January 1

Incandescent light bulbs

                      In 2014, in the U.S., the manufacture and importing of the common 40-watt and 60-watt general service incandescent lamps was ended under the deadline specified in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. It required better energy efficiency, so that they would be replaced by compact fluorecent, halogen or LED lamps producing more lumens of light per watt of consumption. A modern 43-watt lamp produces the brightness of an old style 60-watt incandescent lamp. Its higher initial purchase price will be more than be paid for in electricity cost savings over a much longer lifetime. Some incandescent types remain exempted, such as appliance, rough service, three-way, candelabra, showcase and other specialty types. The 100-watt incandescent lamp was phased out in 2012, and 75-watt in 2013

Mercury ban in child vaccines

                      In 2006, the Iowa state ban on the use of thimerosal in almost all vaccines used on children became effective. Iowa passed the law on 14 Apr 2004, and became the first state in the U.S. to enact such restriction. California followed in 26 Aug 2004. State politicians reacted to public concern. Thimerosal contains ethylmercury, a compound of mercury. In other circumstances, mercury is known to be a toxic substance. However, thimerosal had been used in microgram quantities in vaccines to prevent bacterial contamination since the 1930s. On 9 Jul 1999, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics, merely as a precaution, asked pharmaceutical companies to discontinue its use in vaccines as soon as possible, though medical evidence was otherwise reassuring.

Metric system adoption in Guyana 

                       In 2003, Guyana switched to the metric system as the legal measurement system instead of the imperial system. The change was guided by the National Metrication Committee and the Metrication Division of the Guyana National Bureau of Standards, which was responsible for the public education aspect of the programme and to provide technical support to industry, regulatory bodies, local government, commercial and educational institutions. A legal sub-sector committee effected necessary changes to existing legislations that needed to be converted from imperial units. Guyana is situated in the north-east mainland of South American mainland. It has some ocean coast between Venezuela to the west and Suriname to the east

Greenwich Electronic Time

                        In 2000, Greenwich Electronic Time - known as GeT - was initiated in Britain to act as an international standard for all electronic commerce. All e-mail messages and e-commerce transactions already carry a “time stamp” based on Co-ordinated Universal Time - the modern equivalent of GMT. Most computer clocks have software which converts e-mail and message dates into local time. The move will provide a single time standard for worldwide Internet traders and users around the world in the same way that Greenwich Mean Time has helped travellers to keep time since 1884.

 Snail extinction

                            In 1996, the last individual of the snail species Partula turgida (the Polynesian Tree Snail) died at the London Zoo. A protozoan disease of the digestive gland was believed responsible for the extinction of this last specimen. Numerous field surveys failed to find extant populations of this species in the wild (the South Pacific island of Raiatea in the Society Island chain, about 5000-km south of Hawaii). Raiatea residents began importing predatory snails from Florida in 1986 to eat a different pest snail, but the predators attacked the native snails. By 1991 they had driven the species to the brink of extinction. Scientists captured the last known P. turgida individuals to try to save them through captive breeding.

 Revised classification for HIV

                       In 1993, a revised definition of AIDS surveillance cases became effective as a requirement for all states in AIDS case reporting. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) update expanded the case definition for AIDS among adolescents and adults. The CDC also revised the classification system for HIV infection to greater emphasis to the clinical importance of the count of CD4+ T-lymphocytes, the white blood cells that are the body's master immune cells. As the count falls, the risk and severity of opportunistic illnesses increase. The expansion added three clinical conditions: pulmonary tuberculosis, recurrent pneumonia, and invasive cervical cancer. It retained all the 23 clinical conditions in AIDS case definitions published in 1987. Notably, by adding cervical cancer, more women would be included.

  Hospital smoking ban

                        In 1992, from this day, a hospital without a policy of no-smoking indoors would risk losing accreditation by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). That would put their Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements in jeopardy. The smoke-free environment, mandated for accreditation by the Commission, was for the health of the patients. This was the first U.S. industry-wide ban on smoking in the workplace. Since smoking is the nation's number one cause of preventable disease and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control, this landmark effort removed the contradiction of cigarette smoking and a hospital's mission for health a study showed that by 1994, more than 96% of U.S. hospitals complied with the standard, and 41% were more stringent.

  U.S. electronic toll collection

                           In 1991, the first state in the U.S. to implement electronic highway toll collection was Oklahoma. It was installed on existing toll roads. Drivers with an optional windshield mounted transponder device could pass at highway speeds through designated lanes of  toll plazas. An electronic signal activated a system to deduct the appropriate toll from a deposit the driver maintains with the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. The system was called Pikepass, and was supplied by TransCore of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. On the same day, cash tolls were increased by 25%. A turnpike authority spokesperson said the existing cost of collecting tolls by hand was 25 cents per transaction, but was expected to be only 10 cents per Pikepass transaction. The state also takes the interest on the money in toll deposit accounts.

  International ozone agreement

                             In 1989, the Montreal Protocol, an international agreement (adopted 16 Sep 1987) to reduce the use of ozone-depleting substances, came into force. Ecological and health damage results from a depleted ozone layer as more UV-B radiation can reach the Earth's surface. Results include increased rates of skin cancers and eye cataracts, reduced plant and fishing yields and other adverse effects on terrestrial and ocean ecosystems, weakened immune systems, and more damage to plastics. The international treaty intends to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of halogenated hydrocarbon substances believed to be responsible for ozone depletion. It has proved to be a very successful international agreement

  AT&T broken up

                               In 1985, AT&T, the American telephone company, divested local operating to seven independent companies, and henceforth was limited to the long-distance market. Thus ended a monopoly that had previously been sanctioned and regulated by the government. This was required by the 1982 settlement of the 1974 U.S. Justice Department antitrust lawsuit. That had resulted from complaints by MCI and other long-distance service providers who, since 1970, had been allowed as limited competition, but were disadvantaged by AT&T having protected standing. AT&T retained its manufacturing of telephone equipment, later spun off as Lucent Technologies. Competition resulted in reduced long-distance rates. Mergers and acquisitions reduced the number of regional operating companies from seven to four

  Coordinated Universal Time

                              In 1972, Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) was adopted worldwide. UTC is determined from six primary atomic clocks that are coordinated by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures located in France. The abbreviation - UTC - was chosen as an international compromise between the initials of the English language form “coordinated universal time” and the French “temps universel coordonné.” Time zone boundaries as used by nations are drawn according to political considerations. Leap seconds are added to UTC periodically, about once each 18 months, so the highly accurate atomic clock time matches the time measured by Earth's rotation, which is very slightly variable due to tidal forces with the Moon

  Fluoridation

                              In 1967, the first fluoridation law in the U.S. went into effect in Connecticut, requiring fluoridation of public water supplies serving 20,000 or more population, to prevent dental caries. The water fluoridation era began in 1945 when the cities of Newburgh, New York, and Grand Rapids, Michigan, began adding sodium fluoride to their public water systems. This followed the work done (1930-1943) by Frederick S. McKay, a Colorado dentist, who related brown stains (mottling) on his patients' teeth to low dental caries due to the source of their drinking water containing high levels of naturally occurring fluoride. By the early 1940s, H. Trendley Dean had determined the ideal level of fluoride in drinking water to reduce decay without mottling.

