剑桥教授推算2014为人类转折年

　　2014 will determine course of century, says Cambridge professor

　　A dramatic event that will determine the course of the 21st century will take place in 2014, according to a Cambridge University academic。

　　Professor Nicholas Boyle claims that events of the fateful year will decide whether the world enjoys peace and prosperity over the coming decades or suffers war and poverty。

　　He believes financial turmoil could be the trigger for the crisis, and that the reactions of American leaders will be crucial to its outcome. He also thinks new global organisations will be key to securing stability rather than nation-states。

　　Boyle argues that 2014 will be important because previous five centuries have also hinged on events that took place in the middle of their second decade. In 1517 Martin Luther nailed his theses to the door of Wittenburg church, sparking the Reformation and the rise of Protestantism. A century later 1618 marked the start of the 30 Years War and decades of religious conflict in Western Europe, which ended with the establishment of the Hanoverians in 1715. The enlightened Congress of Vienna took place in 1815 following the defeat of Napoleon, heralding a century of relative stability across Europe. But in 1914 the First World War broke out。

　　Boyle, whose book 2014 - How to survive the next world crisis is published on Thursday, said: "The character of a century becomes very apparent in that second decade, so why should ours be any different?"