1891
Thomas Alva Edison is granted a patent for “a means for transmitting signals electrically” (wireless radio).
1939
William Shockley records in his laboratory notebook that it should be possible to replace vacuum tubes with semiconductors. Eight years later, Shockley, Walter Brattain, and John Bardeen at AT&T Bell Laboratories successfully tested the point-contact transistor. It will take approximately ten years after the creation of the point-contact transistor for transistors to replace vacuum tubes in computers.
1949
The first television station to operate in the UHF spectrum in the United States begins regular service in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
1952
The first hearing aid to use a transistor goes on sale, the model 1010 manufactured by the Sonotone Corporation in Elmsford, New York. It weighs 3.5 oz, measures 3″ x 1.5″ x 0.6″ and costs US$229.50. It consists of two sub-miniature pre-amplifier tubes and a single transistor as the final audio amplifier. The devices uses both pre-amplifier tubes and a transistor because the tubes have a superior signal to noise ratios compared to early junction transistors. Just months later, transistor production techniques will be greatly refined, eliminating noise, and these hybrid models will soon after be discontinued.
1966
The Star Trek episode “Shore Leave” first airs. (No. 15) In it, the crew of the Enterprise visits a bizarre planet of dangerous illusions, encountering the rabbit from “Alice in Wonderland”, fighter planes and Samurai. They soon come to realize that things they imagine become real. Memory Alpha entry
1967
The Star Trek episode “The Trouble With Tribbles” first airs. (No. 44) In it, fuzzy little creatures called tribbles invade and over-populate a Federation star base, inadvertently exposing a Klingon plot. Memory Alpha entry
1981
According to Twin Galaxies, Kevin Gentry scores a record-setting 2,117,570 points on Atari’s Asteroids Deluxe after playing the game for five hours and twenty-five minutes at the Court Jester arcade in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Visit the official Twin Galaxies website.
1982
According to Twin Galaxies, Mike Lynn scores a record-setting 12,753,570 points on Midway’s Galaga at the Outer Limits arcade in Durham, North Carolina. Visit the official Twin Galaxies website.
1987
Cosmonaut Yuri Romanenko lands in a Soyuz spacecraft in Kazakhstan, ending his record 326 day mission, orbiting the Earth in the Mir space station. His stay in space broke the previous Soviet record of 237 days and the US space endurance record of 87 days. He was launched into orbit on February 6, 1987. During the course of his mission, he assisted in conducting one thousand experiments.
1993
Twentieth Century Fox releases the science fiction horror film Ghost in the Machine, directed by Rachel Talalay and starring Karen Allen, Chris Mulkey, Ted Marcoux, Wil Horneff, Jessica Walter, and Brandon Quintin Adams, to 1,031 US theaters. In it, the consciousness of a serial killer who is mortally injured in a truck collision is transferred to a computer when an electrical surge runs through the CAT scan machine being used on him. It will gross US$1,854,431 domestically in its opening weekend. IMDB listing MPAA Rating: R Running Time: 1 hr 44 mins
1994
US District Judge Richard G. Stearns dismisses the case against Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) student David LaMacchia in the Cynosure Piracy case, in which LaMacchia was accused of using MIT servers to run a bulletin board system (BBS) which offered pirated software. However, LaMacchia will continue to be under pressure until he learns on January 27 that prosecutors will not appeal the judge’s ruling. Although LaMacchia was alleged to have helped other users make illegal copies of software, there was no claim that he profited from the activity, and current laws that he was being prosecuted under only attach criminal penalties to copyright infringement done for profit. In his decision to dismiss the case, Stearns writes that the government’s “interpretation of the wire fraud statute would serve to criminalize the conduct of not only persons like LaMacchia, but also the myriad of home computer users who succumb to the temptation to copy even a single software program for private use.” The dismissal will later be referred to as “LaMacchia Loophole”, wherein it becomes difficult if not impossible to prosecute hobbyists who circulate pirated software recreationally. This loophole will later be closed by the 1997 No Electronic Theft Act (NET Act).
1997
The Sugar River Valley BBS is hacked by “L.O.U.” (Legions Of the Underground). Visit an archived version of the defaced website.
The website of Hudson Manufacturing is hacked by “L.O.U.” (Legions Of the Underground). Visit an archived version of the defaced website.
The website of Source for Deals, Inc. is hacked by “L.O.U.” (Legions Of the Underground). Visit an archived version of the defaced website.
The website of Unitech Communications is hacked by “L.O.U.” (Legions Of the Underground). Visit an archived version of the defaced website.
The websites of several radio and television stations, including Tri-County Broadcasting Inc. and WKYC-TV are hacked by “L.O.U.” (Legions Of the Underground). Visit an archived version of the defaced Tri-County Broadcasting website. Visit an archived version of the defaced WKYC-TV website.
1998
The Legions of the Underground (LoU) declares cyberwar on Iraq and China with the intention of disrupting and disabling internet infrastructure.
1999
Virginia launches an online database of registered sex-offender living within the state.
2004
Dutch computer manufacturer Tulip Computers agrees to sell its Commodore International company to Yeahronimo Media Ventures for about US$32.7 million.
2005
The Pew Internet and American Life Project releases a report based on six years of Pew surveys revealing that Americans use the internet differently, according to their gender. According to the report, men go online to check financial, news, political, sports, and weather information, and they are also more likely to engage in filesharing or take a class. Meanwhile, women are more likely to to browse religious information, to seek out support for health or personal problems, or to use e-mail.
Tecmo releases the versus fighting game Dead or Alive 4 for the Xbox 360 in Japan and North America. CERO: D (Ages 17 and up) ESRB: M (Mature)
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