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Yearly Archives: 2018

astronomy
The Supernova of 1054

The Supernova of 1054

Harald Sack
On July 4, 1054, Chinese astronomers observed a new star in the constellation of Taurus, which later turned out to be a supernova. However, even before the Chinese, on 11 April 1054, a monk in Flanders noticed a “bright disc in the afternoon“. This was the first traditional observation of a supernova explosion. “First year of the Zhihe era, fifth lunar month, ji-chou day. A guest star has appeared to the south-east of…
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economics
Charles Dow and his Famous Stock Index

Charles Dow and his Famous Stock Index

Harald Sack
On July 3 1884 Charles Henry Dow together with his colleague Edward Jones composed and published an stock average – called the Dow Jones Railroad Average -, which contained nine railroads and two industrial companies. He developed the stock index as part of his market research and it was meant to serve as a reference value to determine fluctuations of the stock market. It first appeared in the Customer’s Afternoon Letter, a daily…
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history
“I shall be heard!” – The Case of the La Amistad

“I shall be heard!” – The Case of the La Amistad

Harald Sack
On July 2, 1839, Sengbe Pieh (later known as Joseph Cinqué) led 53 fellow Africans being transported as captives aboard the Spanish schooner ‘La Amistad‘ from Havana in a revolt against their captors. Breaking Free La Amistad, captained by Ferrer, left Havana on June 28, 1839, for the small port of Guanaja, near Puerto Principe, Cuba, with some general cargo and 53 slaves bound for the sugar plantation where they were to…
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computer science
Let Us Calculate – the Last Universal Academic Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz

Let Us Calculate – the Last Universal Academic Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz

Harald Sack
On July 1, 1646, one of the last universally interdisciplinary academics, active in the fields of mathematics, physics, history, politics, philosophy, and librarianship was born. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz counts as one of the most influential scientists of the late 17th and early 18th century and impersonates a meaningful representative of the Age of Enlightenment. Moreover, I even have a personal relationship with him since he is also the namesake of the association to…
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physics
The Annus Mirabilis in Physics – Albert Einstein and the Year 1905

The Annus Mirabilis in Physics – Albert Einstein and the Year 1905

Harald Sack
Have you ever heard of the “Annus Mirabilis” (in German “Wunderjahr“) of physics? 1905 was this Annus Mirabilis, this year of wonders or extraordinary year. History considers 1905 as the year with the most outstanding and influential papers ever published by famous physicist Albert Einstein in the   the Annalen der Physik scientific journal. These four articles contributed substantially to the foundation of modern physics and changed views on space, time, and matter.…
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philosophy
“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” – Jean-Jacques Rousseau

“Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains” – Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Harald Sack
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born on June 28, 1712. The writer, philosopher, composer, and pioneer of the Age of Enlightenment had a great influence in educational and political matters throughout the French Revolution and beyond. “It is ordinary people who have to be educated, and their education alone can serve as a pattern for the education of their fellows. The others find their way alone.” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Emile, or On Education, 1762 Jean-Jacques Rousseau – Early…
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computer games
Have you played your Atari today?

Have you played your Atari today?

Harald Sack
On June 27, 1972, Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney founded a company named Atari Inc. that should become a pioneer in arcade computer games, video game consoles, and home computers. The year before in 1971, they had designed and built the world‘s very first arcade video game – Computer Space for Nutting Associates. Atari – An Etymology You might wonder, where the name of the company might come from. Actually, Bushnell wrote down several words…
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history
The Universal Product Code (UPC)

The Universal Product Code (UPC)

Harald Sack
On June 26, 1974, the Universal Product Code barcode was introduced to the public. A supermarket in Troy, Ohio scanned the first product, which was a pack of Wrigley‘s gum. The first impulse to creating barcodes was made by Bernard Silver and Norman Joseph Woodland. A food chain store owner turned to the Drexel Institute of Technology, which the two graduate students were attending. He asked for a system to automatically read…
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architecture
Audacity and Singularity in Design – Antoni Gaudi

Audacity and Singularity in Design – Antoni Gaudi

Harald Sack
If you are going to Barcelona, Spain, it is rather unlikely that you will leave without having visited one of the fascinating architectural creations of famous architect and designer Antoni Gaudí, the frontfigure of the so-called Catalan Modernism, who was born on June 25, 1852. Architecture, nature, religion, and the love to his home country Catalonia were the driving forces of Gaudí‘s work. His work transcended mainstream Modernisme, culminating in an organic style inspired by…
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