 Cigarettes

    

                               In 1966, effective on this day, all US cigarette packages began carrying the health warning: Caution: Cigarette smoking may be hazardous to your health. This resulted from landmark federal legislation enacted in 1965 that required health warnings on cigarette packages. In 1984, the law was amended to require one of four warning labels in most cigarette-related advertising (U.S. Code, Title 15, Chapter 36, Sec. 1333.)

  NYC open-burning ban

                           In 1964, an ordinance banning the open-burning of all materials on land within New York City limits took full effect upon the expiration of the two-year exemption for builders and building wreckers that had been permitted only until 1 Jan 1964, according to the law signed by the Mayor on 30 Nov 1961. The bill, intended to reduce air pollution had already prohibited, effective 1 Jan 1962, the burning of leaves, trees, shrubbery or plants. Health problems would be alleviated by the ban. Persons affected with asthma, emphysema and other respiratory conditions would be able to breathe easier. From 1972, the open burning of household waste was prohibited in New York State for all cities with population over 20,000, and everywhere in the state from 15 Oct 2009

  Electric power plant

                             In 1963, the first U.S. electric power plant to use hyperbolic-shaped cooling towers was placed in commercial service at Ashland, Kentucky by the Kentucky Power Company. It was designed to cool 120,000 gallons of water per minute.* The first unit at Big Sandy Plant opened with a 260-megawatt power capacity. The location was chosen to be close to the coal mines that fuel it. In 1969, a second unit opened adding another 800-megawatt of power production. A hyperbolic-shaped cooling tower provides a natural draft that cools the water from the power plant's steam condensers at a much lower operating cost than mechanical draft cooling towers. Air enters at the bottom level, which has an open diagonal column structure. [Image: Hyperbolic cooling towers at Big Sandy Plant, 1963, showing coal fuel pile, and train sidings.]

  NYC open-burning ban

                              In 1962, an ordinance banning the open-burning of leaves, trees, shrubbery or plants on land within New York City took effect. The action reflected concern over air pollution and its effect on health, and another control against smog. Builders and building wreckers were granted a two-year exemption. The law was signed by the Mayor on 30 Nov 1961. New York State followed this example in 1972, applying the measure state-wide to cities with population over 20,000. Giving increasing attention to air pollution, New York State ended the exemption for smaller communities, and extended the state's ban to everywhere in throughout the state from 15 Oct 2009

  OSCAR 1 final transmissions

 

                                In 1962, the last signals from the OSCAR 1 satellite were received as its non-rechargeable battery failed. The OSCAR 1 (Orbiting Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio) was the first Amateur Radio satellite, launched on 12 Dec 1961, piggy-backed on a Thor-Agena rocket with the primary purpose of deploying military satellite Discoverer-36. On the way, OSCAR 1 was left in an elliptical orbit just above the Earth's atmosphere. It was a mere 11-lb, 9×12×6-in, with a radio transmitting HI in Morse code with 140-mW of power on frequency 114.983-Mz. It transmitted for 312 orbits in 22 days, while its signal was picked up by amateurs in 28 nations. Its low orbit shortly decayed and it burned up in the atmosphere on 31 Jan 1962. (It was little more than four years since Russia launched Sputnik on ; 4 Oct 1957.)

  Birth control pill sold in GB

                                   In 1961, Conovid 5mg, from G.D. Searle & Co., became the first oral contraceptive to be sold in Great Britain. A bottle of 20 tablets (retail price of £1 3s. 3d.) was sufficient for daily use during a one month cycle. Chemically, it had 5-mg of the progestogen Norethynodrel in combination with 0.075-mg of the active oestrogen, ethinyl oestradiol-3-methyl-ether. Norethynodrel was the brand name for 17α-ethinyl-17-hydroxy-5(10)-oestren-3-one. These acted to inhibit ovulation by controlling certain secretions. Trials had been made by American researchers Gregory Pincus and John Rock in Puerto Rico, Haiti and the U.S. Later, field tests began in Great Britain on a smaller scale in Mar 1959. Subsequent fertility was found unimpaired; women who withdrew from the trials had normal pregnancies

  Coast-to-coast colour telecast

                                     In 1954, the first colour telecast originating from the west coast of the U.S. showed the Tournament of Roses parade hosted by Don Ameche in Pasadena, California. It was viewed by the audiences of the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) network in 21 cities (with remaining cities showing the program in black and white). NBC had made the first live colour coast-to-coast live telecast from the east coast two months earlier, on 3 Nov 1953, from its WNBT-TV station (now WNBC) in New York City. It was sent across country to Burbank, California, using radio relay circuits provided by the Bell Telephone Company. 

  Mobile colour TV units

                                      In 1954, the first colour mobile television units in the U.S. were placed in service by station WNBT of the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) to cover the Tournament of Roses Parade. Two units, each three-colour capable, with complete audio and video control on board, were mobilized aboard large motor vans. Each truck was 35-ft long, 8-ft wide and 10.6 ft high. One camera was crane-mounted. A new logo was introduced to accompany the colour broadcasts. Black and white TV mobile units were already well established for outdoor events, having begun operation on 12 Dec 1937 by the W2XBT station of NBC using a microwave link to a tower transmitter on the Empire State Building.

  Railroad observation dome cars

                                         In 1953, ten full-length observation “Super Dome” railroad cars began service on the Hiawatha trains of the Milwaukee Railroad operating between Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Minneapolis, Seattle and Tacoma. They had seating for 68 passengers on the viewing level, and a lower dining and lounge section for 28 persons. Each air-conditioned car was 85-ft long, 10-ft wide, and were 15½-ft high. The twenty-one windows along each side curved toward the roof, in panels 5-ft high, more than 3-ft wide, running the full length of the car, with only narrow frames between them for an unobstructed view. Staircases at each end gave access between decks. The cars weighed 200,400-lb each, were built by the Pullman-Standard Car Mfg. Co. and cost $320,000 each.

  Pay television

                                   In 1951, the first pay television in the U.S. started test transmissions to a limited group of subscribers in Chicago, Illinois for 90 days. The broadcast signal was scrambled, and could be viewed by those people having the "key signal" sent to them by telephone. The first day's full-length features, each priced at $1, began in the afternoon with April Showers with Jack Carson, followed by the Bing Crosby movieWelcome Stranger and then Homecoming with Clark Gable and Lana Turner. The service, provided by Zenith Radio Corporation (KS2KSBS), was tested by 300 families chosen from 51,000 applicants. The company sold over 2,000 program views in the first month, yet not enough to sustain the commercial venture. 

  Colour newsreel

                                   In 1948, the first U.S. motion picture newsreel in colour was taken at the Tournament of Roses and the Rose Bowl Game, Pasadena, California. Warner Brothers-Pathe started showing this first colour newsreel to theatre audiences on 5 Jan 1948. It was made using the Cinecolor process. 

