The flush toilet and the discovery of the potato. The Declaration of Independence and the invention of plastic. The first novel and man's first steps on the moon. These are just some of the 100 most important events, discoveries, and magnificent moments of the past 1,000 years selected -- and ranked -- by the editors of Life in this tour of the millennium. Working with dozens of experts around the world and based on the magazine's fall 1997 special double issue, this book photo edited by Alison Morley brings an encyclopedic account of human progress from 1001 to the present.