You're one of the first people who's never lived in a world without The Simpsons.
In February 2012, Hampton Stevens wrote about what The Simpsons had left to say after airing its 500th episode.
Around the time you were born, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Hustler magazine and overturned a settlement awarded to Jerry Falwell.
On March 14, 2011, Garrett Epps wrote that the new court should at least protect speech.
You were born in February of 1988. This year, The Atlantic celebrates its 160th birthday, making it 5 times as old as you.
The year you were born, Arianna Huffington wrote about the life and legacy of artist Pablo Picasso.
Everett Collection
This is what Hollywood thought teenagers looked like the year you became one.
Donnie Darko was released in 2001.
Jason Redmond / AP
At 13 years old, you were part of the generation most shaped by 9/11.
The conflicts and displacements touched off around the world by the attacks have been reverberating for the majority of your life. “This ‘war’ [on terrorism] will never be over,” wrote James Fallows, a few years after the towers fell.
Your life can be divided into two halves: before and after American Idol.
In May 2015, Spencer Kornhaber wrote about how the show changed the music industry over time.
Around your 18th birthday, Evo Morales became Bolivia's first indigenous president.
In July 2013, Kurt Weyland wrote about the authoritarian threat to democracy in Latin America.
Goran Tomasevic / Reuters
When you turned 22, you witnessed the revolutionary fervor that transformed the Arab world in 2010, a movement led by your generation.
When 26-year-old Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire, he ignited a tinderbox of protests that continue to roil the Middle East, and kindled the beginnings of democracy in Tunisia.
Youssef Boudlal / Reuters
In 2015, Rihanna, who was born the same year as you, became the first artist to be certified with 100 million singles awards by the RIAA.
In January 2016, Specer Kornhaber wrote about Rihanna's single "Work."
By the time you turn 41, humanity's water requirements will exceed its supplies by 40 percent.
In May 2012, Stewart M. Patrick wrote about the Intelligence Community's report on global water scarcity, and the plan to combat it.
History is happening all around you, every day.
The Atlantic is here to help you process it, in stories like these:
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