  British railways nationalized

                                   In 1948, nationalization of the railways in Britain formed British Railways from the four private companies: LMS (London, Midland and Scottish), LNER (London and North Eastern Railway), the Southern and the Great Western. The Big Four companies had been privately owned and operating since 1 Jan 1923 as compulsory amalgamations of over one hundred smaller Victorian railway companies. The nationalization was implemented by the post-war Labour government. During WW II, the railway assets had deteriorated and there was a huge backlog of necessary repairs to the track, locomotives and rolling stock. In the early 1960s, the Conservative government required the closure of branch lines that were no longer economically justified. These drastic changes were effected by Dr. Richard Beeching

  ENIAC

                                        In 1946, ENIAC, the first U.S. computer was finished by John Mauchly and J. Presper Eckert. It was built at the Moore School of Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, based on ideas developed by John Atanasoff of Iowa State College. Though not the first ever computer, ENIAC is regarded as the first successful, general digital computer. It weighed over 27,000 kg (60,000 lb), and contained more than 18,000 vacuum tubes. A staff of six technicians replaced about 2000 of the tubes each month. Many of ENIAC's first tasks were for military purposes, such as calculating ballistic firing tables and designing atomic weapons. Since ENIAC was initially not a stored program machine, it had to be reprogrammed for each task.

  Flea Lab

                                    In 1939, a Flea Laboratory opened in San Francisco, California at the University of California's Hooper Foundation for Medical Research. It was the first of its kind in the U.S. The building was a two story concrete structure designed to be flea-tight, and rodent-tight. Air-conditioning kept the interior at a constant temperature. This event came a century after fleas first made a name for themselves. The first U.S. flea circus opened in early Jan 1838, which was billed as an "Extraordinary Exhibition of the Industrious Fleas." Patrons at 187 Broadway, New York City, for an admission of 50 cents, could attend performances at times from 11am to 3pm and 5pm to 9pm. 

  Gerbert Stamp

                                      In 1938, the scholarly Gerbert, who became Pope Sylvester II was shown on a postage stamp issued by Hungary. It depicted Pope Sylvester II giving to Abbott Astrik the Holy Crown with which King Stephen I (975-1038) was crowned on 17 Aug 1001, at Gran, his birthplace. The gift signalled the Pope answering the king's petition, through Astrik, to make Hungary a Christian nation. The stamp was on in a series of eight that commemorated the 900th anniversary of the death of St. Stephen. Pope Sylvester II is known as the mathematician Pope. Before becoming pope in 999, Gerbert d'Aurillac was a scholar in mathematics and astronomy. He reintroduced the abacus to facilitate calculations. He brought to Europe the use of Arabic numerals 1-9 to replace Roman numerals.

  Windscreen safety glass

                                  In 1937, in Britain, safety glass for windscreens was made mandatory in new vehicle manufacturing. It was known that in car accidents, ordinary glass would break into dangerous, jagged blades. Safety glass was made as a sandwich of clear, flexible plastic laminated between two layers of glass. When French artist and chemist Édouard Bénédictus first patented safety glass in 1909, the choice of plastic was limited to a sheet of clear celluloid. He discovered the idea by accident in 1903. During WW I, it was used in the eyepieces of gas masks. By 1936, others plastics had become available, of which polyvinyl butyral (PVB) was adopted because of its strength and ability to stretch making it the most safe and effective to use. Such safety glass when struck could merely bulge, or break into less harmful pieces.

  Air Corps physiological research laboratory

                                   In 1937, at the physiological research facility at Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio, outfitting was completed, and it was ready to undertake its first work. It was the first of its kind in America. The U.S. Air Corps now had a laboratory to improve health and safety for pilots. The first effort was a series of animal experiments to gather baseline physiological data on hypoxia, and the effects of explosive decompression. The Physiological Research Unit was established 18 May 1935 with Capt. Harry G. Armstrong as the director. Later, here, the first centrifuge in the U.S. allowed scientists to investigate the physiological effects of G-forces on humans. The design of modern pressurized aircraft is a result of work done here. On 10 Feb 1939, the unit was renamed the Aeromedical Research Laboratory.

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  Microfilm news

                                   In 1936, the Herald Tribune of New York began microfilming its current issues from this date, becoming the first U.S. newspaper to make a current record of its publication. The previous year the New York Times had microfilmed its back-issues for the years 1914-27, but had not yet started processing its current issues in this form

  Wirephoto

                                     In 1935, Wirephoto™ by AP News® was invented. It enabled the transmission of photographs by wire to member newspapers. The photo was wrapped around a drum. The drum was then rotated as a light-sensitive photocell moved over the image picking up brightness differences. The photocell created voltages that were amplified and sent by telephone lines to the subscribing newspapers. At the receiving end, a piece of photographic paper spun around on a cylinder within a light-tight enclosure. The intensity of a pinpoint of light focused on the paper varied with the signal being picked up by the originating machine. The paper was then processed in a darkroom in the same way as a normal photographic print. 

  Windshield safety glass

                                     In 1934, a state law took effect mandating the used of safety glass for windshields and windows in new vehicles registered in Pennsylvania. Similar laws took effect on 1 Jan 1935 in the American states of New York, Virginia and Nebraska. In On 1 Jan 1936, vehicles registered in California, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Wisconsin were covered in the same way by their state's law. Major car manufacturers were already aware of the importance of safety glass in accidents, and had already for some years adopted its use in their vehicles. Magazine advertisements also offered consumers safety glass retrofits to protect the family riding in an older car. In a 1934 ad for Duplate Safety Plate Glass, by the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, a cost range was given as $7.50 to $20 depending on the car model.

  Air-conditioning

                                          In 1928, the first high-rise office building in the world with air-conditioning installed during construction - the Milam Building - opened in San Antonio, Texas. The 21-story building has almost 250,000 square feet of floor area. The air-conditioning was designed by the Carrier Engineering Corporation to provide 300 tons of refrigeration capacity with chilled water, piped to air-handling fans serving all floors. Smaller buildings such as stores and theatres already had air conditioning installed, but the high-rise required preparing in advance the design to incorporate ducts and air-handling and control equipment planned with the structure. At the time it opened, it was also the tallest brick and concrete-reinforced structure in the United States. 

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  Turkey Gregorian calendar

                                            In 1927, Turkey adopted the use of the Gregorian Calendar. This day followed immediately after 18 Dec on the Julian calendar. The 13 intermediate dates were skipped, so in Turkey the month of December had on 18 days in 1927.

  Universe size

                                                 In 1925, a paper by Edwin Hubble described how he had measured that the Andromeda galaxy was at a far greater distance than, and thus not part of, our Milky Way galaxy. That significantly extended the known view of the universe. His paper was read, by H.N. Russell, to a meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Washington, D.C. Hubble had observed Cepheid variable stars in the Milky and Andromeda galaxies. He applied Henrietta Leavitt's discovery that for such stars, pulsation rate and absolute brightness were related in a predictable way. If two such stars have the same pulsation rate, they have the same absolute brightness. If one appears less bright, it is further away. Comparing apparent brightness with absolute brightness (known from the pulsation rate) gives distance measurement.

