Japan in decades and comes amid delicate negotiations over relocating a key American air base on Okinawa and China's increasingly assertive behavior in the Asia-Pacific region.

A crowd estimated by Japan’s Kyodo News service at 65,000 rallied in sweltering conditions at an outdoor sports stadium, holding signs reading, “Marines, Withdraw” and “Our anger has reached the limit.”

Thousands more protested outside Japan’s parliament building in Tokyo, and protests were planned in more than 40 of Japan’s 47 prefectures, according to local news reports.

Okinawa Gov. Takeshi Onaga, a staunch opponent of the U.S. military presence on Okinawa, expressed outrage over the woman's death. He pledged to work toward removal of U.S. forces and revision of an agreement that, under certain circumstances, limits Japanese jurisdiction over U.S. troops and base workers.

"I hereby express my unflagging resolve to push for drastic review of the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement and withdrawal of Marines (from Okinawa)," Onaga told protesters. Like many of the demonstrators Sunday, Onaga was dressed largely in black.

More than 25,000 U.S. troops — mostly Marines — are based in Okinawa, a linchpin of the U.S. “re-balance” to the Asia-Pacific region. That’s the largest concentration of U.S. forces in Japan, and residents have long complained of noise, crime and congestion associated with the heavy U.S. presence.

Police last month charged Kenneth Franklin Gadson, 32, a former Marine, with stabbing and strangling the 20-year-old office worker.

Police said Gadson, who also goes by his wife’s family name of Shinzato, led them to the body in a wooded area. Gadson’s attorney said he confessed to the killing. Police said he told investigators that he picked the victim at random.

At the time of his arrest, Gadson was working as a civilian contractor at Kadena Air Base, a sprawling U.S facility in Okinawa. The incident followed the March arrest of a U.S. sailor in March on charges of raping a Japanese woman in a hotel in Naha, Okinawa’s capital.

The incidents seem certain to complicate efforts to relocate a Marine air base at Futenma, Okinawa, to a less densely populated part of the island. Onaga and a majority of Okinawa residents want the base moved off the island.

In an interview Saturday with Japan’s Jiji Press, the senior U.S. military commander on Okinawa said he feels “great pain and anger” over the woman's death.

"The message is this: Do not allow this incident to divide and drive a wedge between American and Okinawan communities here," Marine Lt. Gen. Lawrence Nicholson said.

After Gadson’s arrest last month, Nicholson announced a 30-day period of “unity and mourning” for all U.S. service personnel based on Okinawa. That included a tightened curfew and a ban on alcohol consumption off base.

The Navy imposed a Japan-wide ban on alcohol consumption in early June after a sailor based on Okinawa was arrested on drunk driving charges. The sailor reportedly had a blood alcohol level six times Japan’s legal limit at the time of her arrest. The sailor was arrested after crashing into two cars while driving the wrong way on a major highway.

In an unrelated action, the Navy this weekend gathered two powerful aircraft carrier battle groups in the Philippine Sea, east of Okinawa. It was the largest assemblage of U.S. warships in the region in recent years and follows two incidents this month in which Chinese warships sailed into or near Japanese territorial waters, prompting objections from Japan.

The plan to relocate the U.S. bases developed after three U.S. servicemen were convicted in 1995 of kidnapping and raping a 12-year-old Okinawa girl on her way home from school. The incident sparked massive protests and led to negotiations to reduce the U.S. military presence on Okinawa.

Listen up, tourists: Hawaii locals share what they wish visitors would ...

In pre-pandemic days, over 10 million people would arrive annually to enjoy the Hawaiian Islands. That's quite a bit of people, considering that the state's population is about 1.4 million. The impact of the high number of tourists hasn't gone unnoticed.

"Over a century, Hawaii has welcomed many visitors by embracing them with warmth and aloha," Diana Su, the senior marketing manager of Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa who was raised in Honolulu, said. "However, over decades, the amount of visitors have increased and started depleting the state of its natural resources, damaging the delicate environment, and affecting traditional practices and rituals."

About two-thirds of Hawaii residents think their "island is being run for tourists at the expense of local people," a number that has held steady for about five years, according to a 2022 state-sponsored survey asking residents about their sentiment toward tourism. They point out overcrowding, damage to the environment, higher costs and more traffic.

BOOK A SPOT:To manage over tourism, are reservation systems the future of traveling to Hawaii?

JUST DON'T:Stop throwing coins into hot steam vents, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park asks of 'disrespectful' people

At the same time, tourism is a pillar of Hawaii's economy – in fact, it represents a quarter of it, thanks to the jobs it creates in the hospitality industry and visitor spending.

It can be a tricky balancing act for people who want to visit Hawaii while minimizing any negative impact on the islands because for so long, people have treated it as their paradisiacal playground. The best people to turn to for advice on this are undeniably the ones who live in Hawaii: locals.

Read below to read Hawaii locals wish tourists would stop doing while visiting the islands:

1. Don't be clueless

Su urges people to know their stuff before departing on their trip, so take some time and learn more about Hawaii.

"Avoid coming to Hawaii without doing some research first," she said. It's important to know how to "avoid disrespecting sacred sites and respect boundaries and kapu (off-limit) areas."

Take the time to learn about the companies you're hiring for excursions or tours to make sure they support the community and environment. Making educated choices on where to spend your money and what is considered respectful or disrespectful will make your trip to Hawaii that much better.

DON'T BE THAT TOURIST:Here's how to respectfully visit Hawaii, have an authentic trip

2. Don't take anything, ever

Many visitors to Hawaii take sand, coral or lava rocks from its national parks as memorabilia of their trip to Hawaii. According to Jin Prugsawan Harlow, chief of interpretation, education and volunteers as well as public information officer for Haleakala National Park, taking items from national parks is not only illegal, it's also culturally inappropriate.

Hawaiians view Haleakala as their ancestor, Harlow said, so taking something from the park is considered highly disrespectful.

"People come to Hawaii and (other national parks) because they're wild, scenic and beautiful," Harlow said. "And people can play a great role in making sure it stays that way."

THINK TWICE:Stop throwing coins into hot steam vents, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park asks of 'disrespectful' people

3. Don't go during peak hours

Traffic in Hawaii is a sore spot, with Honolulu often ranking as one of the most congested cities in the country. With so many tourists out and about on the islands, Harlow suggests to try going to popular attractions during off-hours.

"At Haleakala, things can get crowded around the summit around sunset but from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the park is really empty," she said. "Going to the Kipahulu District, arriving earlier in the day helps you beat crowded parking lots."

4. Don't disturb wildlife

Hawaii is blessed with many beautiful creatures, some of which are impossible to spot anywhere else in the world, like the Hawaiian monk seal. While spotting these creatures out in the wild is always a treat, keep your distance and make sure to never disturb them or their natural habitat (as in, don't touch reefs or flip over rocks).

In certain cases, it's illegal to get too close to animals like turtles and nursing seals. Seriously, it's not worth it.

SHARK ATTACK:Tourist taken to hospital after 'serious bite' from shark on Maui's north shore

5. Don't be reckless outdoors

Hawaii has otherworldly valleys, peaks, shorelines and waterfalls to explore, and as stunning as the experience may be, it can also be dangerous if you're not careful. A lack of preparation, bad weather conditions and going to unsafe areas that are trending online can often put people at risk.

For example, on Kauai, the Kauai Fire Department locked the gate accessing Queen's Bath, a large tidal pool that can be hazardous, especially when the surf is rough. Still, people sneak in and often end up needing to be rescued. Do your research about hikes or beaches and heed to warning signs – they're there for a reason.

"One of our most important values, for example, is to respect the land and ocean that provides for us, and we ask that visitors share in this ethos to keep our home beautiful," Wendy Tuivaioge, Director of Hawaiian Programs at the Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea, said. "Be mindful of your surroundings, do not venture out alone, and stay on well-marked trails."

DO THIS, NOT THAT: You won't regret these 8 activities when you visit the islands, according to Hawaii locals

6. Don't use harmful sunscreen

Hawaii's ecosystems are unique and fragile, including its coral reefs, and some sunscreens may play a role in harming the islands' marine life.

In 2018, Hawaii Gov. David Ige passed a law that went into effect in 2021 – making Hawaii the first state – that banned sunscreens containing chemicals believed to damage coral and marine life, oxybenzone and octinoxate.

When slathering up with SPF, do your part to protect the ocean by picking reef-safe brands. Some brands that are reef-safe include Raw Elements or Kokua Sun Care, which is made right in the islands.

7. Don't geotag

It may be tempting to do it for the 'gram and share your vacation pictures online, but that post may have consequences long after you hit upload.

The rise in social media geotagging and sharing of once hidden spots has caused many across the country to blow up and become overcrowded and overrun, much to the dismay of locals who have been enjoying these more secret places for a long time. If you find yourself at this crossroads, consider the impact of your post.

CROWDED SPOTS:Was your favorite hidden vacation spot overexposed? Blame social media and pent-up demand

8. Don't forget you're visiting someone's home

At the end of the day, many locals have one reminder: "It's important for travelers to understand they are visiting someone's home and draw on the sensibilities that come with that," Ha'aheo Zablan, general manager of Kaimana Beach Hotel who is also Native Hawaiian, said. "We have amazing visitor-centric opportunities to take in all Hawaii has to offer without venturing into local neighborhoods or exploring too far from resort zones." For example, people who seek out hikes with trailheads in quiet neighborhoods have been called out for disturbing residents with noise or crowded parking.

Prejean echoes the sentiment: "While Hawaii is a welcoming destination, we do ask that tourists be aware of their surroundings, reduce your 'footprint' by leaving the places you visit better than you found it, and to treat the local neighborhoods and people with respect and kindness."

Potential for fourth Covid-19 vaccine dose is being 'very carefully ...

CNN —

As the world approaches the second anniversary of the declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic by the World Health Organization, on March 11, more nations are rolling out – or are discussing the possibility of – fourth doses of coronavirus vaccine for their most vulnerable. In the United States, leading public health officials say they are “very carefully” monitoring if or when fourth doses might be needed.

Israel was the first nation to roll out fourth doses, announcing in December that adults 60 and older, medical workers and people with suppressed immune systems were eligible to receive the extra shot if at least four months have passed since their third dose.

