1826
Wilhelm von Biela, an Austrian military officer, discovers Biela’s Comet during its perihelion approach. It is the third periodic comet to be discovered.
1885
The American Telephone & Telegraph Company is incorporated as a subsidiary of the American Bell Telephone company in New York.
1935
Nylon is discovered by Dr. Wallace H. Carothers of DuPont.
1939
The word “Dord” is discovered by an editor in the Webster’s New International Dictionary, Second Edition, prompting an investigation. Dord turns out to be a typographic error which had been intended to be printed as “D or d”.
1953
James D. Watson and Francis Crick announce to friends that they have determined the chemical structure of the DNA molecule. The formal public announcement won’t be made until April 25, in the April issue of the journal Nature. Watson and Crick aren’t the only scientists who have been trying to make the discovery. Later, in his book, The Double Helix, Watson will write about the intense competition to be the first to discover the structure of DNA.
1956
Jay Wright Forrester of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is awarded a patent for his coincident current magnetic core memory. (US No. 2,736,880) The device, which Forrester describes as a “multicoordinate digital information storage device,” will become the standard for computer storage devices until it’s usurped by solid state RAM in the mid-seventies.
1959
The Discoverer 1 satellite is launched. It is the first satellite to be put into polar orbit.
1966
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) creates a new regulation aimed at protecting the right to privacy by prohibiting eavesdropping of private conversations by the direct or indirect use of radio-controlled devices. Visit the official FCC website.
The Star Trek episode “The Cloud Minders” first airs. (No. 76) In it, the Enterprise’s mission to obtain a life-saving mineral are complicated when terrorist strike out at the city which provides the mineral. Memory Alpha entry
1983
The final two and a half hour episode of the comedy series M*A*S*H, “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen“, is broadcast in the US on the CBS network, becoming the most watched television episode in history, with somewhere in the neighborhood of 106 to 125 million viewers (estimates vary by source), a 60.3 rating and a 77 share. Advertising spots during the episode sold for a record US$450,000 per thirty seconds.
1990
NASA launches Space Shuttle Atlantis on the sixty-fifth manned space mission. (STS-36) The mission is for the United States Department of Defense.
1992
Konami releases Contra III: The Alien Wars for the Super Famicom in Japan. CERO: A (All Ages)
1994
The Star Trek: The Next Generation releases the episode “Eye of the Beholder” first airs. (No. 718) In it, Troi investigate a death that occurred before the Enterprise was launched. Memory Alpha entry
1996
Version 1.07 of AdeptXBBS, a port of XBBS written by Mark Kimes for the OS/2 operating system, is released. It was developed by Julie Strietelmeier.
1997
7th Level releases the first-person shooter (FPS) G-Nome for Windows in North America. ESRB: T (Teen)
Acclaim Entertainment releases the first-person shooter (FPS) Turok: Dinosaur Hunter for the Nintendo 64 in the US. It is based on the Acclaim Comics comic book series Turok. ESRB: M (Mature)
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) launches the Net Yaroze development system for the PlayStation video game system for programming enthusiasts. Visit the official Yaroze website. Price: US$750
Vic Tokai releases the versus fighting game Criticom for the Saturn in North America. ESRB: T (Teen)
The website of Åsö Gymnasium is hacked by “PM”.
The website of Passagen is hacked by “THC”. View an archived version of the defaced website.
1998
Accolade releases the turn-based strategy game Deadlock II: Shrine Wars for Windows in the US.
Interplay Entertainment releases Black Dahlia for Windows in North America. ESRB: T (Teen)
Interplay Entertainment releases the sword fighting game Die by the Sword for Windows in the US.
1999
Activision releases T’ai Fu: Wrath of the Tiger for the PlayStation in the US. ESRB: T (Teen)
The Chapter 11 reorganization of JTS Corporation is revised in United States Bankruptcy Court into a Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.
LucasArts releases the space simulation game Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance for Windows in the US. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: E (Everyone)
Midway releases the racing California Speed for the Nintendo 64 in the US. ESRB: E (Everyone)
PeopleSoft, Inc. of Pleasanton, California, the second largest provider of business management software, reveals plans to dismiss four hundred thirty employees, or about six percent of its work force. The firm will also take a charge against earnings in the first quarter for nearly US$175 million to create a new business group called Momentum.
