SortStack #373 — 2027-06-17

By year · Order from earliest to most recent.

1. Johannes Gutenberg develops his movable-type printing press 1440

   Gutenberg was a goldsmith by trade. Of the roughly 180 Bibles he printed, 49 survive — and he died broke after losing his workshop in a lawsuit.

2. Galileo points a telescope at the night sky for the first time 1609

   With a telescope magnifying about twenty times, he saw mountains on the Moon and four moons of Jupiter — direct evidence that not everything orbits Earth.

3. Abraham Lincoln is shot at Ford's Theatre 1865

   General Grant declined an invitation to join Lincoln in the box that night. Booth, a famous actor, knew the play well enough to time his shot to a big laugh line.

4. The Wright brothers achieve the first powered airplane flight 1903

   The first flight lasted twelve seconds and covered about 37 meters — shorter than the wingspan of a modern jumbo jet.

5. Howard Carter discovers the tomb of Tutankhamun 1922

   Peering through a small hole by candlelight, Carter was asked if he could see anything. His reply: 'Yes, wonderful things.'

6. The first video is uploaded to YouTube 2005

   'Me at the zoo' is nineteen seconds of co-founder Jawed Karim standing in front of elephants in San Diego, noting they have 'really, really long trunks.'

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