The last decade of the 20th century sent a message that the future might not entirely be one of peace and prosperity. During that decade the world would experience two major political shifts, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise of the European Union. Germany was reunited and Nelson Mandela became the president of South Africa. There were advances in science and technology, the commercial internet and the iMac both debuted. It was also the decade of the O.J. Simpson trial, the death of Princess Diana and the Branch Davidian raid. In this class will look at these events and more, leading up to the dawn of the 21st century.