Mon 5/6/2024 8:07 AM On May 6, 1954, seventy years ago today, Roger Bannister became the first person ever to run a mile in under 4 minutes.  The race took place at Iffley Road Track at Oxford University, where the...

Fri 5/3/2024 8:11 AM Five hundred and fifty-five years ago today, on May 3, 1469, Niccolo Machiavelli was born in Florence, Italy.  He came from a long line of attorneys and government officials, and at age 25, he carried on...

On May 2, 1844, 180 years ago today, Elijah McCoy was born in Colchester, Ontario to George and Mildred Goins McCoy—fugitive slaves who had escaped from Kentucky and traveled north to Ontario via the Underground Railroad.  Elijah was educated in the segregated...

On May 1, 1930, the dwarf planet Pluto officially got its name.  While researchers had suspected the existence of Pluto for years based on observations of activity around Neptune and Uranus, the formal discovery of Pluto occurred on February 18,...

It turns out, April 30 has been a big day for America throughout its history.  Five hundred thirty-two years ago today, Christopher Columbus received from Spain his commission of exploration, which led to his seafaring discovery of the land that...

On April 29, 1813, 211 years ago, J.F. Hummel received the first U.S patent for rubber.  While natural rubber—which comes from the rubber tree in the form of a sticky, milky white fluid called latex—had been used by ancient South...

Ninety-three years ago today, on April 26, 1931, baseball star Lou Gehrig hit a home run with a runner on base and two outs.  His hit cleared the outfield fence, but then bounced back into the hands of the centerfielder...

Seventy-one years ago today, on April 25, 1953, the scientific journal Nature published a series of five articles on the double-helix structure of DNA, a discovery resulting from the work primarily of James Watson, Francis Crick, and Rosalind Franklin.  DNA is the...

On April 24, 1800, 224 years ago today, President John Adams signed legislation appropriating the sum of $5,000 “for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress…and for fitting up a suitable apartment for...