Today in the 70′s
The Fall of Saigon – 1975
The Fall of Saigon was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the North Vietnamese army. The event marked the end of the Vietnam War and the start of a transition period leading to the formal reunification of Vietnam under communist rule.
Today in the 90′s
1992
The Los Angeles riots also known as the Rodney King uprising or the Rodney King riots
Riots begin in Los Angeles, California, following the acquittal of police officers charged with excessive force in the beating of Rodney King. Over the next three days 53 people are killed and hundreds of buildings are destroyed.
Today in the 70′s
Atari Basketball
Before Dr. J vs. Larry Bird, before Bulls vs. Blazers, there was Atari Basketball. A very simple & goofy game, yet still entertaining and competitive.
In the 1980 comedy film Airplane!, flight controllers are seen playing this game rather than watching the monitor.
Today in the 80′s
The computer mouse is released
XEROX PARC introduces the Xerox Star computer. Unlike other computers at the time, there is something unique about this one. It includes a graphical user interface (GUI). To operate this GUI, the computer also comes with something called a mouse.
The name mouse, originated at the Stanford Research Institute, derives from the resemblance of early models (which had a cord attached to the rear part of the device, suggesting the idea of a tail) to the common mouse.
The mouse remained relatively obscure until the appearance of the Apple Macintosh; in 1984 a prominent PC columnist commented the release of this new computer with a mouse: “There is no evidence that people want to use these things.”
Logitech just built its billionth mouse in November 2008.
Today in the 80′s
This is a repost from my former site, the Captain’s Blog.
Coke announces it is changing its secret formula. New Coke debuts.
In one of the business worlds biggest WTFs?, the Coca Cola company attempted to change the formula of Coke with “New Coke.” Follow-up taste tests revealed that most consumers preferred the taste of New Coke to both Coke and Pepsi. I call bullshit.
Management was unprepared, however, for the nostalgic sentiments the drink aroused in the American public. The new Coca-Cola formula caused a public backlash. Protests caused the company to return to the old formula under the name Coca-Cola Classic on July 10, 1985. New Coke stayed around a while and was renamed Coke II in 1992.
Happy Earth Day
Today is Earth Day. Take care of your planet. You need it, and it needs you. Save a little water. Save some electricity. Go for a walk. Ride a bike. Don’t gun your engine. Oh yeah. Don’t make a giant styrofoam sculpture commemorating Earth Day and leave it for others to clean up. That’s what happened in April 1989 on the East green of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. I was there.
This is amazing piloting
This video from CNN shows an experimental plane experiencing an engine failure over Winter Haven, Florida. Contrary to popular belief, airplanes do not fall out of the sky. They glide. This pilot and his passenger did an excellent job of assessing the situation,and landing the plane safely.
As an on again, off again student pilot myself, I have constantly been drilled on what to do if an engine fails and I have to glide to a landing.
Great work, pilot!!
Space Lego Awesomeness
This photo is from the Big Toronto Toy Show. It is a display of custom and original Space Lego sets from the 70′s and early 80′s. Go check out the other photos plus a video over at plaidstallions.
Today in the 70′s
Video Games (I think)
BASIC Programming
10 PRINT “I can’t believe they made this!!!”
20 GOTO 10
RUN
BASIC Programming was released for the Atari 2600 way back in 1979. One of only a few non-gaming cartridges, this program allowed people to create simple programs using its own unique programming language, which was fairly the same as BASIC, but still differed in many different ways. The extremely small RAM memory size of the Atari 2600, 128 bytes, severely restricted the possibilities of this cartridge.
BASIC Programming required two Atari keyboard controllers, and came with special overlays to show how to type the different commands and letters.
Today in the 90′s
Columbine High School Massacre
Ten years ago today the worst thing you can imagine happened. Two students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, embarked on a massacre, killing 12 students and a teacher, as well as wounding 23 others, before committing suicide.
The massacre provoked debate regarding gun control laws, the availability of firearms in the United States, and gun violence involving youths. Much discussion also centered on the nature of high school cliques, subcultures and bullying, as well as the role of violent movies and video games in American society.
As a parent, and a spouse of a teacher I think about my wife and my children’s safety constantly. This is one of those terrible situations you hope never comes true. Give your loved ones a hug today and remember the victims from 10 years ago at Columbine.