  Ink paste

                                             In 1924, the first U.S.patent for ink paste was issued to Frank Buckley Cooney of Minneapolis, Minn. (No. 1,479,533). Paste ink was designed to be rendered fluid for use by the addition of water, so that “a very satisfactory writing fluid is provided free of suspended matter and other imperfections.” Thus ink could be packaged in a collapsible lead vending tube in highly concentrated form. This also had the benefit of reducing shipping costs. Four fluid ounces of paste would produce one gallon of ink after dilution, free from the suspended matter associated with concentrated ink in the form of powders or tablets. It was manufactured as Cooney's Ink Paste, from 10 Feb 1923, by the Standard Ink Co in the same city.

  Big Four British railways

                                             In 1923, the 123 British private railway companies merged into just the “Big Four” giant regional companies. Thus were formed the London, Midland & Scottish, London & North Eastern, Great Western and Southern railways as privately owned monopolies. During WW I, all railways were placed under state control (but not ownership) and while the Railway Executive Committee prioritized war transportation needs, assets deteriorated. After the war, the benefits of central management to end destructive competition suggested nationalization for recovery. This was rejected in 1919. Instead, the Railways Act of 1921 imposed the Big Four amalgamations as private companies, effective 1 Jan 1923. Freight rates control was introduced. Nationalization came on 1 Jan 1948 after state control during WW II.

  GB car tax discs

                                       In 1921, car tax discs and licence registration books were introduced in Great Britain. The serially numbered discs, about 3-in (75mm) diam, were a receipt, or vehicle licence card showing that the excise duty (introduced 1 Jan 1889) had been paid for the vehicle. The taxamount varied with class of vehicle and horsepower (£1 per h.p. for cars). The licence could be for a quarter or year. The tax was pro-rated if paid part-way through the year, or quarter. The details of the specific vehicle were written in provided spaces on the disc, which also showed the expiration date. It had to be displayed in the “regulation position” (windscreen for a car) when the “mechanically propelled” vehicle was in use on a public road. They were issued at a Post Office, and initially, any expiring one had to be turned in to obtain a new one.

  Edsel Ford company president

                                          In 1919, Edsel Ford became president of the Ford Motor company, taking over from his father, Henry Ford. They become sole owners of the company by purchasing stock of the other shareholders. The company incorporation paperwork had been signed on 16 Jun 1903, and sold its first Model A on 23 Jul 1903. After Edsel died at age 49 on 26 May 1943, Henry Ford was re-elected President of the company for about two more years (He died 7 Apr 1947). On 21 Sep 1945, Edsel Ford's son, Henry Ford II, was named president of the company, and he held that position until 9 Nov 1960 when he instead became the company CEO. Henry Ford II retired as CEO on 1 Oct 1979. (He was also Chairman from 13 Jul 1960 to 1980). Henry Ford II died on 29 Sep 1987.

  Cool-stored blood transfusion

                                         In 1916, blood that had been stored and cooled was used for the first time in a blood transfusion performed by the R.A.M.C. The procedure was very successful. Blood transfusions had been made previously, but this demonstrated the value of cooling to store blood. Until 1913, direct transfusion was the only technique practiced, despite being a difficult and time-consuming method, requiring trained personnel and was impractical for as a procedure in sudden emergencies. In the last two years of World War I, British surgeons benefitted from knowledge derived in the U.S. Use of blood collected and stored in advance of the need as casualties arrived facilitated transfusions as needed. 

  Aspirin tablet

                                       In 1915, Aspirin was made available for the first time in tablet form. The pills were manufactured by Bayer pharmaceuticals in Germany. The medicine had previously been sold in powder form from 1 May 1899. Salicin, the parent compound of the salicylate drug family had been isolated from willow bark in 1829. From 1875, sodium salicylate was used as a commercial pain reliever, despite side effects such as bleeding of the stomach lining. On 10 Aug 1897, a German chemist, Felix Hoffmann, working at the Bayer company, found a suitable, less acidic medication, acetylsalicylic acid. It was marketed by Bayer under the “Aspirin” trademark. It has since become the biggest selling drug in the world as an analgesic (anti-pain), anti-inflammatory, and antipyretic (fever-reducer).

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  Anthropoid research

                                        In 1914, Wolfgang Köhler became director of the Prussian Anthropological Research Station on Tenerife in the Canary Islands, the first primate laboratory to specialize in behavioral research. It had financial support from the Prussian Academy of Sciences. He began studies of chimpanzees, though he lacked experience in animal research.. He had arrived in Dec 1913 to take up a one year the appointment after Eugen Teuber. Eight months later WW I began. As a German, he was isolated on the Spanish island because the area was patrolled by the British Navy protecting shipping lanes. He remained until the station was closed in 1920. His famous work focussed on showing that chimpanzees had intelligence to act with insight, not just blind trial and error, and manipulated implements with a purpose.

  First U.S. hydroplane commercial airline

                                            In 1914, the first U.S. commercial hydroplane service began in Florida between St. Petersburg and Tampa. The inaugural flight was marked by a parade, a band, and a crowd of about 3,000 people. The St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line offered two flights in each direction daily, at $5 fare each way. The flight traveled 18 miles in about 23 minutes, mostly following the Tampa Bay coast, and at an elevation of 80 feet when crossing the open water of Tampa Bay. It saved considerable time; the alternative was a 2½-hour trip by steamship, or 12 hours by train. Hence, it was ideal for an airplane service. It was the idea of Percival Elliot Fansler (a sales representative for diesel engines for fishing boats) who teamed with Thomas W. Benoist's company manufacturing the airboats and providing pilots.

  First airplane stamp design

                                            In 1913, the world's first stamp to depict an airplane (a biplane) went on sale at  U.S. Post Offices. (It was issued two weeks earlier, on 16 Dec 1912, six years prior to the first U.S. airmail stamps.) It was a 20-cent Parcel Post stamp, with carmine rose red ink, titled “Aeroplane Carrying Mail,” part of a series of 12 stamps for use on parcel post. On 24 Aug 1912, Congress had authorized the U.S. Post Office to enter the parcel post business to improve service for rural areas poorly served by private delivery companies. Four stamps in the series showed workers (including 3c. "Railway Postal Clerk," 4c. "Rural Carrier" in a horse-drawn wagon). Four more had transportation methods (including a 5c. "Mail Train," 10c. "Steamship and Mail Tender," 15c."Automobile Service"), and others showed industries.

  Film censorship in GB

                                                   In 1913, in Great Britain, the country's first national film censorship began. To avoid formal central government censorship, the film industry formed the British Board of Film Censorship, to be a self-censoring body. Though with no legal status, it did have the approval of the Home Secretary, Reginald McKenna. It had a part-time president, full-time secretary and four censors. To remain independent, the BBFC operated from fees, based on  length, of submitted films. The BBFC rated its content. with either an A (adult) or a U (universal) certificate, or reject it. The first film rated U was Mary of Briarwood Dell, and the first A was A Strong Man's Love. The first purpose-built cinema in Britain opened in 1906, but by 1910 there were about 1600, and by 1916 silent films were being exhibited at 3,500 cinemas.