Reuters news service reports that a British military communication satellite has fallen under the control of hackers who have issued terms for its release back to the British government. The newspaper quotes unnamed security sources which claim that the satellite was seized nearly two weeks prior.
Sony Computer Entertainment of America (SCEA) hosts a conference for software and peripherals developers January 28 - 29 at Fort Mason in San Francisco, California.
Take-Two Interactive releases Monkey Hero for the PlayStation in the US. ESRB: E (Everyone)
2000
Nintendo releases the simulation game SimCity 64 for the Nintendo 64DD in Japan.
The Quintus Corporation acquires Mustang Software, developers of the popular Wildcat! BBS and other communications software, in a deal valued at approximately US$290 million.
Sega Enterprises, Ltd. publicly announces that lower-than-expected sales of the Dreamcast video game system have lead to deep financial losses. Sega requests assistance from its largest shareholder, CSK Corporation.
Version 0.9.5 of OpenSSL, an open source implementation of the SSL and TLS protocols. Visit the official OpenSSL website.
2001
Intel unveils seven new optical-networking chips. The chips allow an optical signal to travel up to four hundred percent farther than before with speeds up to ten gigabits per second.
The last cable segment of the Southern Cross Cable between Hawaii to California goes into operation. The fibre optic segment operates at 160Gbps.
Microsoft releases BackOffice Server 2000, which includes Exchange Server 2000, ISA Server 2000, Host Integration Server 2000, SMS 2.0, SQL Server 2000, and Windows 2000 Server.
2002
Activision releases the simulation game Golf Resort Tycoon II for Windows in North America. ESRB: E (Everyone)
Disney CEO Michael Eisner testifies at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on the protection of digital content from piracy. Eisner claims that Apple Computer advertisements for the iPod encourage copyright violations.
Namco releases Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht for the PlayStation 2 in Japan. CERO: C (Ages 15 and up)
Victor Gollancz Ltd. releases the science fiction novel Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan as a hardcover. (ISBN: 0-575-07321-7)
2003
The Adventure Company releases the horror game Post Mortem for Window in North America. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: M (Mature)
Electronic Arts (EA) releases the expansion pack Ultima Online: Age of Shadows for the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) Ultima Online. It is the fifth expansion pack for the game. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: T (Teen)
2004
BAM! Entertainment, Inc. releases the survival horror game A Sound of Thunder for the Game Boy Advance in Europe. The story is based on the short story A Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury and its 2005 movie adaptation. ESRB: T (Teen)
2005
EA Sports releases Fight Night: Round 2 for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox in the US. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: T (Teen)
Enlight releases Scrapland for the Xbox in North America. ESRB: T (Teen)
Legislators in Illinois introduce a bill to ban the sale of violent or sexually explicit games to anyone under the age of eighteen. Governor Rod Blagojevich will sign the “Safe Game Illinois Act” into law on July 2, but on the same day that the act is signed into law, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the largest video game industry trade group in the US, will announce that it will file suit to overturn the law. On December 2, an Illinois District Court issues a permanent injunction against the act, ruling that the two criminal laws it created, the Violent Video Games Law and the Sexually Explicit Video Games Law, both violate the First Amendment. On November 28, 2006, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit will uphold the lower court’s ruling.
Nintendo releases Trace Memory for the Nintendo DS in Japan. Visit the game’s official website. CERO: A (All Ages)
2006
Atari releases the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach for personal computers. Visit the game’s official website.
Capcom releases Final Fight: Streetwise for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: M (Mature)
EA Sports releases the sports game FIFA Street 2 for the GameCube, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable (PSP), and Xbox in the US. ESRB: E (Everyone)
Electronic Arts (EA) releases the first-person shooter Black for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: M (Mature)
NIS releases the turn-based strategy Generation of Chaos for the PlayStation Portable (PSP) in the US. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: T (Teen)
Vivendi Universal releases the expansion SWAT 4: The Stetchkov Syndicate for the first-person shooter (FPS) SWAT 4 for Windows in the US. Visit the game’s official website. ESRB: M (Mature)
2007
The New Horizons space probe uses the planet Jupiter as a gravitational slingshot to changes its trajectory to place it on a path towards Pluto.
Ubisoft releases the first-person shooter (FPS) Far Cry Vengeance for the Wii in Australia. Visit the game’s official website. OFLC: MA15+
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