More recently, the Public Health Agency of Sweden announced last week that second booster doses are recommended for everyone 80 and older in the country. The United Kingdom’s Department of Health and Social Care announced Monday that an extra booster dose of coronavirus vaccine will be offered in the spring to adults 75 and older, residents in care homes for older adults and immunosuppressed people 12 and older.

In the United States, health officials emphasized late last year that fourth doses were not yet needed and said it was too premature to be discussing a potential fourth dose of coronavirus vaccine for most people.

Now, the US Food and Drug Administration “is indeed continually looking at the emerging data on the pandemic and variants in the United States and overseas in order to evaluate the potential utility and composition of booster doses,” FDA spokesperson Alison Hunt wrote in an email to CNN on Friday.

She confirmed that although Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, has noted that there is still much uncertainty as to how the pandemic may further evolve, he also has said it is possible that a fourth dose might be recommended as we move into fall.

A fall timeline coincides with the administration of flu shots, which could be convenient for people and makes sense scientifically because respiratory viruses – like the coronavirus and influenza – tend to peak in the winter months that follow.

“As more data become available about the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, including the use of a booster dose, we will continue to evaluate the rapidly changing science and keep the public informed,” Hunt wrote. “Any determination that additional booster doses are needed will be based on data available to the agency.”

If or when the FDA authorizes a fourth dose for the public, the next step would be for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to review the data before making a recommendation for use, as the agency has done for other coronavirus vaccine recommendations.

‘Vaccination and boosting will be critical’

The United States has seen significant improvements recently in Covid-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths. As of Friday, cases were down 44% from the prior week, hospitalizations dropped 26%, and deaths were 13% lower, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

“Vaccination and boosting will be critical in maintaining that downward trajectory, particularly when you’re talking about the red curve of severe disease leading to hospitalization,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said during a White House Covid-19 Task Force briefing Wednesday.

The “potential future requirement” for an additional boost or a fourth shot of the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna mRNA vaccines or a third dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine “is being very carefully monitored in real time,” Fauci said. “And recommendations, if needed, will be updated according to the data as it evolves.”

The CDC has no recommendation of fourth doses of coronavirus vaccine for the general public, but the agency updated its guidelines in October to note that certain people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised may receive a fourth dose of the Moderna or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines.

“For the immunocompetent people, a single booster shot continues to provide high levels of protection against severe disease caused by Omicron,” Fauci said Wednesday. “This should not be confused with the fact that for many immunocompromised people, already a second booster shot – namely a fourth dose of an mRNA – is recommended because of what we know about their poor response to the initial regimen.”

Meanwhile, vaccine makers continue to study fourth doses in broader populations.

‘We recognize the need to be prepared’

Pfizer announced in January that it has been studying the safety and efficacy of a fourth dose as part of its ongoing study of an Omicron-specific coronavirus vaccine among healthy adults ages 18 to 55.

For that study, participants have been separated into three cohorts. One includes 600 people who got three doses of the current Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine before enrolling in the study. As part of the research, they will receive either a fourth dose of the current vaccine or a dose of the Omicron-based vaccine.

“While current research and real-world data show that boosters continue to provide a high level of protection against severe disease and hospitalization with Omicron, we recognize the need to be prepared in the event this protection wanes over time and to potentially help address Omicron and new variants in the future,” Kathrin Jansen, senior vice president and head of vaccine research and development at Pfizer, said in the company’s announcement of the study.

A study published by the CDC last week showed that protection against Covid-19 hospitalization and emergency department or urgent care visits is much higher after a third vaccine dose than a second dose but that protection wanes with time.

With the Omicron variant dominant in the United States, vaccine effectiveness was 87% against Covid-19 emergency department or urgent care visits and 91% against hospitalizations in the two months after a third dose. Effectiveness fell to 66% and 78%, respectively, by the fourth month, the data showed.

“Nonetheless, the level of 78 is still a good protective area,” Fauci said Wednesday.

Dr. Christopher Murray, director of the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, told CNN on Friday that he thinks having a fourth dose “makes very little sense” right now – but possibly makes more sense this upcoming fall or winter.

“Because Omicron is going away,” he said, “third dose immunity wanes, and so fourth dose will probably wane as well. So we would want to time a fourth-dose push for when either there’s a new variant or for next winter. So I think right now, unless you’re immunocompromised or you’re older, unless you have some personal risk, it doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

The research showing some waning immunity after a third dose has led to more discussion around if or when fourth doses could be needed.

“Just like with everything else, the health departments look at this data that’s coming out and wait for guidance from the CDC and from the drug manufacturers. The drug manufacturers have been monitoring vaccine effectiveness,” Lori Tremmel Freeman, chief executive officer of the National Association of County and City Health Officials, told CNN on Friday.

The timing for fourth doses not only depends on waning immunity “but also depends on whether we see any more variants emerge and what we discover in terms of additional vaccine effectiveness for any emerging new infections,” Freeman said.

If fourth doses are needed, “health departments would go into the mode of preparing to administer the fourth dose in the way they have done previous doses,” Freeman said. However, of greater concern among local public health officers is the slow – and declining – pace of people completing their third doses, she said.

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About 65% of the US population is fully vaccinated with at least their initial series, and about 28% of the population has received a booster dose, according to the CDC, as of Friday. But the pace of booster doses being administered has dropped to one of the slowest rates yet.

“As time goes on, if there is the necessity of a fourth dose, we’re already behind with people getting the third dose,” Freeman said. “So all of a sudden, we could have a fairly large segment of the population that is not up to date on vaccines because they’re behind by two doses, potentially, and more people could get sick.”

Fact Check: Armed citizens are not what stopped Japan from ...

The claim: The Japanese didn't invade the US mainland after Pearl Harbor because they feared armed Americans

On Dec. 7, 1941, Japan staged an attack on Pearl Harbor, severely damaging the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Pushing back against U.S. attempts to limit Japan's aggressive expansion, Japan launched a surprise attack on the nation's westernmost outpost. Though the air attack inflicted heavy losses, the Japanese military did not advance to the U.S. mainland.

A lengthy Facebook post claims fear over private gun ownership in the states is what stopped that invasion.

"After the Japanese decimated our fleet in Pearl Harbor Dec 7, 1941, they could have sent their troop ships and carriers directly to California to finish what they started," says a June 28, 2020, Facebook post that has found renewed life online a year later. "After the war, the remaining Japanese generals and admirals were asked that question. Their answer....they know that almost every home had guns and the Americans knew how to use them."

The post drew more than 650 likes and was shared more than 1,900 times since it was posted.

But it's wrong. According to historians, armed citizens were not among the key reasons Japan opted not to invade the continental U.S.

USA TODAY reached out to the user for comment.

Fact check:Decades-old essay about Declaration of Independence signatories is partly false

Japan lacked firepower and manpower

Japan hoped that its attack on Pearl Harbor could delay American intervention and give it time to solidify its Asian empire, according to PBS. Japan hoped a decisive victory could force the U.S to negotiate a peace that left Japan's government in power.

It had nothing to do with America's level of private gun ownership, said Sheldon Garon, a professor at Princeton University that specializes in Japanese history.

"It's preposterous (to say) that the main reason Japan didn't invade the U.S. was because of armed citizens," Garon said. "The main reason was because Japan was badly overextended in early 1942 as it was."

Japan at that point occupied the central and south Pacific, as well as Southeast Asia and parts of China, he said.

"They lacked the firepower and manpower to invade the United States, or even Australia or nearby Siberia," said Garon.

He said there were contingency plans to occupy Hawaii, but few naval commanders expected that to happen.

"That would have only been in the event of the Japanese navy successfully taking Midway Island in mid-1942, which they definitely did not," said Garon.

He said the closest they got to the U.S. was in occupying some of the Aleutian Islands off Alaska.

"But that was largely a diversion and possibly to discourage eventual air raids from Alaska, and not intended as a launching point for a ground invasion of Alaska, much less California," said Garon.

Fact Check:Homeowner painted house as the U.S. flag to protest historic commission rules

Our rating: False

The claim that the Japanese didn't invade the mainland U.S. after Pearl Harbor because they feared armed Americans is FALSE, based on our research. The main reason was because Japan was overextended and did not have the firepower or manpower needed to invade the U.S., historians say.

Our fact-checking sources:

Quick and stealthy new Covid-19 variants are poised to drive a ...

CNN —

A flurry of new Covid-19 variants appears to be gaining traction globally, raising fears of a winter surge.

In the United States, these are BQ.1, BQ.1.1, BF.7, BA.4.6, BA.2.75 and BA.2.75.2. In other countries, the recombinant variant XBB has been rising quickly and appears to be fueling a new wave of cases in Singapore. Cases are also rising in Europe and the UK, where these variants have taken hold.

Dr. Peter Hotez, who co-directs the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children’s Hospital, says he thinks of them collectively as the Scrabble variants because they use letters that get high scores in the board game like Q, X and B.

As the US moves into the fall, Covid-19 cases are dropping. Normally, that would be a reason for hope that the nation could escape the surges of the past two pandemic winters. But virus experts fear that the downward trend may soon reverse itself, thanks to this gaggle of new variants.

Lumped together, the variants accounted for almost 1 in 3 new Covid-19 infections nationwide last week, according to the latest estimates from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The updated bivalent booster vaccines and antiviral drugs like Paxlovid are expected to continue to be protective against severe outcomes from Covid-19 infections caused by the new variants.

But the new variants are particularly devastating for millions of Americans who have weakened immune systems. New research suggests that changes in these variants make them impervious to the last lab-created antibodies available to help treat and prevent severe cases of Covid-19, and the US government has run out of money to incentivize the creation of new ones.

A crowded field of rising variants

It’s not clear whether this gang of new variants will continue to run around together, each sharing a piece of the Covid-19 infection pie, or whether one will rise to outcompete the others, as has happened in previous surges.

Though they each descend from slightly different branches of the Omicron family tree, these new offshoots have evolved to share many of the same mutations, a phenomenon known as convergent evolution.

Some experts think this convergence means we’ve entered a new phase of the evolution of the virus, one that will see circulation of several variants at the same time.