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  Chocolate sandwich cookie

                                             In 1910, the Hydrox “biscuit bonbon,” a chocolate sandwich cookie with creme filling, was introduced in the U.S., the first of its type in America. (Biscuit is the English word for what Americans call a cookie.) This sandwich cookie was introduced by Jacob Leander Loose of the Loose-Wiles Biscuit Company of Kansas City, Kansas, which was later known as Sunshine Biscuits. A couple of years later, a familiar American brand with a similar product, the Oreo cookie, was designed by William Turner of the National Biscuit Company (later Nabisco). That was first introduced on 6 Mar 1912, as the Oreo Biscuit, but renamed as the Oreo Creme Sandwich in 1948.

  First pilot licences

                                 In 1910, a list of 16 pilots holding licences to fly powered aircraft was published by the Aero Club of France. These were the world's first pilot licence holders. Without a test, they were for those who had actually flown by Dec 1909. By oversight, Charles Voisin was not on the list, although he had made France's first officially recognised powered flight. The licence issued to Henry Farmer, was the first issued to a British pilot, and was back-dated to 7 Jan 1908. Some names on the list were challenged as people that had never flown. Subsequently, the Club's flying test was required to obtain a licence. The first to take the test was Alfred LeBlanc, who was issed Brevet No. 17. In Britain, the Royal Aero Club began issuing licences on 8 Mar 1910. The first licence by the Aero Club of America was issued on 8 Jun 1911.

  Ninth planet

                              In 1909, London newspapers quoted astronomers about a possible trans-Neptunian planet. The solar physics observatory at South Kensington cited photographic evidence received from Prof. Pickering of Harvard Observatory. After the discoveries of Uranus (1781) and Neptune (1846), the latter had been regarded as the outermost planet. Now Pickering's graphical analysis suggested a ninth planet, as various phenomena seemed to indicate a disturbing factor that could possible be another planet of considerable size beyond Neptune. In the previous decade or so, several astronomer/mathematicians had published their speculations of distant planets. Pickering became the most prolific. In the period 1908 to 1932, he proposed seven hypothetical planets. The claims were never substantiated.

  Lakeview oil well spudded

                              In 1909, drilling began on Lakeview No. 1 oil well, two miles north of Maricopa in Kern County, California. After a series of delays from drilling problems, it finally struck oil on 15 Mar 1910. The extreme gas pressure in the oil pocket spewed oil sometimes over a hundred feet into the air in an out-of-control gusher. As an oil spill, it far exceeded the Gulf of Mexico oil spill of 2010. The historic Lakeview gusher flowed for 18 months, beginning at 18,800 barrels a day and peaking at 90,000 barrels a day. Technology of the era was inadequate to control the well, but the river of oil was contained by crews building earthen dams. Fortunately the oil never caught fire. Enough of the oil was recovered for sale that oil prices plummeted. Eventually the flow was ended by a natural collapse of the bore hole on 10 Sep 1911.

  City milk pasteurization law

                                    In 1909, the milk pasteurization law took effect in Chicago, Illinois, which in Jul 1908 had become the first American city to pass such a law. From now, any milk sold in the city was required to have been pasteurised, or must be from cows that had been tuberculin tested. The health initiative, to prevent the spread of tuberculosis and other diseases, had been urged by William A. Evans, the city's Health Commissioner. However, many local dairies fought the law. It was repealed in 1910 after the courts ruled the measure interfered with free trade. But in 1911, both the National Commission on Milk Standards and the American Medical Association issued reports supporting health protection by pasteurizing milk. Public support grew, and in 1912, Chicago passed a second pasteurization ordinance which held.

  Indian Standard Time

                                  In 1906, in British India, all the railway and telegraph clocks were put at Indian Standard Time. India implemented their international standard time zone based on the 1905 decision for the Indian Time Meridian. It was set as the meridian passing through Allahabad at 82.5° east of the Greenwich Meridian longitude. The country had a single time zone, IST, at 5 hours and 30 minutes in advance of GMT. This was about 9 minutes faster than Madras time, and about 24 min slower than Calcutta time. (Railway Time had been in use since 1 Jan 1888 using Madras time.) However, Calcutta and adjoining areas, until 1948, kept a separate time zone, Calcutta LMT (Local Mean Time). Pakistan kept IST for three years after its partition, then in 1951 introduced Pakistan Standard Time at 5 hours ahead of GMT.

  A Mind That Found Itself

                                      In 1905, Clifford Beers (1876-1943) commenced his autobiography that became a classic for mental health professionals. As herecorded in his finished book, A Mind That Found Itself, “I began to write. Within two days I had written about fifteen thousand words—for the most part on the subject of reforms and how to effect them.” He had already himself experienced treatment as a mental patient, and he wished to document the appalling conditions and maltreatment by staff in asylums. His unsettled elation upon beginning the work caused his brother to have him committed again, temporarily, to an institution. When the book was eventually published (Mar 1908), he raised the public consciousness and indeed prompted reform in the care of mental patients. By 1921, it had five editions

  Motor car registration

                                           In 1904, the Motor Car Act 1903 came into force in Britain, requiring the registration of motor vehicles with the local council. A motor car licence cost £1, a motor cycle licence cost 5 shillings, and the vehicles were to display registration marks in a prominent position. The first registration marks consisted of one letter and one number. The first (A1) was issued by London County Council. Driving licences were introduced, on sale for five shillings at a Post Office, though no driving test was required at this time. The Act also raised the speed limit to 20mph (or 10mph by the Local Government Boards), and introduced heavy fines for speeding and reckless driving. Fines were also introduced for driving unlicensed vehicles.

  Transpacific cable

                                             In 1903, the first transpacific cable from the U.S. was landed at Honolulu, Hawaii and the first messagewas telegraphed to President Theodore Roosevelt in Washington. Cable Ship Silvertown had laid 2,620 miles of cable since leaving San Francisco, California, on 14 Dec 1902. The ship had arrived a few days earlier, on 26 Dec 1902, but bad weather held up the splicing on of the intermediate and shore ends. Public use began on 5 Jan 1903.* Since 1898, when Hawaii had been annexed to the U.S., news took a week to arrive by steamship; now communication took seconds. After Nov 1951, newer communications superceded this cable, which now lies abandoned on the bottom of the Pacific, after almost fifty years or service.

  Radio broadcast

                                   In 1902, the first radio broadcast demonstration in the U.S. was given by Nathan B. Stubblefield. His voice was the first to be carried on the air-waves ("wireless" - without any wires used for the transmission). At Fairmont Park, Philadelphia, he gave a public exhibition in which he transmitted his voice to a receiver a mile distant from the transmitter. He kept the details of the invention secret until he was issued a patent (U.S. No. 887,357) and gave another demonstration on 30 May 1902. He was unable to obtain a suitable buyer for his invention, thus no distribution, and received little notice for being the first to have accomplished a voice radio broadcast. 

