- Africa - Colonialism: What was it like for Africans to live under the rule of colonial powers? Listen to eyewitness accounts by clicking on "Africans," in the last paragraph. When you are at the link - the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - scroll down 80%, to episode 20: "Life Under Colonialism."
- Africa - Partition: How - and when - was the map of Africa redrawn to reflect colonial interests, and ambitions, of European countries? Listen to what happened at the Congress of Berlin (in 1884-1885) which led to the "Scramble for Africa." Click on "Africans," in the last paragraph. When you are at the link - the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - scroll down 80%, to episode 19: "Partition and Resistance."
- African Religion - Christianity: What are the roots of Christianity in Africa? Where did adherents of the faith first live? Click on "Africans," in the last paragraph. When you are at the link - the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - scroll down halfway, to episode 6: "The Coming of Christianity."
- African Religion - Islam: What are the roots of Islam in Africa? Where did adherents of the faith first live? Click on "Africans," in the last paragraph. When you are at the link - the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - scroll down halfway, to episode 7: "The Coming of Islam."
- African Religion - Traditional Religions: What are the roots of traditional religions in Africa? How have those traditional beliefs, including ancestor veneration, impacted history? Click on "Africans," in the last paragraph. When you are at the link - the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - scroll down halfway, to episode 5: "Traditional Religions."
- Beatrix Potter - Best-Known Children's Author: In 2006, a film - Miss Potter - was released about the best-known writer of children's books. To learn more about her life, listen to this audio program from the BBC. Click on "best-known writer" in the last paragraph.
- Beatrix Potter - Tale of Squirrel Nutkin: Miss Potter's book about a red squirrel first took shape as a letter to a child. How did the landscape and local wildlife in Cumbria influence Beatrix and her story? And ... what do some of the people in that area actually think about the tale? To find out, click on "audio clip," in the fourth paragraph. When you are at the BBC Radio 4 link, look to the left and click on "Listen to this item."
- "Black Hawk Down" - Actual Radio Transmission: During a mission in Mogadishu, Somalia - in October, 1993 - American Black Hawk helicopters were shot down. Listen to the actual radio transmission, after which the film was named, by clicking on "hear" in the last paragraph.
- Black Hawk Down - Interview with Eyewitness: In October of 1993, American troops were caught up in Somalia's civil war. The incident was memorialized in the film Black Hawk Down. Hear an interview with one of the actual Rangers involved in the ambush by clicking on "target," in the third paragraph.
- The Canterbury Tales: - Read in "Old English" What did English "sound like" in the 14th century? Have a listen by clicking on "then" in the fourth paragraph. See how many words you can understand.
- Charlotte's Web - Recording by E.B. White: Hear the author of Charlotte's Web, E.B. White, read the passage where Wilbur meets Charlotte and learns a new word - "salutations." Click on "audio recording," in the third paragraph.
- The Canterbury Tales - Read in "Old English": What did English "sound like" in the 14th century? Have a listen by clicking on "then" in the fourth paragraph. See how many words you can understand.
- Children Evacuate London - Waterloo Station, WWII: Beginning September 1st, 1939 - two days before war was declared - the British government began the largest mass evacuation of people in the country's history. Hear a "live" report - by clicking on "traveled by train" in the fourth paragraph - as children, with their teachers, left London's Waterloo Station, bound for the countryside.
- Churchill - "Iron Curtain" Speech: Many historians believe that Winston Churchill delivered his most important speech after the war was over. Voted out of office, he visited America in 1946. On March 5th of that year, while addressing a group at Westminster College (in Fulton, Missouri), he referenced the "iron curtain which has descended across the continent." It was an excerpt from his "Sinews of Peace" speech. Hear the most famous part by clicking on "he said," in the second paragraph. When you are at the link, select "Broadcast #2."
- Churchill - "This was Their Finest Hour" Speech: On 18 June 1940, Winston Churchill addressed the House of Commons. Urging his country to stand firm against Hitler, the Prime Minister gave one of his most famous speeches. Hear it by clicking on "expressed" in the first paragraph.
- Cuban Missile Crisis - JFK on Potential Casualties: As President Kennedy weighed various options during the 1962 crisis, he was concerned about evacuating Americans in the potential range of Soviet nuclear missiles. Listen to part of the discussion by clicking on "pondered" in the third paragraph.
- Cuban Missile Crisis - JFK on a Nuclear Strike: On October 22, 1962, the president of the United States requested broadcast time. Other than a few individuals, no one knew why. At the end of the speech - which you can hear by clicking on "spoke" in the third paragraph - the world changed as President Kennedy threatened nuclear retaliation if "any nation in the Western Hemisphere" were attacked by any nuclear missile launched from Cuba.
- "Day in Infamy" Speech - FDR Declares War: Delivering one of his most famous speeches, on December 8, 1941, President Roosevelt used a word - infamy - which had not been in his original manuscript. Click on "the speech," in the fourth paragraph.
- East-African Slave Trading: While Europeans were running the slave trade on the west side of Africa, Arabs were doing the same on the east side. Click on “same thing” - in the second-to-last paragraph - for an audio clip from The Story of Africa.
