Category Archives: History

History

On this day July 4

Today in History

  • 2012 Discovery of Higgs boson particle is announced by scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)

    The existence of the elusive elementary particle in physics, was suggested in the 1960s. The Higgs boson, which is named after Nobel laureate, Peter Higgs, was finally detected by scientists working at the Large Hadron Collider.

  • 1966 Freedom of Information Act in the US is signed into law

    The 36th President of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson signed the law, which allows for the disclosure of government information to the public. It came into effect a year later in 1967.

  • 1946 Philippines gains independence from the United States

    The South East Asian country had been ruled for almost 381 years by various colonial powers, starting with the Spanish in the early 16th century.

  • 1865 Alice in Wonderland is published for the first time

    The classic fantasy novel was written by author Lewis Carroll, whose real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. The book recounted the adventures of a curious girl, Alice, who falls into a rabbit hole and meets human-like animals and creatures.

  • 1776 United States Declaration of Independence is adopted in Philadelphia

    The statement declared the independence of the 13 British colonies from the British crown. It also announced the creation of a new country called the United States of America. Then handwritten declaration was approved by the Second Continental Congress and was signed by 56 delegates on August 2, 1776.

History

On this day July 2

Today in History

  • 2002 American businessman, Steve Fossett completes the first solo around-the-world Balloon Flight

    This was Fossett’s 6th attempt to circumnavigate the world. It took him 13 days in a balloon called Spirit of Freedom to cover 20,000 miles.

  • 2001 World’s First Self-Contained Artificial Heart Transplant

    59-year old American Robert L. Tools became the first person to receive the a self-contained artificial heart transplant called the AbioCor at the Jewish Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. The AbioCor is an artificial heart that is not connected to wires or an external pump.

  • 1937 American aviator Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan are heard for the last time before disappearing

    They were attempting to make the first around-the-world flight in a Lockheed Model 10 Electra. Neither they nor the plane has ever been found and that has led to speculation about what happened to them. An accomplished pilot, Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.

  • 1900 The Zeppelin Takes Off for the First Time

    The rigid aircraft named after Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, the inventor of the dirigible and founder of the Zeppelin Airship Construction Company, made its first flight over Lake Constance in Germany. Unlike blimps or balloons, Zeppelins are built by stretching material over a rigid framework, usually made of metal. Zeppelins can be steered and they were used by the German Air Force to conduct aerial attacks during the First World War.

  • 1843 Alligator Falls Out of the Sky in Charleston, South Carolina during a thunderstorm.

    It is believed that the strange incident happened when a waterspout carried an alligator from a body of water and dropped in on the city.

History

On this day June 30

Today in History

  • 1972 The first leap second is added to UTC

    Leap seconds are added to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) from time to time to account for the Earth’s slowing rotation. UTC is the basis for the calculation of local times worldwide.

  • 1971 The crew of Soviet spacecraft “Soyuz 11” dies after the loss of air supply

    The cause of the tragedy was a faulty valve. The three cosmonauts had previously achieved the first docking of a spacecraft to a space station in history.

  • 1936 The novel “Gone with the Wind” is published

    Margaret Mitchell’s story set in the American South during the American Civil War became one of the United States’ biggest best-sellers. The 1939 movie version starring Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable was similarly successful.

  • 1908 The Tunguska event leaves 2000 square km of Siberian forest flattened and scorched

    The devastation is believed to have been caused by the explosion of an asteroid or comet. It is the largest impact event in recorded history.

  • 1905 Albert Einstein submits a paper outlining his theory of special relativity

    The text “Zur Elektrodynamik bewegter Körper” comprises the currently accepted theory about the relationship between space and time. The theory of special relativity is the basis for his theory of general relativity, which he published in 1916

History

On this day June 28

Today in History

  • 1969 A police raid of a gay tavern sparks a series of violent clashes

    The Stonewall Riots in New York City marked the beginning of the gay rights movement in the United States. The Christopher Street Day, a yearly observance for Gay Pride in some European countries, is named after the bar’s location.

  • 1967 Israel annexes East Jerusalem

    From Israel’s point of view, the annexation effected the reunification of its capital city. However, the international community declared it illegal and views East Jerusalem as Palestinian territory occupied by Israel.

  • 1939 The world’s first scheduled transatlantic flight takes off

    The Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat was operated by Pan Am. It took about 24 hours to reach Marseille, France. The scheduled service was soon discontinued again because of the outbreak of World War II.

  • 1914 Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie are assassinated

    Gavrilo Princip’s attack effected a crisis among Europe’s major powers (July Crisis). This ultimately triggered the First World War, which with over 37 million deaths was one of the bloodiest war of all time. Five years later to the day, the Treaty of Versailles formally ended the war.

  • 1846 The saxophone is patented

    Belgian musician Adolphe Sax developed the woodwind instrument typically made of brass, which in recent decades has heavily influenced the sound of the jazz, military band, rock, and pop musical genres.