History

November 2, 1936 - the beginning of television

By Darren Quick

15:22 November 19, 2009 PST

Although computers and the Internet have eaten away at the dominance of television, it remains the most popular form of entertainment and source of information in the world. And with the line between TV and computers blurring with the advent of Home Theater PCs (HTPCs) and devices like Apple TV it’s likely that television in one form or another will retain its crown for some time to come. Television is no longer limited to a big box sitting in the corner of the living room. It can be accessed on sexy, slim panels hung on a wall or on mobile phones while sitting on a train. In fact television is so pervasive today it can be hard to imagine life before it existed – but there was such a time, and it wasn’t even that long ago. Read More

Logbook from the famous 1872-1876 journey of HMS Challenger goes to auction

By Gizmag Team

22:21 July 13, 2009 PDT

A logbook from the famous 1872-1876 journey of HMS Challenger, described at the time as "the greatest advance in the knowledge of our planet since the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries" will go under the hammer in a September auction of exploration, travel and topographical items. Conducted just 13 years after Darwin’s Origin of the Species, Challenger was tasked with constructing a fossil record that would test the new theory of evolution and became inextricably intertwined within the God vs. Science debate. Read More

TTXGP - electric motor company Agni blitzes in first clean emissions Grand Prix

By Mike Hanlon

19:05 June 12, 2009 PDT

Joint Indian-English company Agni Motors’s claim of making quality, high efficiency and high performance electric motors gained massive credence today when it clearly bested the world’s fastest electric motorcycles to win the first clean emissions (AKA electric) motorcycle Grand Prix at an average speed of 87.434 mph. It’s place in history is assured by the landmark win, but it was the team’s dominance that was most surprising. It averaged 10 mph faster around the 37 mile course than its closest rival and established itself as the first superstar company to emerge in a fledgling giant industry. Read More

The Mini turns 50

By Mike Hanlon

02:41 May 15, 2009 PDT

The Mini, perhaps the most iconic automobile in history, is about to turn 50 years of age. Runner-up in the Car of the Century competition, the Mini was catalysed by the fuel rationing resultant from the 1956 Suez Crisis. Its price and frugality at the pump made the BMC Mini a symbol of freedom for baby boomers and its status as an emblem of the swinging sixties was reinforced in 1966 when The Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein, gave each of the Fab Four a Mini Cooper S as a gift. George Harrison had his Mini painted with psychedelic images, yantras and Sanskrit mantras and it subsequently starred in The Beatles’ film Magical Mystery Tour. BMW, which now owns both Mini and Rolls Royce, has come up with a fresh interpretation of the extravagant original Mini to coincide with the brand’s 50th birthday. Read More

World MotoGP Championship-winning Suzuki for sale

By Mike Hanlon

16:26 May 12, 2009 PDT

May 13, 2009 The opportunity to own a world championship winning motorcycle is extremely rare. Usually, the only chance to obtain such a beastie is reserved for the people who have ridden them, and hence very few championship winning bikes exist outside the private collections of former world champions, or in factory museums. Now former Grand Prix motorcycle road racing world champion Franco Uncini has decided to auction the Suzuki 500 XR40 on which he won the his 1982 World MotoGP Championship via international Auction House COYS in Monaco on May 18. Read More

Did salt lakes kill the dinosaurs? And will they kill us?

By Darren Quick

22:54 April 2, 2009 PDT

A new report by an international team of scientists has suggested that the largest mass extinction in the history of the earth may not have been caused by volcanic eruptions, methane hydrate or the impact of an asteroid as previously surmised. It may actually have been triggered by giant salt lakes, whose emissions of halogenated gases changed the atmospheric composition to such an extent that vegetation was irretrievably damaged. While this is a lot less dramatic than a volcanic eruption or an asteroid, the effect would be no less devastating and may have implications for us today with forecasts predicting an increase in the surface areas of deserts and salt lakes due to climate change that researchers expect will also lead to an increase in the effects of these halogenated gases. Read More

Whisky - Demon drink becomes sound financial investment

By Matt Kennedy

20:19 March 22, 2009 PDT

If you could resist drinking it, you may just find that hanging on to a few bottles of fine single malt could not only make a sound investment but one which is more interesting than boring old stocks and far more reliable than wine. At Bonhams in Edinburgh, their second ever dedicated whisky auction has not only shown that there's a strong market for rare whisky, (with 95% of all lots sold) but that the big boys of the auction world are taking it seriously. Read More