“What is likely to happen is that we have several co-circulating, semi-dominate lineages going into the winter season,” said Nathan Grubaugh, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health.

“That’s because with convergent evolution, perhaps several different lineages can independently obtain similar transmissibility levels versus a single new variant taking over.

“This is what predominantly happens for most pathogens, such as the flu and RSV,” Grubaugh wrote in an email. “Now that the virus has adapted pretty well to human transmission, most of what is circulating has high fitness.”

Maria Van Kerkhove, the Covid-19 response technical lead for the World Health Organization, said Wednesday that the large mix of new variants was becoming more difficult for WHO to assess because countries were dialing back on their surveillance.

“So we need to be prepared for this. Countries need to be in a position to conduct surveillance, to deal with increases in cases and perhaps deal with increases and hospitalizations. We don’t see a change in severity yet. And our vaccines remain effective, but we have to remain vigilant,” she said.

Inaction gives the virus an edge

For now, the Omicron subvariant BA.5 still holds the top spot in the US. According to CDC estimates, it caused about 68% of new infections in the US last week, but it is quickly being outcompeted by several new sublineages – notably BQ.1 and BQ.1.1.

The BQs each caused just 6% of new infections in the US last week, but in recent weeks, the share of new Covid-19 infections caused by these viruses has doubled every six to seven days – a rapid rate of growth against BA.5, which is already a highly fit virus, says Dr. Anthony Fauci, who directs the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

And these are just two of the new crop of Omicron descendants making a move.

“The projections vary a little, but generally, most people feel somewhere in the middle of November that they’ll wind up being a substantial proportion and have bumped BA.5 off as the dominant variant,” Fauci told CNN.

These variants are different from BA.4 and BA.5, but they’re descended from those viruses, the result of genetic drift. So they share many parts of their genomes with that virus.

Their changes aren’t on the scale of what happened when the original Omicron arrived on the scene in November 2021. That strain of the virus, which is now long gone, came out of genetic left field, leaving researchers and public health officials scrambling to catch up.

Fauci says that this time, we are as ready as we could be for the latest batch of variants.

“It isn’t that different from BA.5 that it would completely escape the protection that you would get from vaccine” – if people would just get the shot, Fauci said.

The bivalent booster vaccine, authorized in September, protects against the original strain of the coronavirus as well as the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants.

“We have a BA.5 bivalent updated vaccine as a booster that we’re pushing people to do. It’s matched against the still-dominant variant, which is BA.5, and almost certainly will have a reasonably good degree of cross-protection against the BQ.1.1 and the others, and yet the uptake of these vaccines, as we are already in the middle of October, is disappointing,” he said.

According to the latest data from the CDC, 14.8 million people have gotten an updated bivalent booster six weeks into the campaign promoting it. That’s less than 10% of the population that’s eligible to get one.

The poor uptake of the new boosters, combined with the immune evasiveness of the new variants and the waning of population immunity, is almost surely a recipe for rising cases and hospitalizations in the weeks ahead.

“It’s probably going to be significantly bigger than the BA.5 wave, at least that’s what I expect,” said Mark Zeller, a project scientist who monitors variants at the Scripps Research Institute. But Zeller says he doesn’t expect this winter’s surge to reach heights of January’s Omicron wave.

Hotez says people shouldn’t panic about this news but should pay attention.

“We’re underperforming as a nation with people getting their bivalent boosters,” Hotez said.

The genetic changes these variants share appear to help them escape the immunity created by vaccines and past infections – a recipe for reinfections and breakthrough infections, particularly for people who haven’t had an updated booster.

Critical therapies could soon stop working

Crucially, some of the variants also appear to be impervious to the last lab-created antibodies available to ward off severe Covid-19 infections: an antibody treatment called bebtelovimab, which is made by Eli Lilly, and the combination of two long-acting antibodies in Evusheld, a shot made by AstraZeneca that helps keep people who are immunocompromised from getting sick in the first place.

If these antibodies stop working against the virus, the United States will still have Covid-19 antiviral drugs like Paxlovid, molnupiravir and remedsivir to help those at risk of severe complications.

But antibody therapies are particularly important for people with immune function that has been blunted by drugs, disease or age. These are the same people whose bodies don’t respond robustly to vaccines.

The antibodies are also needed to help people who can’t take antiviral therapies because of possible reactions with other medications.

White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha says the federal government has been spurring the development of new monoclonal antibodies during the pandemic by promising to purchase new therapies after they’re made.

The government can’t do that anymore, he said, because Congress has declined to pass additional funding for the Covid-19 response.

As a result, development of new antibodies – and other new therapeutics – is lagging.

“So even if we got money today, it would take us many months to bring a monoclonal into the marketplace, and we don’t have the money today anyway,” Jha told CNN.

Jha said that means the nation is facing fall and winter with a smaller arsenal against the virus, just when it needs to expand its options.

“There is not a monoclonal sitting ready to go tomorrow that we could just buy off the shelf,” he said.

Antibodies are a losing proposition for companies because it takes millions of dollars of investment to make them and because the virus is evolving so fast, they might be effective for only a few months.

“That is a terrible business model,” Jha said.

The administration has been thinking about ways to commercialize some parts of the Covid-19 response – to get out of the business of buying vaccines and therapies – ultimately passing the costs on to consumers and insurers. But Jha says the process has to be guided by “the needs on the ground and the realities of the virus.”

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He says current realities require that the government continue to incentivize the production of new therapies, and he expects that the Biden administration will again try to ask Congress to pass more funding to do that.

“And the truth is that if we want monoclonals to protect high-risk people – which we do – then at this point, given the speed of viral evolution, the US government has to be a major player in that role,” Jha said. “The market cannot take care of it by itself.”

How will China's Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics 'bubble' work? | CNN

Editor’s Note: A version of this story appeared in CNN’s Meanwhile in China newsletter, a three-times-a-week update exploring what you need to know about the country’s rise and how it impacts the world. Sign up here.

CNN —

The Winter Games is just two weeks away and outside Beijing’s Olympic venues, the banners and decorations are up. But so too are long rows of metal fences and guard posts, dividing the Chinese capital and barring anyone without an official Covid-safe pass.

Having been largely sealed off from the world for two years, Beijing is bracing itself for the arrival of thousands of foreign Olympians, officials, journalists and support staff – including from countries where the highly transmissible Omicron variant is raging.

Whether Chinese authorities can keep the Games Covid-safe and prevent any flare-ups from spilling into Beijing is the ultimate test of China’s zero-Covid strategy. The stringent prevention and control measures are held up by the ruling Communist Party as proof of the self-proclaimed superiority of its authoritarian political system. The strategy has kept infections and deaths low – but it has also inflicted painful lockdowns on millions of people and isolated China from the world.

And now, Beijing is applying those same measures to the Olympics. To limit the spread of infection, it is sealing the entire Games inside what authorities have called a “closed loop system” – a bubble completely cut off from the rest of the city.

The quarantine is arguably the most ambitious of its kind ever undertaken. The NBA attempted something similar, when it created a quarantine zone inside Disney World in Orlando, Florida, designed to keep players and staff safe for the final stages of the 2019-20 season. But what Beijing is about to attempt is on a whole other level.

Security personnel stand behind a fence at the Olympic Park in Beijing, two weeks before the start of the 2022 Winter Olympic. Noel Celis/AFP/ Getty Images

Whereas the NBA “bubble” housed about 350 players from 22 teams, the Beijing bubble is welcoming an estimated 11,000 people from around the world – and they will be shuttling through three competition zones up to 111 miles (180 kilometers) apart.

Securing the bubble will require massive manpower, meticulous planning, pervasive surveillance and rigorous government enforcement – and the arrival of Omicron has only made it all the more challenging.

Already, coronavirus has been detected in recent Olympic arrivals in Beijing, both at the airport and inside the closed loop.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said in a statement Wednesday that so far, 1.53% tests conducted upon arrival are positive, while 0.02% of regular screening tests taken inside the closed loop are positive. It did not specify the number of total tests in both scenarios.

“All cases so far are within 5 days of arrival and are therefore assessed as being imported (contracted prior to arrival in Beijing). No infection has occurred within the Closed Loop,” the statement said.

As of Friday, more than 2,000 participants have arrived in Beijing, including athletes, officials, members of the IOC and media, according to the official app for the Beijing Winter Games. Thousands of Chinese volunteers and staff have already spent days, if not weeks, inside the closed loop.

Here’s a breakdown of how the bubble is supposed to work.

The separation

Participants will be confined to the “closed loop” from the moment they touch down until they fly out. Throughout their stay, they will compete, work, eat and sleep without making any contact with the wider Chinese population.

The “closed loop” consists of a series of stadiums, conference centers and more than 70 hotels, with those in downtown Beijing fenced off and closely guarded by police; it even has its own transportation system, with 4,000 vehicles dedicated to moving participants from place to place.

Instead of one giant Olympic bubble, the system is formed by a network of interconnected mini-bubbles. They are concentrated in three zones: downtown Beijing, where the ice competitions and opening and closing ceremonies will be held; the suburban Yanqing district, a site for alpine skiing and sliding; and Zhangjiakou, a city in neighboring Hebei province that will host Nordic skiing and the bulk of freestyle skiing and snowboard events.

The National Aquatics Center, known as the Ice Cube, will host curling at the 2022 Winter Olympics. Leo Ramirez/AFP/Getty Images

The three zones are linked by high-speed train and highways. To maintain the separation, even the train cars are divided, and the closed-loop buses are given specially marked lanes. Drivers not part of the Olympics who cross into these lanes will be fined.

In a sign of the lengths Chinese authorities are going to avoid the bubble being breached, residents have been warned not to rush to offer help if an Olympic vehicle is involved in a crash.

“In case of traffic accidents with special vehicles for the Winter Olympics, please pay attention to maintaining a safe distance,” Beijing’s traffic authorities said in a statement on social media earlier this month. “Do not make contact with vehicles or personnel in them and wait for professionals to arrive at the scene.”

Athletes, staff and volunteers inside the closed loop will also be separated from spectators, who have their own transport and entrance to the events. The Beijing organizers announced this week that tickets for the Games will not be sold to the general public in response to the pandemic, but instead distributed by authorities.

