World Population
How many people shared the planet
people on Earth when they were born
people on Earth when you were born
By the time your generation arrived, the world had gained 2.38 billion more people. Today it stands at 8.2B - 1.5B more since you were born.
🇺🇸 United States Leadership
Who was in charge
President of United States
President of United States
🇺🇸 Life Expectancy
How long a generation could expect to live
at birth in United States
at birth in United States
Your generation can expect 4.3 years longer on average than the previous one. The gap between the longest- and shortest-lived countries widened from 31.0 years to 32.2 years.
🇺🇸 Economy - GDP Per Capita
Real purchasing power at birth
United States - in today's dollars
United States - in today's dollars
All figures adjusted to 2024 dollars. A positive shift means real economic growth, not just inflation.
Economy - Median Household Income (US)
What a typical family earned
median household income in today's dollars
median household income in today's dollars
Figures are in 2024 dollars. This shows whether typical families actually got ahead - adjusted for inflation.
Housing Affordability (US)
How many years of income to buy a home
years of median income to buy median home
years of median income to buy median home
Lower ratio means more affordable. A ratio of 3 means a median home cost 3 years of median salary.
Everyday Prices
What things cost in the US - in today's dollars
All prices adjusted to 2024 dollars. A negative change means something got cheaper in real terms.
🎵 Music
Top Song
by Andy Gibb
by Flo Rida featuring T-Pain
🏆 Film
Oscar Best Picture
dir. Woody Allen
dir. Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
📺 Television
Most-watched TV show
ABC
Fox
💻 Technology
The defining tech moment
First GPS satellite launched; VisiCalc, the first spreadsheet program, invented ...
Apple App Store launches with iPhone OS 2.0, creating the modern app economy; An...
💾 Storage
Average hard drive capacity
typical computer storage
typical computer storage
📱 Mobile
Mobile phone subscribers worldwide
subscribers globally
subscribers globally
In 1978, recording your voice meant pressing play+record on a cassette.
In 2008, recording your voice meant GarageBand or a cheap USB mic.
Today, AI can recreate anyone's voice from a few minutes of audio, including yours.
Try it with ElevenLabs →🌍 World Events
What was happening when each generation arrived
1978
Camp David Accords signed by Egypt and Israel brokered by President Carter, the first Arab-Israeli peace agreement
Pope Paul VI dies; Pope John Paul I elected but dies after only 33 days - the shortest papacy in modern history
Pope John Paul II elected, the first non-Italian pope in 455 years and first ever Polish pope
Jonestown massacre: 918 people die in Guyana after cult leader Jim Jones orders mass poisoning, the largest US civilian death toll before 9/11
2008
Global financial crisis erupts as Lehman Brothers collapses on September 15 - the largest bankruptcy in US history - triggering a worldwide recession
Barack Obama elected as the 44th President of the United States, becoming the first African American president in US history
Beijing Summer Olympics open with a spectacular ceremony; Michael Phelps wins 8 gold medals, Usain Bolt sets 100m and 200m world records
Mumbai terrorist attacks kill 166 people across the city over four days, executed by Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba
keep exploring