1600 Eruption Led to Global Cooling, Social Unrest

An article dated April 30, 2008 in National Geographic News reported on the effects of a volcano eruption in 1600. The article briefly mentions other eruptions.

Scientists have long believed that the event prompted a yearlong cooling of Earth, as sulfur released into the upper atmosphere blocked sunlight from reaching the surface.

How the Council of Nicea Changed the World

LiveScience for March 31, 2008 reported on the impact of the Council of Nicea on Christianity.

That summer, 318 bishops from across the empire were invited to the Turkish town of Nicea, where Constantine had a vacation house, in an attempt to find common ground on what historians now refer to as the Arian Controversy. It was the first ever worldwide gathering of the Church.

How the Iron Age Changed the World

An article in LiveScience for March 3, 2008 reported on the effect of the Iron Age.

Iron has remained an essential element for more than 3,000 years, through the Industrial Revolution – helping Britain become the foremost industrial power – and into today in its more sophisticated form, steel.