Globalization
the econ, political, and cultural integration and interaction of all parts of the world brought about by increasing trade, travel, and technology
ethnic cleansing
effort to eradicate a people and its culture by means of mass killing and the destruction of historical buildings and cultural materials. ethnic cleansing was used by both sides in the conflicts that accompanied the disintegration of Yugoslavia in the 199
weapons of mass destruction
nuclear, chemical, and biological devices that are capable of injuring and killing large numbers or people
terrorism
political belief that extreme and seemingly random violence will destablize a gov't and permit the terrorist to gain political advantage. though an old tecnique, terrorism gained prominence in the late twentieth cent w/ the growth of worldwide mass media
Usama bin Laden
Saudi-born Muslim extremist who funded the al Qaeda organization that was responsible for several terrorist attacks, including those on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in 2001
World Trade Organization (WTO)
an international body est in 1995 to foster and bring order to international trade
millenarianism
beliefs, based on prophetic revelations, in apocalyptic global transformation associated with the completion of cycles of a thousand years
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
a 1946 united nations covenant binding signatory nations to the observance of specified rights
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)
nonprofit international oranizations devoted to investigating human rights abuses and providing humanitarian relief. two NGOs won the nobel peace prize in the 1990s: international campaign to ban landmines and doctors without borders
cultural imperialism
domination of one culture over another by a deliberate policy or by economic or technological superiority
pop culture
entertaiment spread by mass communications and enjoying wide appeal
global culture
cultural practices and institutions that have been adopted internationally, whether elite (the english lang, modern science, and higher education) or popular (music, television, the internet, food, and fashion)