Hopping into the bubble

Given China’s determination to keep out any Covid cases, getting to the bubble is already a challenge.

Anyone entering the bubble must be fully vaccinated, or face an additional 21-day quarantine upon arrival in Beijing before being allowed into the bubble.

The journey starts 14 days prior to departure. Participants are required to limit interactions with others to avoid catching Covid. They must also use an app to upload their body temperature and answer questions about their health status every day.

Cybersecurity researchers have warned the app contains security flaws that leave users exposed to data breaches. Chinese authorities have dismissed the concerns, but the United States and other countries are advising athletes to bring disposable burner phones to the Games.

Before departure, those traveling to the Games must take two Covid tests. With few international flights allowed to land in Beijing, most participants have to take special charter flights. Upon arrival, they will be greeted by workers in hazmat suits and undergo another test, before being transported to their hotel in designated buses escorted by police.

What is it like inside?

Once inside the bubble, participants will be subject to a series of rigorous prevention and control measures. They will be tested for Covid every day and must wear face masks at all times.

The stakes for catching Covid are extremely high. Participants who test positive will be immediately removed from the closed loop. Those who are symptomatic will be sent to a designated hospital for treatment, while asymptomatic cases will be taken to an isolation facility. They won’t be allowed to return to the bubble until all symptoms disappear and they test negative twice in a row.

The PCR tests for the Beijing Winter Games are also more stringent than those used by some others sports events, such as the NBA and NHL, meaning they can return positive at a lower viral load. On Sunday, the organizers raised the viral load for testing positive, making the tests slightly more lenient.

A positive test can also affect the person’s teammates and colleagues. Anyone who has had a mask-less exposure for longer than 15 minutes to an infected person is considered a close contact, and will be subject to twice daily testing.

Chinese authorities did not reveal exactly how many workers will be inside the “closed loop system.” Already in the bubble are thousands of Chinese volunteers and staff, including organizers, health care workers, drivers, cleaners and chefs. The first batch of volunteers – 16 students from a university in Beijing – entered the “closed loop” on January 3 to work at the Beijing Capital International Airport, before the first Olympic flight arrived.

The Chinese staff and volunteers are required to stay throughout the event – meaning they will miss the Lunar New Year holiday. It’s the biggest festival in China and the most important time for families to get together – likened by some to Christmas, Thanksgiving and New Years combined. To exit the bubble, they must also undergo 21 days of strict quarantine at a designated facility.

Chinese organizers have touted the innovative technologies adopted inside the bubble to keep it Covid safe.

At the stadium for ice hockey, staff will wear all-day armpit thermometers, which will sound the alarm should someone’s temperature exceed 37.3 degrees. Inside a “smart canteen” at the main media center, robots make Chinese and Western dishes and cocktails behind glass screens, while meals are delivered from the ceiling by automated robot arms.

Will it work?

The IOC has suggested the early detection of Covid-19 cases among arrivals is a sign the “closed loop system” is working.

“All data to date provides confidence that daily PCR testing combined with the isolation and close contact policies in place means that the Closed Loop is very safe and there are no infectious participants within it,” it said in the statement.

Yanzhong Huang, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, said it was unsurprising – and even inevitable – to see cases inside the Olympic bubble.

“Given the high transmissibility of the new variant, I’m sure there will be some infections at the Games,” Huang said. “The question is whether those flare-ups will develop into outbreaks in the bubble – or even worse, spill outside the bubble and cause outbreaks in the city and beyond.”

Huang added he was “cautiously optimistic” that China’s zero-Covid strategy could succeed, citing the “unprecedentedly stringent measures.”

Earlier this month, the Omicron variant was detected in the community in Beijing, prompting authorities to swiftly lock down an office building and a residential compound. Several Delta cases have also since been reported.

Authorities warned of the “double pressure of domestic and imported cases,” yet still struck a confident tone.

“The overall situation remains under control,” Huang Chun, an official with the Beijing Organizing Committee, said at a news conference last week. He added there were no plans to seal off the city or change the coronavirus containment rules for the Winter Olympics.

Nectar Gan Steve George
Nectar Gan
Steve George

From WWI to Trump's election: The most important event from the ...

Angelo Young and John Harrington

24/7 Wall Street

Over the past 100 years we’ve witnessed some of the most profound changes in human history.

Between wars, technological developments, progress in civil rights and breakthroughs in science and medicine, the old order that held back hundreds of millions of people has been swept away.

Centuries-old empires crumbled as new ideologies – from communism to fascism – for better or worse found roots in many places of the world. Progressive human rights ideas also emerged and changed the world as women, blacks, and the LGBT community demanded, and often won, equal rights. Technology evolved, modifying and innovating our lives in ways never dreamed of.

The world certainly has progressed, but wars have raged on, and climate change has picked up speed, endangering the ecosystems of our planet.

To put this in perspective, 24/7 Wall St. has compiled a list of the most important event in each of the past 100 years. We drew on research material and news reports to determine what event had the biggest impact in a particular year.

1919: National booze ban

• Date: Oct. 28

• Location: Washington D.C.

Congress passes the 18th Amendment that bans the production, transport or sale of alcoholic beverages in the United States. The legislation opens the way for Prohibition, which lasts from 1920 to 1933. The public flouts the law, which succeeds in enriching gangsters and contributing to the rise of organized crime.

1920: Women's suffrage

• Date: Aug. 26

• Location: Washington, D.C.

Though the United States was founded under democratic principles, only a minority of its population (starting with white landowning males over the age of 21) could actually vote. But after the 19th Amendment of the Constitution is passed, women finally gain a voice and the right to cast their ballots.

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1921: Chinese Communists rise

• Date: July 1

• Location: Beijing

In a prequel to the rise of Mao Zedong and Red China, the Chinese Communist Party is founded, and three weeks later it convenes its first National Congress that is attended by Mao. It would take another 28 years before the Republic of China becomes the People's Republic of China.

1922: British Empire shrinks

• Date: Feb. 28

• Location: London

The British Empire was at its peak toward the end of World War I, commanding a global population estimated to be as many as 570 million people, or about a fourth of the world's population at the time. The empire's size began to shrink in 1920, when Britain declared limited independence for Egypt, which leads to full independence two years later.

1923: Great Kanto earthquake

• Date: Sept. 1

• Location: Tokyo, Yokohama, Japan

The Great Kanto earthquake, also known as the Tokyo-Yokohama earthquake, strikes the Japanese mainland at noon on Sept. 1, 1923, with a magnitude of 7.9 on the Richter scale. The death toll is estimated at 140,000 people. The force of the temblor destroys hundreds of thousands of homes that either collapse or are engulfed in fire. The quake sets off a tsunami that reaches a height of almost 40 feet at Atami in the Sagami Gulf, killing 60 people there. The most significant outcome of the catastrophe is the rebuilt Tokyo that would become a modern metropolis.

1924: From Lenin to Stalin

• Date: Jan. 21

• Location: Moscow

Following the death of Vladimir Lenin on Jan. 21, the new leader of the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin, immediately begins a purge of political rivals. Some are simply moved to different positions, while others, like Leon Trotsky, the presumed successor to Lenin, are exiled. Stalin's paranoia grows as he takes control of the nation, and with it the level of violence and killing of anyone perceived to be a threat to his power and control.

1925: Scopes monkey trial

• Date: July 10

• Location: Dayton, Tennessee

After teaching the theory of evolution in a Tennessee high school, the state prosecutes science teacher John Thomas Scopes because state law prohibits such teaching as it runs counter to Biblical beliefs. The trial pits well-known Christian fundamentalist William Jennings Bryan against renowned attorney Clarence Darrow. The jury rules against Scopes, forcing him to pay a fine of $100 (about $1,460 in 2017 dollars). It would take another 43 years before the U.S. Supreme Court rules that laws punishing people for teaching evolution violate the First Amendment.

1926: U.S. starts numbered highway system

• Date: Nov. 11

• Location: U.S.

In a precursor to the modern interstate highway system, the federal government introduces a national highway numbering system in an effort to standardize roadways, especially local roads and trails with names unfamiliar to outsiders. The U.S. Numbered Highway System makes it easier for the growing number of car owners to figure out how to get from one city or town to the next and opens the way for the great American road-trip tradition.

1927: Lindbergh nonstop to Paris

• Date: May 21

• Location: New York to Paris

When the monoplane The Spirit of St. Louis touches down at Le Bourget Field in Paris on the evening of May 21, Charles Lindbergh becomes the person to fly over the Atlantic Ocean nonstop. Lindbergh would become one of the heroes of the age. His feat fires the imagination of aspiring aviators about the commercial possibilities of flight. Lindbergh would stay in the news, but for regrettable reasons. A strong advocate for American isolationism in the 1930s, he is criticized for his admiration of Nazi Germany's aircraft industry. Also, his son would be killed during a bungled kidnapping attempt in 1932.

1928: Earhart crosses Atlantic

• Date: June 17-18

• Location: Wales

Amelia Earhart becomes the first woman to pilot a plane across the Atlantic, from Newfoundland to Wales, making her an American national heroine and feminist icon who would go on to set numerous aviation records. She would later set another record as the first person – man or woman – to fly solo from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland. Earhart and her co-pilot Fred Noonan would vanish over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 during Earhart's attempt to circumnavigate the globe. Recent evidence has emerged indicating Earhart may have sent distress signals after surviving a crash, possibly on the remote Gardner Island in the western Pacific Ocean.

1929: Wall Street crashes

• Date: Oct. 24-29

• Location: New York City

The "Roaring Twenties" come to a halt on Black Tuesday in October 1929, when stocks take a nosedive, contributing to the Great Depression. Reasons for the worst economic downturn in American history include over-lending by weakly regulated banks, excessive stock price valuation, too many stocks purchased on margin, unrestrained exuberance that sends millions of people to convert their savings into stocks, tightening of the credit by the Federal Reserve and an agricultural drought.

1930: Ho Chi Minh rises in Vietnam

• Date: Feb. 2

• Location: Hanoi

In an event that would have repercussions for U.S. foreign policy decades later, Vietnamese independence fighter Ho Chi Minh founds the Communist Party of Vietnam as part of his effort to oust French colonial occupiers. "Uncle Ho," as he was known to his many supporters, was inspired by the Russian Bolsheviks, who oppose the Tsarist autocracy, seeing parallels between that struggle and the fight against the foreign occupiers of his country.

