[goldstategop]

One can do no better to follow the path of Western success over the millenia than by reading James Burke's The Day The Universe Changed. He shows us how one event in the life of the West led to another and changed the way we saw the world and ourselves. Its the capacity of the West to reinvent itself that has made it such a successful civilization par excellence. And it that genius of invention that lies in America today.

[wolficatZ]

Speaking of James Burke,his "Connections" series is awesome.

[XBob]

fascinating look here too:

http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0%2C1284%2C52594%2C00.html

"Knowledge Web" is the pet project of James Burke, an Oxford-educated historian whose fascination with technology resulted in Connections, a television series that explored the strange links between technological breakthroughs and historical events.

Knowledge Web (K-Web) is intended to be the visual and virtual extension of almost three decades of Burke's attempts to show how all knowledge is somehow connected to all other knowledge.

The not-for-profit site is being built by about 100 volunteers from around the world, but more helping hands are needed.

K-Web project manager Patrick McKercher said K-Web currently could really use programmers who can work with Java, XSLT and XML. Experienced researchers and writers are also wanted. Volunteers can sign up here.