FIM endorses TTXGP - the world's first clean emissions motorcycle race

By Mike Hanlon

21:48 March 15, 2009 PDT

In a landmark move, the world governing body for motorcycle sport, the FIM, is endorsing the upcoming TTXGP, the world’s first clean emissions motorcycle race which will be held on the Isle of Man on 12th June 2009. In making the announcement, FIM President, Vito Ippolito, said, “ FIM recognizes the importance of this area that is evolving very quickly. The future of the sport depends on our capacity as well as that of the manufacturers to innovate quickly. We are convinced that very shortly the motorcycle World Championships will be accessible to non-polluting engines.” For motorcycle manufacturers wishing for a place in history, this is now IT! Read More

The earliest archeological traces of the domestication of horses

By Mike Hanlon

06:06 March 9, 2009 PDT

An international team of archeologists has discovered the earliest known traces to date of horse domestication by humans, dating back to 5500 years. This discovery suggests that horses were harnessed, probably for riding, and exploited for their milk. The researchers have traced the origins of horse domestication back to the Botai Culture of Kazakhstan around 5,500 years ago – about 1,000 years earlier than thought and about 2,000 years earlier than domestic horses are known to have been in Europe. Read More

First woman to sail solo, non-stop, both ways around the world

By Mike Hanlon

21:25 February 17, 2009 PST

British yachtswoman Dee Caffari extended the boundaries of what's possible this week when she became the first woman to sail solo, non-stop both ways around the world. The 36-year-old former PE teacher crossed the finish line of the round the world Vendée Globe yacht race in sixth place onboard her yacht Aviva with a heavily damaged mainsail having spent 99 days at sea. Read More

Good Vibrations: the musical and military instruments of Leon Theremin

By Kyle Sherer

21:17 November 30, 2008 PST

After the close of WWII, Russian schoolchildren presented the U.S. ambassador with a “gesture of friendship” in the form of a two-foot wooden replica of the Seal of the United States. Behind the beak of the eagle was a miniscule listening device so ingeniously designed that it took eight years before a routine check unearthed it. The era of electronic bugs had begun, and it was largely thanks to the brilliant mind of Leon Theremin: musician, inventor, and prisoner in Stalin’s gulag. Read More

The Internet updateable SmartGlobe

By Emily Clark

02:01 October 14, 2008 PDT

This update to the original interactive SmartGlobe from Oregon Scientific makes sure your geographic knowledge is up to date via downloadable weekly information updates. Read More

Historic WWII Ford airplane to go under the hammer

By Emily Clark

18:08 October 2, 2008 PDT

This rare 1929 Ford 4-AT-E Tri-Motor airplane is set to be auctioned in a No Reserve sale by the Barrett-Jackson Auction Company in January 2009. Recently restored to its original specifications, the plane has a fascinating history, having survived bullet fire during the World War II attack at Pearl Harbor. Read More

Sidelined 1950s mountain-climbing technology resurrected to help patients

By Kyle Sherer

18:39 September 23, 2008 PDT

in order to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Smiths Medical and University College London have resurrected the sidelined closed-circuit breathing system designed for a failed Everest expedition over 50 years ago. Closed-circuit devices, (also known as rebreathers), create a seal over the user’s mouth, retaining the exhaled air, scrubbing it of carbon dioxide, and allowing the user to inhale it again. Read More

Celebrating the Spitfire

By Kyle Sherer

20:04 July 13, 2008 PDT

Bonham and Goodman is celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Spitfire becoming operational by offering a 1945 Supermarine Spitfire MK XVI at their inaugural sale of Collector’s Motor Cars and Aircraft, in New Zealand on September 14. There are roughly 44 airworthy Spitfires in existence today, and it’s rare indeed for the general public to be given the opportunity to purchase such an important piece of history. Read More

First steel-bodied school bus donated to Henry Ford museum

By Noel McKeegan

23:38 March 9, 2008 PDT

March 10, 2008 An unique slice of American automotive history has been acquired by the The Henry Ford museum. Using a steel body instead of wood and incorporating a Ford Model T chassis, the 1927 Blue Bird No. 1 proved a pioneering vehicle, with all major school bus manufacturers move to steel-bodies within a decade of its appearance. Read More

50 years since the dawn of the space age

By Loz Blain

June 18, 2007 Half a century ago, with the Cold War still in full effect, the Soviet space program struck a crucial first body blow in its space race against the USA - and in the process, ignited the imaginations of millions across the world and lifted our eyes towards the heavens. The year 1957 saw the successful launch of Sputnik, the first man-made satellite to orbit the Earth. A polished 58.5cm diameter aluminum alloy sphere with four long antennae drawn back from its sides, Sputnik covered around 60 million km between its launch on October 4th and when it burned up on re-entry on October 26. Read More