1931: Empire State Building completed

• Date: May 1

• Location: New York City

President Herbert Hoover inaugurates the completion of the Empire State Building on May Day. It becomes the tallest building of the iconic Manhattan skyline until the construction of the World Trade Center Towers are completed in 1973. Incredibly, the 86-story office building took only 13 months to build, with construction starting in March of the previous year.

1932: Hitler becomes German

• Date: Feb. 25

• Location: Germany

Seven years after Adolf Hitler renounces his Austrian citizenship, a fellow member of the Nazi Party gets him a low-level government job, which comes with automatic citizenship. This opens the way for him to run for office. Already a well-known party activist, it takes Hitler only two years from receiving his citizenship status to becoming the leader of Germany.

1933: FDR elected

• Date: March 12

• Location: Washington, D.C.

With the Great Depression sending millions of Americans to soup kitchens and chasing whatever work they can find, newly elected President Franklin Delano Roosevelt begins his weekly "Fireside Chats" as Americans are eager for guidance and solace during those dark times. FDR's first radio talk explains to Americans in plain language why he ordered that banks would close temporarily at different time in different parts of the country. The purpose, he explains, is to curb panic rushes of withdrawals, which has been hurting efforts to stabilize the banking system.

1934: Hitler consolidates power

• Date: June 30

• Location: Berlin

Germans, who had been suffering from a disastrous economic depression in 1929-30, begin to embrace the ideas of the Nationalist Socialist Workers Party – the Nazi Party. It becomes the largest party after the 1932 elections. In 1933, Adolf Hitler is appointed chancellor of Germany. After President Paul von Hindenburg dies in 1934, Hitler then purges members of his own party – the bloody Night of the Long Knives – with the help of Nazi storm troopers and becomes the unquestioned leader of Germany.

1935: FDR launches New Deal

• Date: Aug. 14

• Location: Washington, D.C.

President Roosevelt, grappling with the Great Depression, signs into law his signature Social Security Act, a law that creates the country's first retirement security system. Earlier that year, as part of his "New Deal" policy, the president established the Works Progress Administration, a massive economic stimulus program, putting millions of Americans to work building the country's public infrastructure.

1936: Owens flouts Nazis

• Date: Aug. 3

• Location: Berlin

As the concept of racial purity and superiority dominates Germany in the 1930s, African-American sprinter Jesse Owens of Oakville, Alabama, shows them who is the master racer. During the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, and under the gaze of Adolf Hitler, Owens wins four Olympic gold medals for the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints, the long jump, and the 100-meter relay.

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1937: UAW changes car industry

• Date: Feb. 11

• Location: Flint, Michigan

Nearly two years after the establishment of the United Automobile Workers (UAW), the union scores a major victory in Flint, Michigan. Workers at the General Motors Fisher Body Plant Number One lay down their tools and occupy the factory, demanding union representation, a fair minimum wage, safer working conditions, and not to outsource labor to non-union plants. Despite efforts by GM and local police to extricate them from the plant, including shutting off the heat, cutting off food supply, and attacks that leave 16 workers and 11 police officers injured, the strike lasts 44 days. The strike leads to an agreement between GM and the UAW, which includes a 5% pay raise and permission to talk in the lunchroom.

1938: Anti-Semitism surges

• Date: Nov. 9

• Location: Germany, Austria, Sudetenland

Growing anti-Semitic scapegoating amid Germany's crippling economic conditions culminates in the Kristallnacht, or "Night of Broken Glass," a pogrom sparked by a speech from German propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. Storm troopers and other Nazi groups are ordered to attack and destroy Jewish businesses, homes and houses of worship. In one night of attacks in Germany, Austria and the German-speaking area of the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia, dozens of Jews are killed and tens of thousands are rounded up and sent to concentration camps.

1939: World War II starts

• Date: Sept. 1

• Location: Westerplatte, Poland

Under the cover of predawn darkness, a German battleship floats quietly into the center of Danzig Harbor and opens fire on a Polish stronghold in Westerplatte, the first shots of World War II. In the following weeks, Nazi forces, including 2,000 tanks and 1,000 aircraft, would shatter Polish defenses and surround Warsaw, which surrenders 26 days after the Danzig Harbor attack.

1940: McDonald's founded

• Date: May 15

• Location: San Bernardino, California

Brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald open McDonald's Barbecue Restaurant, offering BBQ ribs, pork sandwiches and 23 other menu items. Eight years later, they would restructure their popular local business to focus on hamburgers, milkshakes and fountain sodas, emphasizing speed, a simple menu and low prices. In the 1950s, businessman Ray Kroc would buy out the brothers and grow McDonald's into what it is today – the world's largest restaurant chain.

1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor

• Date: Dec. 7

• Location: Oahu, Hawaii

Knowing the U.S. is gearing up to engage them in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II, Japan deploys a massive air attack on U.S. Navy ships parked at Pearl Harbor. The surprise assault by 353 Japanese aircraft leads to the deaths of 2,403 people, including 1,177 sailors aboard the ill-fated USS Arizona, one of 19 vessels that were damaged or destroyed in the attack. Nearly 330 aircraft were also damaged or destroyed. The United States declares war on Japan the next day and three days later against Germany and Italy.

1942: GIs arrive in Europe

• Date: Jan. 26

• Location: Northern Ireland

The first U.S. troops destined to fight in Europe in the world's greatest war arrive in Northern Ireland. It is the beginning of a military buildup that would culminate in the invasion of France more than two years later. Before then, the United States was providing only material support to its ally across the Atlantic, while building up what President Roosevelt called the "Arsenal of Democracy" in anticipation for the inevitable entry of the United States into the war in Europe.

1943: Invention of LSD

• Date: April 19

• Location: Basel, Switzerland

Swiss chemist Albert Hoffman had been studying the potential medicinal value of lysergic compounds when he accidentally exposed himself to LSD-25, which he had created years earlier in his lab. This was the first LSD trip, a quarter-century before the counterculture endorses the hallucinogenic compound. Hoffman describes the "not unpleasant" experience as "uninterrupted stream of fantastic pictures, extraordinary shapes with intense, kaleidoscopic play of colors." Hoffman takes a second dose and writes a paper about his discovery. The U.S. Army tests the drug on soldiers numerous times from 1955 to 1967, briefly toying with the idea of using LSD as a weapon to disorient enemy soldiers during combat.

1944: D-Day

• Date: June 6

• Location: Normandy France

The plan for the biggest one-day military campaign in history, the invasion of Normandy by Allied forces to push the Nazis out of France, is hatched in extreme secrecy a year earlier. The plan is conceived during the Quebec Conference by Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt. The invasion starts at 6:30 a.m. on five beaches, and over the next 24 hours about 4,900 Allied soldiers are killed, many of them the instant the doors of their Higgins transport boats opened directly into German machine gun fire.

1945: World War II ends

• Date: Sept. 2

• Location: Multiple

The surrender of Japan marks the end of World War II amid one of the most tumultuous years of the 20th century. Earlier in the year, leaders of three nations – Benito Mussolini, Franklin Roosevelt and Adolf Hitler – die and Nazi Germany surrenders. Though the surrender of Japan was inevitable, the prospect of a horrific Allied assault on the Japanese mainland convinces the United States to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The atomic bomb attacks, along with the entry of the Soviet Union in the war against Japan, compel the Japanese to surrender.

1946: Baby boom starts

• Date: Jan. 1

• Location: U.S.

More American babies are born – 3.4 million – in 1946 than in any year in U.S. history up to then. The number of births grows to 4 million per year from 1954 to 1964, the last year of the baby boomer generation, the biggest generation at that point in history.

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1947: India gains independence

• Date: Aug. 15

• Location: Washington, D.C

The sun sets on the British Empire in India in 1947, as the Asian nation becomes the world's largest democracy. Independence is the culmination of decades of work by Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Indian nationalists committed to throwing off the yoke of British colonialism. The transition to independence comes at a price. The subcontinent is partitioned into two nations, Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan. Violence erupts between Hindus and Muslims as Hindus migrate to India and Muslims shift to Pakistan. It is estimated that 1 million people die during the migration.

1948: Birth of Israel

• Date: May 15

• Location: Middle East

After Israel declares its independence following a UN resolution, neighboring Arab states with troops from Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Transjordan (now Jordan), Lebanon and Saudi Arabia attack the former British-controlled Palestinian mandate. The Arab-Israeli War ended with an armistice that leaves Israel with some territories as Egypt and Jordan retains control over the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, respectively.

1949: NATO founded

• Date: April 4

• Location: Washington, D.C.

Two years into the Cold War, the Soviet Union detonates its first nuclear bomb and quickly exerts its influence over Eastern Europe. It attempts to do the same in Western Europe, which is still recovering from the massive destruction of World War II. To respond to the Soviet threat, U.S. and Western European allies form the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Fundamentally, NATO simply states that an attack on any NATO member would be considered an attack on all NATO members. Cold War tensions ratchet up later that year when the communists take over China, the world's most populous nation.

1950: Korean War starts

• Date: June 25

• Location: Korea

The North Korean People's Army crosses the 38th parallel into South Korea, eliciting almost an immediate response from President Harry Truman, and starting the Korean War – a proxy battle between the United States and the People's Republic of China. Three years later, a ceasefire would halt the war. The uneasy relations between North Korea and South Korea last to this day.

1951: Rosenbergs sentenced

• Date: March 29

• Location: New York City

Husband and wife Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are convicted of espionage for their part in passing along atomic secrets to the Soviet Union during and after World War II. They are executed two years later. Not everyone is convinced of their involvement in the scheme. Supporters claim they are scapegoats swept up in the Cold War hysteria of the time. Documents revealed decades later would show the detailed extent of Julius Rosenberg's involvement in the spy ring, though Ethel's participation in the scheme remains inconclusive.

