The document discusses how globalization has flattened the world over time. It outlines 10 events from 1989 onwards that allowed the world to become flat again by enabling greater individual collaboration and competition on a global scale. These "flatteners" include the fall of the Berlin Wall, the release of Windows 3.0 and the World Wide Web, the introduction of mainstream web browsers, the establishment of internet standards, the rise of user-generated content, and the creation of Google as a highly effective search engine.

1. The World Is Flat

2. Before ColumbusThe world is viewed as much smaller than it really is.

3. The world is round (1492-1989)The world becomes larger. Much larger!

4. The world starts shrinking1492 – 1800: Globalization 1.0Countries globalize1800 – 1990: Globalization 2.0 Companies globalize1990 + : Globalization 3.0Individuals collaborate and compete

5. Starting in 1989, a series of events allowed the Earth to become flat … again. These events are called flatteners.

6. Put the events in order

7. 1st Flattener

8. 1ANovember, 1989Fall of the Berlin Wall End of the Cold WarTerminology: “global” vs. “international”

9. 1BMay, 1990Release of Windows 3.0Individuals became authors of digital content

10. 2nd Flattener

11. 2AAugust, 1991Tim Berners-Lee created the Word Wide Web and posted the first web site.The WWW made the Internet useful.

12. 2BAugust, 1995Netscape introduced the first mainstream Web browser. It made the Internet accessible and eliminated distance, thus shrinking and flattening the world.

13. 3rd Flattener

14. 3Standards:HTTPHTMLXMLAJAXIndividuals can now collaborate on projects.

15. 4th Flattener

16. 4Community-uploaded content200520032001

18. 9th Flattener

19. 91998Larry Paige and Sergei Brin created the search engine that was a little better than others…10,000,000 searches per hour!

20. 10th Flattener

21. 10The steroids:speedgraphicsmobility

22. The World is FlatRelease 3.0by Thomas FriedmanPicador© 2007