41.   The booming economies of some Asian countries combined with lax or primitive financial and border controls have allowed the region to become a world center for money laundering.

42.   The region became the crucible of Humanism and the Reformation.

43.   The region has become a trade hub, thanks to the North American Free Trade Agreement and a growing demand for consumer goods south of the border.

44.   The region has become increasingly tense because the Muslims regard an influx of Chinese settlers as a threat to their prosperity and way of life.

45.   The region may become more stable with the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the faction allied with Saddam, now in full control of all the major cities.

46.   The remote jungle region has become increasingly violent in recent months as fighting between Colombian paramilitaries, leftist rebels and drug traffickers has spilled across the border.

47.   The region has become the second-largest aluminum producer in the country.

48.   The region became a secret military zone, home of the Baltic Fleet.

49.   The region essentially became a giant crime scene.

50.   The region had become a primary theater for the ideological war waged between the two superpowers at the time.