1952: First hydrogen bomb test

• Date: Nov. 1

• Location: Marshall Islands

The United States successfully detonates its first hydrogen bomb, a second generation thermonuclear device, in the Marshall Islands as part of Operation Ivy, one of a series of nuclear bomb tests. From 1946 to 1958, the United States used the remote Pacific Marshall Islands as its nuclear weapons testing site, detonating a total of 67 nuclear tests.

1953: The dawn of DNA

• Date: Feb. 28

• Location: Cambridge, England, U.K.

Cambridge University scientists James Watson and Francis Crick announce they have discovered the fundamental behavior and double-helix structure of DNA. Though scientists had been aware of DNA since the 1860s and its role in genetic inheritance since 1943, Watson and Crick were the first to explain how DNA works to replicate itself and pass on genes from one generation to the next.

1954: Brown vs. Board of Education

• Date: May 17

• Location: Washington, D.C.

In a landmark case involving Linda Brown of Topeka, Kansas, who had to cross a railroad track to reach an all-black elementary school even though an all-white school was closer, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that the segregated school system was unconstitutional on the basis of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution. The clause would be used again by the courts to reverse state-level racial segregation practices and ordinances.

1955: Parks starts a movement

• Date: Dec. 1

• Location: Montgomery, Alabama

Rosa Parks makes history by refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on a Montgomery bus. The arrest of Parks for insisting to remain seated leads to the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the ascent of a young pastor named Martin Luther King, Jr., as a local activist leader to advance the civil rights cause. A successful federal lawsuit by the NAACP against the city leads to the desegregation of the Montgomery bus system on Dec. 21 of the following year.

1956: Hungary suppressed

• Date: Nov. 4

• Location: Budapest

Nine years after the start of the Cold War, Hungarians took to the streets, demanding democratic reforms. Three days later, Soviet Red Army troops invade Hungary, killing thousands. Nine days after the incursion, Budapest is occupied by the Soviet troops in one of the largest and most aggressive actions taken by the Soviet Union since the end of World War II.

1957: The Little Rock Nine

• Date: Sept 24

• Location: Little Rock, Arkansas

President Dwight D. Eisenhower orders federal troops to protect nine African American high school students as they start classes at the all-white Little Rock Central High School. This would become one of the first high-profile actions by the federal government against state-level racial segregation.

1958: U.S. launches first satellite

• Date: Jan. 31

• Location: Cape Canaveral, Florida

The United States successfully launches Explorer 1, three months after the Soviet Union sent its first satellite, Sputnik, into orbit. The two superpowers would go on to send more satellites into space, creating a Cold War space race to build ever more sophisticated orbital communications devices.

1959: Castro takes over Cuba

• Date: Jan. 1

• Location: Havana

U.S.-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista flees Havana as Fidel Castro's forces advance on the Cuban capital. Days later, rebels led by Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos enter the city, followed two days later by Castro's forces, who quickly consolidate power in Cuba, establishing a communist government in the Caribbean's largest country.

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1960: Lunch Counter Sit-in

• Date: Feb. 1

• Location: Greensboro, North Carolina

When four African-American college students – Ezell A. Blair, Franklin E. McCain, Joseph A. McNeil and David L. Richmond – sit down at a Woolworth's lunch counter and ask for service, they are denied. The young men refuse to leave, leading to a larger six-month protest that results in the desegregation of the lunch counter by that summer.

1961: Berlin Wall built

• Date: Aug. 13

• Location: Berlin, East and West Germany

By the late summer of 1961, the loss of skilled workers such as teachers, engineers, and doctors to the West reaches crisis levels in East Germany. On Aug. 12, 2,400 East Germans cross into West Berlin, the most in a single day. The next day, with the approval of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, East Germany builds a wall that would extend 27 miles through Berlin, dividing families and friends for the next 28 years. The wall would serve as an enduring symbol of the Cold War, used by presidents John Kennedy and Ronald Reagan to inspire a divided city.

1962: Cuban missile crisis

• Date: Oct.16-28

• Location: Multiple

When the United States learns that the Soviet Union is building nuclear missile installations 90 miles south of Miami in communist Cuba, the Kennedy administration starts a naval blockade around the island, which is at times tested, and Kennedy demands the removal of the missiles.The standoff is widely considered to be the closest the two nuclear superpowers come to direct military confrontation. Cooler heads prevail. The Soviet Union offers to remove the missiles in exchange for a guarantee that the United States will not invade Cuba. In secret, the administration also agrees to withdraw U.S. missiles from Turkey.

1963: JFK assassinated

• Date: Nov. 22

• Location: Dallas

As John F. Kennedy prepares for his re-election bid, the 34th president of the United States embarks on a multi-state tour in September 1963. He is murdered by a sharpshooter's bullet fired by Lee Harvey Oswald at about 12:30 p.m. as his motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza in Dallas. Oswald himself is murdered two days later by nightclub owner Jack Ruby.

1964: LBJ's "War on Poverty"

• Date: Jan. 8

• Location: Washington, D.C.

Bogged down by the Vietnam War, President Lyndon B. Johnson struggles constantly to pivot away from the war to focus on his stated goals of reducing poverty, ending segregation, and establishing the social programs many Americans rely on to this day, including the immensely popular Medicare program. During his "War on Poverty" State of the Union Address of Jan. 8, 1964, LBJ outlines the need for the country to reduce poverty, end racial discrimination, attend to the health needs of the elderly, and other progressive goals. LBJ later ushers in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Social Security Amendments of 1965.

1965: Civil rights turns violent

• Date: March 7

• Location: Selma, Alabama

The fatal shooting of protester Jimmy Lee Jackson by an Alabama state trooper sparks a march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. Hundreds of civil rights activists march in what becomes known as "Bloody Sunday." Police would confront the marchers, led by John Lewis (who is a House Democrat from Georgia) and others. As the activists cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge, police attack the protesters with tear gas and billy clubs, hospitalizing 50.

1966: Mao purges rivals

• Date: Aug. 13

• Location: Beijing

At the end of a week-long session of the Communist Party Central Committee of the People's Republic of China, Chairman Mao Zedong condemns the political elites, calling on China's youth to rebel against the entrenched political hierarchy. It is the beginning of the decade-long Cultural Revolution that fundamentally transforms Chinese society. Intellectuals, members of the former Nationalist government, and people with ties to Western powers are persecuted, sent to re-education labor camps, or killed by the factions of Red Guards formed in the wake of Mao's call to action.

1967: Six-Day War

• Date: June 5

• Location: Middle East

Amid escalating tensions with its neighbors, Israel launches a preemptive strike that destroys most of Egypt's air force. Syria, Jordan, and Iraq also attack Israel. As the war continues, Israel takes the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, captures East Jerusalem and the West Bank from Jordan, and in heavy fighting seizes the Golan Heights from Syria. A ceasefire went into effect on June 10.

1968: Dream denied

• Date: April 4

• Location: Memphis, Tennessee

Martin Luther King Jr. is fatally shot by James Earl Ray as the civil rights icon stands on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, a tragedy that sparks race riots nationwide. King's influence in words and actions touch and move not only the nation, but the world, and resonate to this day. Two months later, on June 4, Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and brother of John F. Kennedy, is fatally shot by Sirhan Sirhan, an Arab Christian from Jerusalem, who believes Kennedy is "instrumental" in oppressing Palestinians.

1969: Landing on the moon

• Date: July 20

• Location: Merritt Island, Florida

President Kennedy's goal of a manned lunar landing before 1970 is realized six years after his assassination. Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins blast off from the Kennedy Space Center at 9:32 a.m. aboard the Saturn V rocket. After three days of travel, Armstrong and Aldrin land the Eagle module on the lunar surface as Collins remains in lunar orbit to pilot the module. Upon their return to Earth, the three astronauts are put in 21-day quarantine to ensure they do not bring back any lunar contagions.

1970: Vietnam War turns to Cambodia

• Date: April 29

• Location: Eastern Cambodia

Although the United States should be scaling back U.S. troop presence in Vietnam, President Richard Nixon approves an operation with the South Vietnamese to invade Cambodia to oust Northern Vietnamese forces there. The Cambodian incursion inflames anti-war protests in the United States as it is perceived to be an escalation of U.S. military involvement in Southeast Asia.

1971: Pentagon Papers

• Date: Feb. 8

• Location: Laos

The Pentagon Papers, a study by the U.S. Department of Defense about the country's involvement in the Vietnam War, are released and published first in The New York Times, then other newspapers. The documents expose several missteps and how several administrations have misled the American public regarding the war in Vietnam. They also reveal an expanded campaign in Cambodia and Laos, especially clandestine bombing in Laos, which today is considered the heaviest bombardment in history.

1972: Nixon goes to China

• Date: Feb. 21

• Location: Beijing

Nixon, a virulent anti-communist earlier in his political career, surprises the American public by traveling to Beijing for a week of talks in a historic first step toward normalizing relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China. Until this trip, the United States and communist China were de facto enemies, fighting proxy wars in the Korean Peninsula in the 1950s and South Vietnam at the time of Nixon's visit.

1973: Roe vs. Wade

• Date: Jan. 22

• Location: Washington D.C.

In a landmark 7-2 decision that will be known as Roe vs. Wade, the Supreme Court rules that under the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment, states cannot completely bar a woman's decision to terminate her pregnancy. However, the court adds that as the pregnancy develops, the state can balance a woman's right to privacy with its interest in preserving the "potentiality of human life." As a result, states can ban abortion in the third trimester except in cases where a pregnancy affects a woman's health.

1974: Nixon resigns

• Date: Aug. 8

• Location: Washington, D.C.

President Richard Nixon announces his resignation amid impeachment proceedings stemming from the Watergate scandal and his administration's attempt resist a congressional investigation. The scandal exposes abuses of power by the White House after five burglars were busted breaking in to the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C. Nixon becomes the only president in U.S. history to resign.

1975: Saigon falls

• Date: April 30

• Location: South Vietnam

Two years after the last American troops leave Vietnam, communist troops from North Vietnam capture Saigon, ending nearly two decades of relentless war in the rice paddies and jungles of that Southeast Asian nation. The final tally of war dead for the United States is 58,220.

