Eleven Facts That Will Make You Rethink Your Relationship With History

... or at least make you feel old

1. Homo Sapiens has existed as a distinct species for about 200,000 years (some scientists would argue that it’s closer to 300,000). We have lived in cities for about 6,000 years (.03% of our history as a species). We have known how to write for 5,000 years (.025%). We have been burning fossil fuels for energy for 200 years (.001% of our history).

2. The …