In "The New Era in World Politics" author Samuel Huntington argued that during most of human existence contact between civilizations was intermittent or non-existent. a. the world is divided into seven or eight major civilizationsb. local conflicts are more likely escalate when the parties come from different civilizationsc. cultural commonalities and differences shape international relationsd. patterns of political and economic development differ between civilizationse. the most important countries come from different civilizaitons