Simon R. D. Roberts

Factors beyond human control helped to shape a kingdom's future forever.

Dolly—arguably the most famous sheep in world history—was born 20 years ago, on July 5, 1996. She was the first mammal ever to be cloned as an exact genetic copy of her mother, and born healthy. The scientific community and news headlines hailed the breakthrough and postulated that now human cloning would rapidly follow. Is that prospect something humankind should be sheepish about when we consider the potential dangers, or does it offer a solution to human mortality?

On May 8, 1945, millions of civilians and armed forces personnel exuberantly celebrated on the streets of London. After years of nightly blackouts to lessen the threat of bombing raids, public buildings like Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament were lit with floodlights. Church bells rang out across the country, tugboats on the River Thames sounded their horns, and Union flags and bunting decorated buildings everywhere.