  First road purpose-built for motor vehicles

                                  In 1901, a purpose-build road intended for motor-vehicle traffic was completed in Madagascar. It enabled motor freight vehiles to travel between the east coast port town of Tamatave and the capital city Antananarivo. It was the idea of the colonial governor, Joseph S. Gallieni who had the 140-mile (220-km) highway constructed by French engineers, and freed slaves, taking three years and a cost of 9 million francs. Manpower was available because on 27 Sep 1896 the French officially abolished slavery in Madagascar. Although designed to be functional for motor vehicles, it was used extensively by ox or mule carts, rickshaws palanquin and hand carts. Communications in general were being improved. Telegraph lines were being extended, and a railway was under construction.

  X-rays

                                     In 1896, German scientist, Wilhelm Röntgen announced his discovery of X-rays. He sent copies of his manuscript and some of his X-ray photographs to several renowned physicists and friends, including Lord Kelvin in Glasgow and Henri Poincaré in Paris. Four days later, on 5 Jan 1896, Die Presse published the news in a front-page article which described the discovery and suggested new methods of medical diagnoses might be made with this new kind of radiation. One day later, the London Standard cabled the news to other countries around the world about the “a light which for the purpose of photography will penetrate wood, flesh, cloth, and most other organic substances.” It printed the first English-language account the next day.

  Manchester Ship Canal

                                         In 1894, the Manchester Ship Canal in north-west England opened to its first traffic. Manchester was no longer dependent on the railway to transport its goods and supplies between the city and the ocean. Construction started on11 Nov 1887 and the canal was completely filled with water in Nov 1893. Its chief engineer and designer was Edward Leader Williams. On 21 May 1894, Queen Victoria knighted him at the official opening. Despite being 40 miles (60 km) inland, Manchester became at one time Britain's third busiest port. Although now traffic is greatly reduced, the waterway remains the world's eighth-longest ship canal, only slightly shorter than the Panama Canal.

  First US psychology professor

                                            In 1889, the University of Pennsylvania became the first U.S. university to have a professor of psychology with the appointment of James McKeen Cattell as the first academic to have the title in that field.

  GB motor vehicle excise tax

                                            In 1889, a motor vehicle excise tax took effect in Great Britain, for the first time in that country, authorized by the Customs and Inland Revenue Act 1888. It was a tax based on vehicle ownership (tax on fuel began in 1909). The two guineas* annual duty was designated for road building and maintenance. The Act applied to vehicles defined as having “four or more wheels” and “drawn or adapted or fitted to be drawn by two or more mules, or shall be drawn or propelled by mechanical power.” Thus Parliament anticipated the growth of motor car use in Britain by the mid 1890s. By 1896, vehicles over 1 ton weight paid a higher duty, 3 guineas, as part of the Locomotives on Highways Act 1896, which also regulated their use and speed. The Motor Car Act 1903 added more regulations.

  Municipal health laboratory

                                         In 1888, the first municipal health laboratory in the U.S. was established in Providence, Rhode Island. It was run by Dr Charles V. Chapin, a pioneer epidemiologist, assisted by Dr Gardner T. Swarts as the Medical Inspector. (It was preceded by some experimental work in the previous month.) The lab's primary purpose was the analysis of food and water, but when spurred by a typhoid epidemic, it turned to the study of micro-organisms. Chapin was was one of the first people to recognize the link between spread of contagious disease and people living in filth—such persons use very little soap and water and allow their faces, hands, belongings and dwellings to become and remain smeared with mucus, saliva, pus and other infectious material.

  State Agricultural Experimental Station

                                     In 1876, work began at the first regularly organized state agricultural experimental station in the U.S. It was located in Middleton, Connecticut, having been approved 20 Jul 1875, with an appropriation of $2,800 being approved 1 Oct 1865. The first director was Wilbur Olin Atwater, who served until 9 Apr 1877. Assistance had been offered in the form of $1,000 from Orange Judd, owner of theAmerican Agriculturist, and the free use of the chemical laboratory of Orange Judd Hall at Wesleyan University at Middletown was provided by its trustees.* Important discoveries have come out of research at the station, including vitamin A (in 1913), hybrid corn, the first soil fungicide (1889) and a fungus to control gypsy moth populations.

  Gregorian calendar in Japan

                                    In 1873, the Gregorian calendar was introduced in Japan to supplement the traditional Lunisolar Japanese calendar in use since the 7th century. From 1876, the new year begins January as the First Month. However, the co-existing Japanese Emperor Era (known as nengô) uses a year number that relates to the era of an Emperor's reign. The months are referred to by number, without names. For example, 1 Jan 2000 is the beginning of the year Heisei 12, and the month is merely known as the First Month. This system is still current, along with the Western Anno Domini (A.D.) or Common Era (C.E.) system.

  Metric system

                                     In 1872, the metric system was officially introduced in the German empire. A law published on 17 Aug 1868 made the use of metric weights and measures permissive from 1 Jan 1870, becoming compulsory two years later. (The first country to establish the metric system was France on 7 Apr 1795. A committee from the French Academy used a decimal system and defined the meter to be one 10-millionths of the distance from the equator to the Earth's Pole. For the metric unit of mass, the gram was defined as the mass of one cubic centimeter of pure water at a given temperature.) By act Congress, the use of the metric system was legalized in the U.S. (28 Jul 1866), but was not made obligatory. On 20 May 1875, the Treaty of the Meter was signed by 17 countries, including the United States, at the International Metric Convention. 

  First practical U.S. fire engine

                                 In 1853, the first practical U.S. steam fire engine began service in Cincinnati, Ohio, named the Uncle Joe Ross, after a city councilman, who championed it. Four horses pulled the three-wheeled, 5-ton carriage. It could pump six water streams, or a single water stream, 1-3/4" diam., up to 240 ft range. Miles Greenwood drove the initiative after much of his his ironworks burned down in 1852. Co-inventors Alexander Latta (locomotive builder) and Abel Shawk (locksmith) took 9 months to build it. It cost $10,000. Its locomotive-like boiler gave the power of six double-engine hand pumpers. (An earlier U.S. attempt to build a steam fire engine failed. Paul Rapsey Hodge gave a public test in New York (27 Mar 1841) but his 8-ton engine was too clumsy for horses to pull, and its fire showered sparks.) 

  Iron pile lighthouse

                                In 1850, the lamp was lit at the first iron pile lighthouse in the U.S. built on Minot's Ledge, Mass., just outside the Boston Harbor. The loss of 40 ships there in 1832-41, showed a light was badly needed. Some favored a granite tower like England's famed Eddystone Light, but Capt. William H. Swift of the Topographical Department, who planned the lighthouse, chose an iron pile tower (an open, spidery structure drilled into the rock) as more practical to build on the mostly submerged ledge. Built for about $39,000 in 1847-49, it was the first lighthouse in the U.S. to be exposed to the ocean's full fury. It was feared to be unsafe by its keepers, who reported it swayed badly in storms. The structure was swept away in a great gale on 16 Apr 1851. 

