1497 – The Bonfire of the Vanities occurs, during which supporters of Girolamo Savonarola burn cosmetics, art, and books in Florence, Italy. 1795 – The 11th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified. “The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced...
Damage-range comparison between a moderate New Madrid zone earthquake in 1895 (magnitude 6.8) and a similar Los Angeles event 1994 (magnitude 6.7).
AD 60 – The earliest date for which the day of the week is known. A graffito in Pompeii identifies this day as a dies Solis (Sunday). In modern reckoning, this date would have been a Wednesday. 1685 – James II of England and VII of Scotland becomes King upon the death of his brother...
Jack Kilby and his integrated circuit.
Jack Kilby's demonstration of the first working integrated circuit 'IC' in 1958 revolutionized the field of microelectronics.
Instead of using discrete transistors, resistors, and capacitors to form a circuit, Kilby's IC design integrated a transistor, a capacitor, and the equivalent of three resistors all on the same chip.
The first IC was made out of a thin slice of germanium (the light blue rectangle, seen above) as a bulk resistor and contained a single bipolar transistor (under the large aluminum bar in the center). It had four input/output terminals (the small vertical aluminum bars), a ground (the large bar on the far right) and wires of gold. The microchips of today have been improved by hundreds of innovations, but Kilby's prototype was an important early step. ( National Museum of American History)
AD 62 – Earthquake in Pompeii, Italy. 1597 – A group of early Japanese Christians are killed by the new government of Japan for being seen as a threat to Japanese society. 1852 – The New Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, one of the largest and oldest museums in the world, opens to the...
1207 – Terra Mariana, eventually comprising present-day Latvia and Estonia, is established. 1653 – New Amsterdam (later renamed The City of New York) is incorporated. 1709 – Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being shipwrecked on a desert island, inspiring Daniel Defoe’s adventure book Robinson Crusoe. 1887 – In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania the first Groundhog Day is...
1327 – The teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Isabella and her lover Roger Mortimer. 1662 – The Chinese general Koxinga seizes the island of Taiwan after a nine-month siege. 1861 – American Civil War: Texas secedes from the United States. 1865 – President...
Koch was a lifelong Democrat who described himself as a "liberal with sanity". He was reported to have said, I'm the sort of person who will never get ulcers. Why? Because I say exactly what I think. I'm the sort of person who might give other people ulcers."
1504 – The Treaty of Lyon ends the Italian War, confirming French domination of northern Italy, while Spain receives the Kingdom of Naples. 1606 – Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes is executed for plotting against Parliament and King James. 1862 – Alvan Graham Clark discovers the white dwarf star Sirius B, a companion of Sirius, through...
