The Great Geek Manual

1611
The word “telescope” is first used in public by Prince Federico Cesi at a banquet held by the pioneer scientific society, the Accademia dei Lincei, (literally the “Academy of the Lynxes”), which he founded. The banquet is held in honor of Galileo. After Galileo shows the guests the satellites of Jupiter, other celestial bodies, and even an inscription on a building three miles away. Although the name is announced by Cesi to christen Galileo’s instrument, the word telescopio (Italian) may have been devised by a Greek poet-theologian, who happened to be present, from the Greek words tele (far) and scopeo (see). In 1625, another Lincean, Giovanni Faber of Bamberg coined the word “microscope”.

1828
American lexicographer Noah Webster copyrights and publishes the first edition of his dictionary under the title American Dictionary of the English Language. Browse Webster’s original dictionary at Project Gutenberg. Read more about Webster at the official Merriam-Webster website.

1860
The first Pony Express rider reaches Sacramento, California. Read more about the Pony Express at the Gold Rush Chronicles.
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1625
Johannes Faber of Bamberg, Germany coins the word “microscope” in a letter written to Federigo Cesi, Duke of Aquasparata and founder of Italy’s Lincean Academy (Accademia dei Lincei or Academy of the Lynx).

1941
FM Station W71NY in New York becomes the first commercial broadcaster to sign an advertiser to a contract.

1959
The United States Air Force (USAF) launches the Discoverer II surveillance satellite from Vandenberg Air Force Base into a polar orbit aboard a Thor Agena A.

1960
Transit 1B, first navigational satellite, is launched into Earth orbit for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). It is the first satellite to use a magnetic torque device to maintain attitude control. It will remain operable for eighty-nine days.
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1633
Galileo Galilei is tried for a second time by the Inquisition. At the trial’s conclusion, Galileo’s belief that Earth isn’t the center of the Universe is pronounced heretical.

1888
A French newspaper mistakenly publishes an obituary for Alfred Nobel, who invented dynamite, following the death of Albert’s brother Ludwig’s death. The obituary describes him as “a merchant of death,” which shocks Nobel into setting out to change his public image. His efforts will eventually lead to the establishment of the Nobel Prize. Visit the official Nobel Prize website.

1892
The first portable typewriter, the Blickensderfer, is patented by George Blickensderfer of Stamford, Connecticut. (US No. 472,692)

1901
A Mercury arc lamp is first publicly demonstrated in the UK by Peter Cooper Hewitt.
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This photo isn’t particularly enlightening, but it is fascinating. I lived practically in spitting distance of an Asian market for nearly two years, and I used to find browsing its shelves very entertaining. However, apart from the raw fruit and vegetables, pancakes, and rice vinegar, I can’t identify many of these items. Any ideas?

According to the photo’s original caption, this is one week’s worth of groceries which cost ¥37,699 (US$317.99)

Source: Photos from the book “Hungry Planet,” which were featured in the Time article “What the World Eats“.

• ComputerWorld invites you to Meet the laptop you’ll use in 2015.
• The Contaminated has posted an explanation of how a team really created the Firefox Crop Circle.
• Geek About.com has posted a list of the 10 Most Amazing Outdoor Home Theaters.
• Kezins.com has posted a list of the 7 Greatest Video Game Urban Legends.
• The OC Register has posted a list of 11 innovation lessons from creators of World of Warcraft for any business.
• The Star Destroyer Project is an overview of the step-by-step construction of a forty-eight inch long model of a Star Wars Imperial Star Destroyer.

Comics

• Mike Brotherton has an interesting article on Ten Superpowers You Can Have Now.

Film

• Mike Brotherton has an interesting list of the Top Ten Science-Based Sci-Fi Movies.
• SciFiDrive has posted an overview of SciFi Cinema of the Sxities, complete with visuals that remind you just how bad it really was.

Internet

• Bravo! TheBlogBooks has posted an excellent rant declaring that There’s more to sci-fi fandom than Star Trek.

Literature

• American Book Review is running a competition to determine the Best Last Line from a Novel. They’re got a shortlist of 100 memorable entries, but they’re still excepting submissions. Check it out, because this list will send you scrabbling through Amazon wondering why you’ve never read these books.
• Celebrate National Poetry Month by listening to some Classical Poems from Podomatic.
• Free Fiction: The Independent has posted a free audiobook download of the cult classic “The Wasp Factory” by Iain Banks.
• Interview: The Rollingstone interview of cyberpunk author William Gibson.
• Solar Flare has posted a list of 10 Science Fiction Books That Should Be Movies.

Television

• Amazon has made their four favorite episodes of Stargate SG-1 available for free online.

1876
The stenotype is patented by John C. Zachos of New York City. (US No. 175,892) It is the first US patent for a device that rapidly prints legible text in the English alphabet.

1905
Albert Einstein first reveals his Theory of Relativity.

1936
German computer pioneer Konrad Zuse files for a patent for the automatic execution of calculations, a process he invented while working on what will become the Z-1, Germany’s first computer. In the patent application, Zuse first describes programmable memory, using the term “combination memory” to describe breaking programs down into bit combinations for more efficient storage. This is the first device to calculate in binary and translate those calculations to decimal. Read more about the Z1 at Epemag.

1943
The California Rocket Society tests the first hybrid rocket design in the United States, using oxygen and carbon as fuel. Hybrid rocket propulsion systems uses a solid fuel in conjunction with a liquid or gas oxidizer.
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1790
United States President George Washington signs the first US patent statute into law. The first patent won’t be issued under the statute until July 31, 1790. Read more about the history of US patent law.

1930
The first synthetic rubber is created by Dr. Arnold M. Collins who isolates chloroprene and observes its polymerization. E.I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company will begin manufacturing synthetic rubber on November 2, 1931. Visit the official DuPont website.

1938
The first FM radio broadcast is transmitted by W2XMN/WFMN/KE2XCC, in Alpine, New Jersey.

1943
The University of Pennsylvania begins constructing the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC), which, once completed, will become the first general-purpose electronic computer, capable of five thousand additions per second. The work will be carried out in secret since the computer is intended to compute trajectory tables for military artillery, though it won’t be completed until after World War II. The calculations were previously carried out by group of women called “computers” who worked with mechanical calculators.
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