a) The landing on the moon on July 21st. I have experienced it at my grandparents
because my parents did not have their own television yet. This is among the
first things I can consciously remember.
b) The opening of the [Berlin]
wall on November 9th. I was grown up, formed by the iron curtain. On the
evening of November 9th I entered my car to visit friends. I turned the radio
on and just heard an announcment which promulgated the opening of the wall,
music came afterwards. I took the whole thing for a satire (!), because I
could not believe the announcement. On the morning of the next day I watched
the "Tagesschau". I was nearly thunderstruck, when I realized that this was
not a joke. For the first time something has happend which was like a miracle.
For me the most important development of the 20th century was the quantum
physics and the philosophical consequences related to it. ("Kopenhagen Interpretation"
from Bohr and Heisenberg). In this I see the core of a new view of the world,
which, as I hope, bring a new era to mankind (even more fundamental than
the theory of relativity) Another important development of the 20th century
as I see it is the Rock'n'Roll and the resulting music styles (Beat, Rock,
Metal, up to Wave). These are only the most important developments.
For me the most important personalities of the 20th century:
positive: Max Planck, Nils Bohr, Werner Heisenberg, Albert Einstein,
Karlheinz Stockhausen, Elvis Presley.
mostly positive: Mikhail Gorbatchev
negative: Hitler, Stalin
The most important music groups of the 20th century, according the music theory:
The Beatles, Kraftwerk, Depeche Mode, Black Sabbath"