  World's first pictorial stamp

   In 1850, the world's first pictorial stamp was issued by New South Wales, Australia.Collectors call it the “Sydney View” for the background. In the foreground, is an allegorical figure of Industry, seated on a bale of goods, in a toga, with convicts being released from their fetters upon arrival at Botany Bay. Written in Latin below is: Sic fortis Etruria crevit (Thus mighty Etruria grew), a quotation from the description of the Golden Age in the second book of Virgil'sGeorgics. The circumference reads: Sigillum Nov. Camb. Aust. (Seal New South Wales). The figures and motto are on the first Great Seal of New South Wales, which had its design approved by King George III on 4 Aug 1790. The 1d stamp was printed in carmine ink. The artist and engraver was Robert Clayton. Later in the year came the 2d and 3d. [James Mackay, in The World of Classic Stamps (1972), nominates a private shipping company stamp that has a sailing ship shown, used first in 1847. In his later book, James Mackay, in The Guinness Book of Stamps (1988), mentions a 1843 local issue in Philadelphia; turns down the NSW stamp showing the colony seal as not "pictorial"; and instead names the first government issued pictorial as Canada's 1851 3d Beaver, SG5.]

  First GB Medical Officer of Health

                            In 1847, the first British Medical Officer of Health was appointed, Dr William Duncan, in Liverpool. The city had grown too rapidly as a port city, where commercial gain was pursued without regard to the overcrowded, insanitary conditions in which the increasing numbers of workers lived. Duncan realized such problems created epidemics of diseases such as cholera, smallpox and typhus. His 1843 pamphlet, The Physical Causes of the High Mortality Rate in Liverpool, raised these issues as reasons the mortality rate in the city far exceeded other towns. He was a of pioneer in the Victorian public health movement. He used the power of the media to spread public health messages, by holding weekly press conferences to keep a focus on public health and to advocate change.

  Portrait camera

                              In 1841, Austrian inventor Friedrich Voigtländer began selling the world's first purpose-built portrait camera. Since a person wanting a portrait would have to hold a pose for the time required for a successful exposure, it was critically important to be able to do that in the shortest time—which depends on the lens. Voigtländer incorporated a rapid double-combination lens designed according to the calculations of Viennese mathematician Josef Max Petzval. What used to take 20-30 minutes could now be done in two. The brass-bodied camera was shaped somewhat like a Lava Lamp bottle on its side. It made circular daguerreotypes about 3½-in (9cm) diam. The Voigtländer family business was started by his father in Vienna in 1756, making scientific instruments.

  Ethyl radical

                                  In 1833, Robert Kane, a 24-year-old Irish chemist, published a paper in which he was the first to propose the existence of the -C₂H₅ethyl radical (Dublin Journal of Medical and Chemical Sciences, which he founded). His idea was initially "a subject of amusement and ridicule among the chemical circles" of Dublin. A year later, when similar ideas were proposed by Justus Liebig, the authority of that great German chemist gave credibility to the concept, and Kane eventually received the credit for it. By the age of 22, he had already written a book, Elements of Practical Pharmacy, and was a professor of chemistry at Dublin's Apothecaries' Hall. His research spanned inorganic, organic, physical, biological and applied chemistry.

  U.S. agricultural journal

                           in 1831, the Genesee Farmer and Gardener's Journal began publication with an eight-page issue. It was the first American agricultural journal written directly from practical experience. In its subtitle, it described its mission as “devoted to agriculture & horticulture, domestic and rural economy.” It began as a weekly paper, edited by N. Goodsell and published in Rochester , N.Y., by Luther Tucker, with dense text and rare illustrations, for a $2.50 annual subscription. Page 1 of the first issue declared: “No part of the world is more richly blessed with soil and climate, for a great and flourishing Agricultural and Horticultural interest, than the western part of the state of New York—that part called OLD GENESEE. ... as favorable to the growth of the Vine and Mulberry as the middle of France.”

  Frankenstein published

                             In 1818, Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus was published anonymously in London with 500 copies printed. She was 21. Shelley had started writing it at age 18, on 16 Jun 1816. The same year, she married the poet Percy Shelley on 31 Dec. The story was finished 1 May 1818. This famous tale of a flawed artificial life experiment that produced a monster, grew out of a visit at Lord Byron's villa. There, she shared in a discussion of galvanism, the possibility of reanimating dead matter, even bringing life to a corpse. Byron suggested writing on the fantasy. Mary completed a full novel. Byron, wrote briefly about the vampire legend he had learned about while in the Balkans, expanded by John Polidoni in The Vampyre (1819). Two classic horror subjects born together.

  France return to Gregorian calendar

                             In 1806, this was the first day the French returned to using the Gregorian calendar, having used a Republican calendar for about a dozen years following the French Revolution. That had been required for civil registration and government records throughout France and other areas under French rule, such as modern Belgium, Luxembourg, Egypt, Malta, Louisiana and elsewhere. The new Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte abolished that “Calendar of Reason,” and its decimal form of counting days, hours and minutes. Prior to the French Revolution, the country had used the Gregorian calendar for more than two centuries since shortly after the decree by Pope Gregory XIII . France had stopped using the Julian calendar after 9 Dec 1582.

  U.S. cheese factory cooperative

                             In 1802, a mammoth cheese was presented to President Thomas Jefferson at the White House. In summer 1801, Rev. John Leland urged the ladies of his church in Cheshire, Massachusetts to produce a mammoth cheese to give to the president to recognize his support of religious liberty. The local farmers thus established the first U.S. cheese factory cooperative to make it, using the milk curds of 900 cows. The cheese was pressed in a six-foot diameter modified cider press on 20 Jul 1801 at the farm of Elisha Brown, Jr. A motto was engraved on it: “Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God.” By 20 Aug 1801, its weight was 1,235-lb. In late Nov, it was transported to the Hudson River to travel by boat to Baltimore, then to the White House on a six-horse wagon. Jefferson wrote that it was 4-ft 4½-in diam., 15-in thick.

  Ceres

                                In 1801, Italian astronomer, Giuseppe Piazzi of Palermo, discovered the first and largest asteroid, 1 Ceres, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. After only 41 possible days of observation, he lost it in the sun after 11 Feb 1801. He proposed the name Ceres Ferdinandea, in honour of Sicily's patron Roman goddess, and his patron, the king. Its diameter is about 960 km (600 miles), and it revolves around the Sun in 4.6 yrs. This sighting followed that of the planet Uranus (1781) by British astronomer William Herschel. Piazzi's discovery provided a body between the orbit of Mars and Jupiter fitting the so-called “Titius-Bode's law.” German astronomer Johann Olbers later found more of these bodies now called “asteroids” or “minor bodies of Solar System.” Over a thousand such objects are now known.

  E.I. du Pont in U.S.

                                 In 1800, E.I. du Pont, who became a chemical industrialist, arrived in Newport, Rhode Island, age 28, immigrating to the U.S. from France. He brought twelve more family members, including his wife and three children. While Thomas Jefferson was serving as minister to France, DuPont's father became acquainted with him, which may have influenced the family's decision where to migrate after the father found the post-Revolution government unacceptable. In 1788, Éleuthère Irénée du Pont had begun working for the French chemist Antoine Lavoisier, who was then chief of the royal powder works, and became his assistant in 1791. Thus Du Pont had the knowledge to establish his own powder mill at Wilmington, Delaware (1803). From this start followed diversification and the growth of a great chemical industry.

