Category: This day in History

Orsini was an Italian revolutionary in the movement for Italian unification. In 1858, he made an attempt on the life of Napoleon III, whom he held responsible for the failure of the Italian revolutions of 1848 to 1849. Although ably defended by French statesman Jules Favre, Orsini was executed. His act, designed to arouse world interest in the Italian cause, paradoxically influenced Napoleon’s own decision to intervene in favor of Italian unification. How did Orsini try to kill Napoleon? Discuss

Ejection seats are used in aircraft to quickly propel occupants out in an emergency. Today, they are fired by an explosive charge, but the first ejection seats were powered by compressed air. One of the first aircrafts to be fitted with such a system was the German Heinkel He 280 prototype jet fighter. While testing the He 280 during WWII, pilot Helmut Schenk became the first person to use an ejection seat to make an emergency escape from an aircraft. What went wrong during his test flight? Discuss

The field of cryonics involves techniques in which cold is applied for a variety of therapeutic goals, including brief local anesthesia, destruction of superficial skin lesions, and preservation of cells, tissue, and organs—or the entire body—in the hope that healing and resuscitation may be possible in the future. In 1967, Bedford became the first person to have his entire body frozen in perpetuity. Since then, hundreds have undergone the procedure. What celebrities have been frozen? Discuss

The Anglo-Zulu War was fought between the British Empire and the Zulu nation. It began when Zulu king Cetshwayo, determined to resist European advances, rejected British demands to disband his troops. The British attacked, and Cetshwayo routed them at Isandlwana with a disciplined army of 40,000. However, his forces were utterly defeated at Ulundi, with 1,500 Zulus, compared to 13 Britons, killed in the final battle. The British then burned the town. What became of Cetshwayo? Discuss

The world’s first subway line opened in London in 1863. It was 3.75 mi (6 km) long and soon carried tens of thousands of passengers each day—transporting 9.5 million in its first year. Initially steam-powered, the system first electrified some of its lines in 1890. By 1896, it was fully electrified. Today, the London Underground system is one of the largest in the world, with 256 miles (410 km) of track and 270 stations. How many passengers did it carry on January 10, 1863? Discuss

The Davy lamp was an early safety lamp used in the mining and quarrying industries. It was designed by English chemist and physicist Sir Humphrey Davy to prevent the accidental ignition of flammable gases. This was achieved by enclosing the flame of the oil-burning lamp in wire gauze that distributed heat over a large area and brought its temperature below the ignition temperature of methane. Why did the introduction of the Davy lamp initially lead to an increase in the rate of mining accidents? Discuss

During his first State of the Union address, President Johnson outlined a vast program of economic and social welfare legislation designed to create what he termed the “Great Society.” As part of this platform, Johnson called for a nationwide “War on Poverty” in response to a high national poverty rate. Johnson’s call led Congress to pass the Economic Opportunity Act, legislation that established an agency to administer federal funds targeted against poverty. Did it work? Discuss

In 1832, Morse, an American painter-turned-inventor, began working on a system for transmitting messages as electrical pulses across a wire. Five years later, he was granted a patent for his electromagnetic telegraph, and he successfully tested the device a year after that. Public use of Morse’s telegraph system, as well as the code he developed to represent letters and numbers as electrical pulses, began in 1844 and lasted over 100 years. What was the first message sent on the public system? Discuss

For 27 years after its completion in 1937, the Golden Gate Bridge had the longest main span in the world, stretching 4,200 ft (1,280 m). Its four-year construction, supervised by chief engineer Joseph B. Strauss, faced many difficulties, including rapidly running tides, frequent storms and fogs, and the problem of blasting rock under deep water to plant earthquake-resistant foundations. Considered a modern wonder, the bridge spans the Golden Gate, a strait that links what two bodies of water? Discuss

Topsy was a circus elephant at Coney Island’s Luna Park. After killing three people—at least one of whom was mistreating her at the time—in as many years, she was deemed a threat and scheduled to be put down. After hanging was ruled out after being deemed too cruel, Thomas Edison suggested electrocution in an attempt to further his campaign to portray alternating current electricity as dangerous. Electrocuted with 6,600 volts, Topsy died in seconds. How many people witnessed the execution? Discuss