1976: The Concorde changes air travel

• Date: Jan. 21

• Location: London and Paris

Two supersonic Concorde jets take off simultaneously – one from London to Bahrain, operated by British Airways, and the other from Paris to Rio de Janeiro via Dakar in Senegal, operated by Air France – marking the first time paying passengers enjoy commercial travel at faster than the speed of sound. Though travel by one of the 16 Concordes ever put into service could slash travel time from New York to London in half, the high cost of maintenance, soaring ticket prices, as well as a fatal accident in 2000, sealed the fate of the narrow, slope-nosed aircraft.

1977: Rise of the personal computer

• Date: January

• Location: Chicago

Personal home computers began to emerge in the 1970s, but many of the earliest versions resembled calculators that would plug into televisions sets. By 1977, however, the desktop home computer begins to resemble their more modern versions – with an accompanying attached or separate computer screen and a magnetic tape or floppy disk storage device. The Commodore PET is unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in Chicago that year, while the first Apple II and Radio Shack's TRS-80 go on sale.

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1978: Cult's mass suicide

• Date: Nov. 18

• Location: Jonestown, Guyana

More than 900 people die in one of worst recorded acts of cult-related mass murder-suicide after most of the victims and perpetrators drink a powdered drink mix dosed with cyanide. Most of the victims are Americans, devotees of Peoples Temple cult leader Jim Jones, a former Methodist-trained preacher who built a following and led the flock to Guyana. Among the dead are 276 children who drink the poison. A small number of cult defectors are killed by Peoples Temple gunmen who also slay California congressman Leo Ryan, who had gone to Guyana to investigate Jonestown.

1979: Islamic Republic born in Iran

• Date: Feb. 11

• Location: Tehran

Worsening economic conditions, increasing discontent with the government, and wide support for religious leader in exile Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini end the reign of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi. The shah and his family flee Iran in January 1979. On Feb 11, the monarchy is dissolved, and on April 1, Khomeini declares Iran an Islamic republic. With support among the nation's clergy and their many followers, he begins rebuilding Iranian society based on conservative Shiite religious principles.

1980: Reagan elected

• Date: Nov. 4

• Location: Washington, D.C.

With the United States in an economic malaise and the Iranian hostage crisis hobbling the presidency of Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan is elected the 40th president in a landslide. Reagan, who would serve two terms, was the oldest man elected president at the time. Reagan's election changes the trajectory of American politics, ushering in an era of conservative leadership. During his tenure, he takes a more aggressive approach to the Soviet Union and increases defense spending. Reagan convinces Congress to cut taxes, a move that many economists credit with triggering an economic boom in the 1980s.

1981: AIDS impacts America

• Date: June 5

• Location: Los Angeles

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publishes a report about five gay men who had been diagnosed by local physicians with a rare form of pneumonia – the first reported U.S. cases of what would later become known as HIV/AIDS. The autoimmune disease spread so fast that by the end of the 1982, 500 Americans had died from what now the CDC called acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or AIDS. The death toll would rise to 5,000 by 1985.

1982: Mexico triggers regional debt crisis

• Date: Aug. 12

• Location: Mexico City

Global economic stagnation in the 1970s and early 1980s, and excessive borrowing among Latin America's biggest economies, boils over when Mexico's Finance Minister Jesús Silva-Herzog tells the U.S. Federal Reserve his country can no longer service its debt to $80 billion. After the announcement, lenders realize virtually every country in Latin America, led by Brazil, Argentina and Mexico, are not able to pay back loans. The crisis would lead to years of eroding wages, weak-to-negative economic growth, sky-high unemployment, severe austerity measures, and political instability – known as the "lost decade" in Latin America.

1983: The internet is born

• Date: Jan. 1

• Location: Multiple

The internet as we know it today – a seemingly endless collection of websites hosted on servers scattered across the globe – is still more than a decade away. But at the beginning of 1983, the the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET) – a small network for academics and researchers – transitions to the standard TCP/IP protocol of the World Wide Web. The protocol would become the internet's cornerstone and technical foundation as it allows expanded available address space and decentralizes the network, thus also expanding accessibility.

1984: Chemicals kill thousands in India

• Date: Dec. 2

• Location: Bhopal, India

The chemical disaster in Bhopal is still considered history's worst industrial disaster. About 30 tons of methyl isocyanate, an industrial gas used to make pesticide, are released at a Union Carbide Corp. plant. About 600,000 poor residents of nearby shanty towns are exposed to a highly toxic compound that kills about 15,000 people and countless farm animals, according to Indian government estimates. The calamity leads to a generation of birth defects. To this day, locals claim the now-abandoned site is riddled with toxic materials left behind by Union Carbide, which was acquired by Dow Chemical in 2001.

1985: Reagan, Gorbachev meet

• Date: Nov. 19

• Location: Geneva

Despite his often bellicose criticisms of the Soviet Union, Reagan agrees to meet with his counterpart, Mikhail Gorbachev, in Geneva in the first meeting between leaders of the two Cold War foes in nearly a decade. Though the meeting yields little of substance, it starts a closer relationship between the two men who both seem committed to scaling back the nuclear arms race between the two nuclear superpowers.

1986: Shuttle tragedy

• Date: Jan. 28

• Location: Off the coast of Florida

The 25th mission of the U.S. space shuttle program ends with the tragic loss of seven astronauts as space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after takeoff from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Among those killed are Christa McAuliffe, who would have been the first teacher in space. The failure is later identified as a problem with the so-called O-rings used to form a seal in the seams of the shuttle's external fuel tanks.

1987: Stock market tanks

• Date: Oct. 19

• Location: Worldwide

Oct. 19, 1987, is called Black Monday because on that day the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunges 508 points, or more than 22%. The drop is worse than the crash in 1929. It is also worse than the market plunge after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the 2008 financial crisis. Among the reasons cited for the drop are rising tensions in the Persian Gulf, concern over higher interest rates and the belief that the bull market is ending. Computerized trading, relatively new at the time, accelerates trade orders, which speeds up the market drop. As a result of the collapse, exchanges put in place so-called circuit breakers intended to halt trading when stocks fall too fast. This measure is designed to provide investors a cooling off period and avoid a panic.

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1988: When the U.S. armed Iran

• Date: March 16

• Location: Washington, D.C.

Lt. Col. Oliver North and Vice Adm. John Poindexter are indicted on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States for their involvement in the so-called Iran-Contra affair. The scandal involved members of the Reagan administration who illegally sold arms to Iran to help facilitate the release of American hostages, and then transfer the proceeds of the sale to fund the Nicaraguan contras, a loose affiliation of right-wing militias. North is convicted, but his conviction is vacated and reversed, while Poindexter's convictions are also reversed on appeal.

1989: The Berlin Wall falls

• Date: Nov. 9

• Location: Berlin, East and West Germany

Cracks in the monolithic Soviet bloc are starting to appear in the 1980s, and the very symbol of communist repression comes crashing down in November, when the Berlin Wall is breached, ending a 28-year division of the city. During the day on Nov. 9, a spokesman for East Berlin's Communist Party says starting at midnight that day, citizens of East Germany are free to cross the country's borders. Almost immediately Berliners start slamming the wall with axes and sledgehammers. By nightfall, the celebration turns into what one observer calls "the greatest street party in the history of the world" and the city is reunited. East and West Germany would reunite one year later.

1990: Democracy in Poland

• Date: Jan. 28

• Location: Poland

With the hold of the Soviet Union and communism on East Europe loosening, Poland's ruling communist party votes to dissolve and become more moderate. In the following elections, Lech Wałęsa, leader of the Solidarity Movement and the 1983 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, wins the election and becomes president.

1991: America goes to war in Middle East

• Date: Jan. 17

• Location: Saudi Arabia and Kuwait

After Saddam Hussein's Iraq invades and occupies Kuwait on Aug. 2, 1990, the United States sends forces to defend neighboring Saudi Arabia from being overrun and to protect its vital oil assets in Operation Desert Shield. With Saudi Arabia secured, U.S. implements Operation Desert Storm to push Iraqi forces back across the border with Kuwait in a military operation that lasts until a ceasefire takes effect in April.

1992: Cold War ends

• Date: Feb. 1

• Location: Camp David Maryland

Just weeks after the dissolution of the Soviet Union on Dec. 26, 1991, President George H.W. Bush and his Russian counterpart, Boris Yeltsin, meet at Camp David to formally declare the end of the Cold War that began shortly after the end of World War II. The meeting comes days after both countries announce they would stop aiming nuclear missiles at each other. Russia declares its 11 former communist satellite republics – from Armenia to Uzbekistan – independent.

1993: The EU becomes reality

• Date: Nov. 1

• Location: Brussels

The Treaty of the European Union, also known as the Maastricht Treaty, goes into effect in November, after a rough series of political wrangling that, among other concessions, allows the U.K. and Denmark to opt out of the common euro currency. The treaty opens the way to removing border controls among member states and invites new members to join the union.

1994: Amazon.com is born

• Date: July 5

• Location: Seattle

With an initial aim of becoming an online bookstore, Jeff Bezos and a handful of angel investors launch Amazon.com, just as e-commerce is about to take off . Twenty-four years later, after expanding from books to the so-called "Everything Store" and growing a business selling cloud services to companies like Netflix and Instagram, Bezos has become the world's richest man. Amazon.com, meanwhile is racing with Apple to become the world's first trillion-dollar American company.

1995: Domestic terror strikes Oklahoma

• Date: April 19

• Location: Oklahoma City

In the deadliest domestic terrorist attack in U.S. history, anti-government radicals Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols bomb the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. They time the truck-bomb attack for a weekday morning in order to maximize casualties. For the murder of at least 168 people, including 19 children who were in a child care center in the building, and the injury of hundreds of others, an unremorseful McVeigh is executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2001. Nichols is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

1996: The dawn of cloning

• Date: July 5

• Location: Midlothian, Scotland, U.K.

Dolly the Sheep enters the annals of bioengineering when scientists at Scotland's Roslin Institute become the first to not only successfully clone a mammal, but also the first to do so using an adult cell rather than an embryonic one. After 277 so-called cell fusions that created 29 embryos, the teams managed to turn an udder cell into a nearly complete biological carbon copy of the sheep from which it came.