  Beggar's day

                               In 1790, accompanied by officers of the garrison and of the city, Sir Benjamin Thompson, in the service of the Elector of Bavaria, went into the streets of Munich and rounded up all the beggars and took them to a military workhouse set up for the purpose. A large unoccupied factory had been prepared for the employment and residence of these 2,600 people. The scourge of beggars in the streets was resolved, while providing them gainful employment. The first work program was to make clothing for the Bavarian army. Thompson (who became Count Rumford) thus had motivation and opportunity at the factory for experiments and inventions related to improving fireplaces, chimneys, kitchens and cooking. He eventually engaged in historic research into the conversion of mechanical energy into heat..

  The Times newspaper

                             In 1788, in London, John Walter changed the name of his newspaper, the Daily Universal Register. On this date, he published the firstedition of The Times. He had been a Lloyd's underwriter until 1785 when, nearing bankruptcy, he ventured into the newspaper business. This new career resulted from having bought a patent in 1782 for logotypes, which were common words cast as one piece of type to improve the typesetting process. His first edition of the Daily Universal Register on 1 Jan 1785 was intended as a daily advertising sheet with which he could also promote his logography. It included parliamentary reports and foreign news, and produced income from advertisers. After three years' experience, he changed the name of the newspaper at the same time he revised the type of the content.

  Universal Daily Register newspaper

                                In 1785, the first edition of the newspaper The Universal Daily Register was published in London. It cost two-pence halfpenny, and its masthead declared. that it was “Printed Logographically.” On 1 Jan 1788, the newspaper's name was changed to become The Times, by which it has been known to the present day. The original crest with lion, unicorn and motto, “Dieu et mon droit” remains the centerpiece of the masthead, much the same, although redrawn. The front page had no banner headlines, but had four columns of advertisements and announcements in small, dense type

  World's first cast-iron bridge

                                    In 1781, the world's first cast-iron bridge was opened for pedestrian and cart traffic over a gorge of the River Severn at Coalbrookdale, in rural east Shropshire, England. The area had coal deposits near the surface and local iron ore, so it was a location chosen by a pioneer iron worker, Abraham Darby. The Shrewsbury architect, Thomas Pritchard suggested and designed the bridge. He died in Dec 1777, one month after construction began. The bridge has five parallel cast iron arched ribs, each cast in two 70-ft 5-ton halves at the iron works of Abraham Darby III. He and John Wilkinson erected them. All 800 cast components were joined not by bolts but by carpentry-like dovetail joints, pegs and keys. The semi-circular arch spans 143-ft (44-m). It remains intact, open to pedestrians, and is a World Heritage Site

  Bernoulli's New Year challenge

                             In 1697, Johann Bernoulli dated a printed “Programma” addressed “To the sharpest mathematicians now flourishing throughout the world, greetings...” He included two challenge problems, “calculated to rouse noble minds to attempt work conductive to the increase of knowledge... [with] problems at once difficult and useful, the solving of which ... the most eminent analysts of this age ... apply their powers,” and notify Bernoulli who would publish a solution received for public credit. One challenge was the brachistochrone problem. Isaac Newtonrecieved a copy on 29 Jan 1696/7*, and promptly solved it the same day. He sent his solution to the Royal Society—anonymously. When Bernoulli read it he shrewdly guessed it was Newton's work. By legend, he exclaimed, “I recognize the lion by his paw!” [*Newton received the letter on the Julian date in England of 29 Jan 1696/7, which was 8 Feb 1697 on the Gregorian calendar in use in France. The Julian date has a slash with the year because of another quirk of the calendars of the time, whereby because the English civil new year began on 25 Mar, and the year would not increment until that day, and not on 1 Jan. Hence dates between 1 Jan and 24 Mar have an ambiguous year. So Newton received the letter in Jan of the Historical Year of 1697, but it was still the 1696 Civil Year, using the days of the Julian calendar.]

  Scottish New Year

                                        In 1600, it was New Year's day in Scotland, marking the beginning of the civil year. An ordinance had been issued from Holyrood House on 17 Dec 1599 to make this change from the centuries-old practice that used 25 Mar (on the Feast of the Annunciation) as the beginning of the official new year. Thus the year that began 25 Mar 1599, ended in Scotland on 12 Dec 1599, and had only 282 days. The country continued to use the Julian calendar. The only change was recognizing 1 Jan for the new official year. England, however, did not make that change, and did not begin using 1 Jan for the New Year until the Gregorian calendar was adopted in 1751. In both England and Scotland, 2 Sep 1751 was the last day using the Julian calendar. The next day was 14 Sep 1751 on the Gregorian calendar (skipping 11 dates).

  Kepler collaboration with Brahe

                                         In 1600, Johannes Kepler, accepted an invitation from Tycho Brahe, and set off from Graz to collaborate with him in Prague. He arrived on 4 Feb 1600. Kepler provided mathematical calculation skills to make sense of the wealth of data that Brahe had accumulated as a enthusiastic and accomplished astronomical observer. Longomontanus had already arrived at Benárky Castle. Brahe gave Kepler the task of determining a way to reliably compute the orbit of Mars. Longomontanus was assigned to revise lunar theory until he departed on 4 Aug 1600. Meanwhile, what Kepler initially thought would take eight weeks, actually extended to eight years of hard work. Brahe died 24 Oct 1601, having bequeathed his data, records and instruments to Kepler who ultimately derived his famous laws of planetary motion.

  Julian calendar

                                   In 46 B.C. the Julian calendar began its first day of its first year. It replaced the Roman years ab urbe condita (“from the founding of the city,” referring to Rome). In the year 709 a.u.c., Julius Caesar established for his empire, a calendar based on a solar year of twelve months, a total of 365 days, with an extra day every fourth year. The previous year needed an additional 67 days, making that year an extraordinary 445 days long, in order to synchronize the Julian calendar with the equinoxes. Since the real solar year is slightly longer than the 365.25 day average year, as centuries passed, the calendar was again out of step with the seasons. On 24 Feb 1582, Pope Gregory XIII issued a papal bull for the Gregorian Calendar reform, which skipped 10 days, and refined the leap year rule. It was revised to take account of leap years from 4 Oct 1582, when a change to the present Gregorian calendar took place.

  Julian day number 1

                                       In 4713 BC, no particular event was recorded, but it became Julian day number 1 as a result of John W. F. Herschel's establishing a useful time system for astronomy by adopting the initial epoch of Joseph Justus Scaliger's cycle of 7980 years. Regardless of leap years and calendar changes by the Romans or Pope Gregory, the Julian date number enables the easy calculation of the number of days between two dates by simply taking the difference in their Julian day number. This is useful, say, for astronomers' calculations of the dates of eclipses. For this purpose, the Julian day number of a day is defined as the number of days since noon GMT on 1 Jan 4713 B.C. in the Proleptic Julian Calendar, and each Julian day number runs from noon to noon.