- Everest: Interview with Sir Edmund Hillary: Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary were the first known people to reach the summit of Mt. Everest, the world's highest mountain. Hear an interview with Sir Edmund by clicking on "Hillary" in the third paragraph.
- Everest - Climbing Without Oxygen: Nearly all mountain climbers need supplemental oxygen above 8,000 meters, but Ed Viesturs is an exception. Known as "The Chevy Truck of Mountaineering," Viesturs has been to the top of the world without breathing additional oxygen. How does he do it? Find out by clicking on "He" in the second paragraph.
- FDR - "Fear Itself": During his first inaugural speech, President Franklin Roosevelt assured his depression-wracked, worried countrymen that: "The only thing we have to fear is - fear itself." Hear that portion of his address by clicking on "he said," in the third paragraph.
- Ghana: The Ancient Empire: How did the ancient empire of Ghana begin? Where was it located? Listen to the story of how early settlements became commercial centers, growing wealthy from Saharan trade. Click on "West Africans" in the first quote of this chapter. The audio clip is from the BBC series The Story of Africa - as told by Africans.
- H.G. Wells - On Time Travel: H.G. Wells famously wrote about time travel in his 1898 book The Time Machine. He also talked about the concept, which you can hear by clicking on "discussed," in the third paragraph.
- Hindenburg - Live Broadcast of Explosion: Herb Morrison was recording the Hindenburg's landing, at Lakehurst Air Naval Station, when the rigid air ship exploded - then disintegrated in less than a minute - on the 7th of May, 1937. Morrison's recording was broadcasted the next day. You can hear it by clicking on "Morrison's broadcast" in the last paragraph. The most famous sections begin at approximately 3:30 into the tape.
- Hirohito Speaks - Announces Surrender: Before, and during, World War II, most Japanese had never heard Emperor Hirohito speak. To their shock, in August of 1945, he announced the country's surrender - and - that he was not a god. To hear him, click on "he announced" in the fifth paragraph.
- Iliad: What Does it Sound Like in Greek? What does Homer's Iliad sound like in Greek? Have a listen to the first verses by clicking on "recited" in the last paragraph.
- Irish Ballad - Wind that Shakes the Barley: The words of Robert Dwyer Joyce, expressing Ireland's desire to be free, have been set to haunting music. Have a listen after you click on "shake the barley" in the poem's last line.
- JKF - Concerns About "Trigger-Happy Americans": During the tense moments of the Cuban Missile Crisis, President Kennedy recorded a summary of the day's events on October 18, 1962. He expressed concerns about the world's potential reaction to "trigger-happy Americans." Hear what he said by clicking on "listen" in the third paragraph.
- Lenin Speaks - A Rare Audio Recording: Vladimir Lenin, leader of the Bolshevik party, was a key participant in Russia's revolution of 1917. Still revered by people in the former Soviet Union, Lenin's body is on display in his Red Square mausoleum. Hear a rare recording of his voice by clicking on "Bolshevik leader," in the first paragraph.
- Middle Passage - African Slave-Trading: What was life aboard the slave ships really like? Click on “brought,” in the third paragraph, to hear an audio clip from The Story of Africa.
- Mussolini - Death Announced: During late April, 1945, the Italian leader Benito Mussolini was attempting to escape Italy as the war in Europe neared its end. He was captured by partisans and executed the following day - April 28, 1945. Hear the announcement of his death by clicking on "news" in the fifth paragraph.
- Prohibition Blues - Lament on the Law: When prohibition became the law in America, many people lamented the loss of access to alcoholic beverages. Have a listen to this 1921 recording, from the Library of Congress, by clicking on "Cahill," in the second paragraph.
- Slavery - Pre-colonial Africa: What evidence do we have that slavery existed in Africa before colonial times? What are the "roots of African slavery?" Click on "kept slaves" in the second paragraph. The audio clip is from the BBC series The Story of Africa - as told by Africans.
- Slave Trade - Transatlantic: What was it like for African people to be kidnapped, uprooted from their normal lives and shipped - like cargo - across the ocean to foreign lands? Listen to eyewitness accounts by clicking on "brought," in the third paragraph. The link is from the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - episode 15: "The Transatlantic Slave Trade."
- South Africa - Apartheid: Nelson Mandela was imprisoned as a result of South Africa's policy of apartheid. How did it happen that apartheid was overthrown and Mandela elected the country's president? Click on "Africans," in the last paragraph. When you are at the link - the BBC series The Story of Africa, as told by Africans - scroll down 90%, to episode 23: "Apartheid."
- Taps - Played by Army Bugler: At the end of most military funerals, a bugler plays Taps. It is a moving, plaintive piece of music. To hear it, go to chapter 25 and click on "that song." It is the last link in the last paragraph.
- Theodore Roosevelt: America's youngest president came to office - at age 42 - after the shocking assassination of William McKinley. A few sound recordings of his speeches survive. Follow the bullet-point links - "speech" and "address" - to hear him. His voice, and the style of his speech, will likely surprise you.
- Virginia Woolf Speaks - Rare Recording: In a rare BBC recording, we can hear Virginia Woolf's voice as she reads Words Fail Me, her eulogy to words. Listen in by clicking on "audio clip," in the last paragraph.