1997: Machine tops chess champ

• Date: May 11

• Location: New York City

Artificial intelligence and machine learning have been serious areas of study (and hype) for over 60 years. In 1997, one of the most significant victories for silicon logic came when IBM's Deep Blue became the first machine to beat a world chess champion. The the refrigerator-sized computer beat Garry Kasparov twice and tied him three times in a six-game match.

1998: The age of Google begins

• Date: Sept. 4

• Location: Menlo Park, California

With seed money from Sun Microsystems co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, among others, Stanford University Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin launch the search engine Google. The digital advertising behemoth Google Inc., now Alphabet Inc., is an $854 billion company with several subsidiaries, including YouTube, autonomous-car development company Waymo and X, the company's research and development division.

1999: NATO's first independent strike

• Date: March 24

• Location: Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

In order to get Yugoslav forces out of Kosovo during the Kosovo War, NATO forces initiate their first-ever military campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now Montenegro and Serbia) without U.N. Security Council authorization as Russia and China oppose the attack. The NATO airstrikes are aimed at stopping an onslaught against ethnic Albanians by the government of Slobodan Milošević. The NATO attacks last nearly three months, culminating in the withdrawal of Yugoslav forces from Kosovo.

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2000: International Space Station opens

• Date: Nov. 2

• Location: Low Earth orbit

Commanders Bill Shepherd from the United States and Yuri Gidzenko of Russia, along with Russian flight engineer Sergei Krikalev become the first temporary residents of the International Space Station two years after the first component of the research center was put into low-Earth orbit about 250 miles above sea level. Since that first crew, there have been 229 other visitors to the ISS,some of them multiple times, led by 146 from the United States and 47 from Russia.

2001: 9/11

• Date: Sept. 11

• Location: Multiple

In the worst attack on U.S. soil since the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, 19 hijackers inspired by Islamist extremism kill nearly 3,000 people after crashing two passenger-laden commercial aircraft into the World Trade Center towers in lower Manhattan and one into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. A fourth plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashes in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew attempt to regain control of the plane headed toward Washington, D.C.

2002: Homeland Security

• Date: Nov. 25

• Location: Washington, D.C.

Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Congress and President George W. Bush enact the Homeland Security Act, the biggest government reorganization of national security efforts since the Department of Defense was created in 1947. The sweeping legislation creates the massive Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for everything from protecting infrastructure from cyberattacks to managing the new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.

2003: U.S. crushes Iraq

• Date: March 19

• Location: Iraq

With the help of British and other allied forces, the United States begins its invasion of Iraq with a rapid bombing "Shock and Awe" campaign with the intention of destroying Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction; the weapons are never found. Coalition forces manage to quickly topple the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein, but have to fight insurgent forces for years afterward.

2004: Facebook founded

• Date: Feb. 4

• Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts

Mark Zuckerberg, a 23-year-old Harvard University student, creates "The facebook," a local social networking site named after the orientation materials that profiles students and faculty and given to incoming college freshmen. Fourteen years later, Facebook has become a $510 billion digital advertising behemoth so integral to many people's lives that it has been criticized for helping foreign powers and propagandists influence the U.S. political system.

2005: Katrina overwhelms New Orleans

• Date: Aug. 29

• Location: U.S. Gulf Coast

After spending four days in the Gulf of Mexico bulking up to a Category 5 hurricane, Katrina slams into New Orleans, inundating the city and creating a humanitarian crisis that lasts for weeks. The catastrophe underscores the precarious situation not only in the Big Easy but also the surrounding area of the Gulf Coast. At least 1,833 people in the storm's path are killed, and the storm inflicts $161 billion in damages to the region, the costliest storm in U.S. history.

2006: Hussein executed

• Date: Dec. 30

• Location: Baghdad

Three years after U.S. soldiers pulled him from a hole in the ground where he had been hiding, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is hanged after he was convicted for crimes against humanity, specifically for ordering the massacre of 148 Shiites in 1982 following a failed assassination attempt against him.

2007: The iPhone

• Date: Jan. 9

• Location: San Francisco

Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who died in October 2011, first shows the world one of the most popular branded consumer electronic devices in history, the iPhone. Since the first-generation phone that Jobs introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show that year, there have been 18 versions of the mobile device, and more than 1.2 billion units have been sold globally through 2017. Only Samsung's Galaxy smartphone comes close to that volume.

2008: Dow plunges

• Date: Sept. 29

• Location: New York City

The Dow Jones Industrial Average records the largest-ever intraday drop, 777.68 points, after Congress rejects a massive $700 billion bailout of U.S. banks. The bill would pass days later. The market reacts also to months of global market turmoil amid the 2008 global financial crisis spurred by the U.S. subprime mortgage market crash. The Dow fell by more than half during the 2007-09 Great Recession, tumbling from 14,164 on Oct. 9, 2007, to 6,594 on March 5, 2009.

2009: America's first African-American president

• Date: Jan. 20

• Location: Washington, D.C.

After winning in a landslide against Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, amassing in 365 electoral votes and 53% of the popular vote, Barack Obama is sworn in as the first African-American president of the United States. Obama inherits the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, but with his party holding majorities in both houses of Congress at the time, the president is able to pass a stimulus package and his signature Affordable Care Act in March 2010.

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2010: Catastrophic oil spill

• Date: April 20

• Location: Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana

Eleven workers die and 17 are injured after an explosion and fire erupts on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig 40 miles from the Louisiana coast. The explosion causes the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history, spewing 3 million barrels of crude over the three months it takes to stop the leak. British oil company BP says costs climbed to $65 billion in claims for the accident, including a $1.7 billion charge it took as recently as the fourth quarter of 2017.

2011: Bin Laden killed

• Date: May 2

• Location: Abbottabad, Pakistan

In an intense 40-minute nighttime firefight, 25 U.S. Navy SEALs hunt down and kill al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, in a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Within hours, bin Laden's body is identified using DNA and then buried in the Arabian Sea.

2012: The "God Particle" is (probably) discovered

• Date: July 4

• Location: Near Geneva

Nearly 600 feet below the France-Switzerland border at CERN's Large Hadron Collider Facility, an international team of scientists discovers a new particle widely believed to be the elusive Higgs boson, known as the "God Particle," which is thought to be a fundamental component of the universe. Higgs boson has been an important element of particle physics theory for decades, but until 2012 there had been no physical evidence to support its existence.

2013: Snowden reveals secrets

• Date: June 6

• Location: Hong Kong

After surreptitiously leaving his job at U.S. National Security Agency contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, computer security consultant Edward Snowden meets secretly in Hong Kong with journalists Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras. He reveals the first of a series of secrets about numerous U.S. and European government surveillance operations. Hailed as a courageous whistleblower and privacy champion by some, and a traitor that compromised counterterrorism efforts by others, the American now resides in exile in Moscow.

2014: Russian bear bites Ukraine

• Date: March 16

• Location: Crimea

Exploiting political unrest in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin orchestrates the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula. The action incites peals of condemnation from world leaders and a raft of economic sanctions against Moscow. This strategically important and predominantly Russian-speaking region on the Black Sea has been coveted by the Russians as part of their strategic efforts to check NATO expansion along Russia's western border.

2015: NASA flies by Pluto

• Date: July 14

• Location: 3 billion miles from Earth

NASA spacecraft New Horizons becomes the first human-made object to fly past and observe the dwarf planet Pluto. New Horizons sends back stunning photographs of this enigmatic and distant member of the solar system, including images of a mountain range and massive icebergs floating in frozen nitrogen. New Horizons is now en route to the Kuiper Belt, a massive asteroid belt at the far reaches of the solar system.

2016: Trump elected

• Date: Nov. 8

• Location: U.S.

Running on a populist agenda, Donald Trump is elected the 45th president of the United States and the fifth president in U.S. history (the second since the 2000) to win despite losing the popular vote. The real estate developer and television personality ran on a platform of putting "America First" in global trade and foreign policy negotiations and cracking down on undocumented immigrants.

2017: Hurricane triple-whammy

• Date: August-September

• Location: Multiple

Within just four weeks, three massive hurricanes – Harvey, Irma and Maria – strike Texas, Florida and the Caribbean, killing 228 people, inflicting a combined $265 billion in damages and displacing millions of homeowners. Hurricane Maria inflicts immense damage to the U.S. commonwealth of Puerto Rico, which was already struggling from economic insolvency.

Detailed findings & methodology

There is little doubt that in the last 100 years, mankind has progressed dramatically. People live longer, eat better, have greater access to improved medical care and are freer to express their opinions and associate with whomever they want.

That optimism can be seen in population growth. Despite the two most devastating wars in human history, the world population has nearly tripled, from 1.9 billion to 7.5 billion, since 1917.

One hundred years is an eye blink in history, yet 100 years ago, women did not have the right to vote in the United States. African-Americans were prevented from voting in the American South. Labor unions were in their infancy and were weak, and laws reforming child labor had yet to be passed by Congress. All that changed because of women’s suffrage, the inexorable march of civil rights and the strengthening labor unions.

One hundred years ago, a person anywhere in the world was more likely than not to be illiterate. And there was a good chance he or she was the subject of colonial rulers in South America, Africa and Asia. Two world wars would spell the end of imperial houses in Austria-Hungary, Germany and Russia, and weaken the grip of another, Great Britain. Independence movements sprouted in Europe, Africa and Asia, yearning for freedom and expressing national pride.

Nationalism had its dark side, though, with fascist governments ruling Italy and Germany. It would take a world war to remove their scourge. Another form of totalitarianism, communism, would dominate the USSR and Eastern Europe for several generations, as well as China and other countries in Asia, before the West would triumph over the Soviet Union and its allies in the Cold War.

Speaking of the Cold War, that conflict launched the space race and accelerated technological progress, hastening the use of personal computers and cell phones. These inventions have fundamentally changed our lives – from the way we communicate to the way we shop and socialize – and made billions of dollars for the companies that make them and their founders. These products and innovations are a major part of the culture today.

To determine the most important event the year you were born, 24/7 Wall St. drew on research materials and media sources to compile its list. Deciding the most important event in a given year by its nature is a subjective exercise. In reaching our decisions, we chose the event that had the most far-reaching impact and was not necessarily the most famous event in a given year.

24/7 Wall Street is a USA TODAY content partner offering financial news and commentary. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.