This Day in History – 14th March

This Day in History is DUE’s daily dose of trivia for all the history buffs out there. So sit back and take a ride to all the fascinating things that happened today!

People are trapped in history and history is trapped in people, and hence, every day has been a significant one in the foibles of History. Let’s take a tour of “This Day in History – 14th of March”.

1592 “Ultimate Pi day”

On this day in History, at 6.53 am is the largest correspondence between calendar dates and significant digits of pi, since the introduction of the Julian calendar (3.14159265358).

1644 England grants patent for Providence Plantations (now Rhode Island)

The Rhode Island Royal Charter provided royal recognition to the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, approved by England’s King Charles II in July 1663.

1794 Eli Whitney patents the cotton gin machine

Eli Whitney patents the cotton gin machine revolutionizing the cotton industry in the southern US states. In addition, it was responsible for generating super-normal profits.

1879 The most widely-acclaimed physicists Albert Einstein is born in Germany

Today in 1879, Albert Einstein came into the world. And he changed everything. Above all, it is believed that his theories may eventually lead to time travel.

1899 US patent for a “Navigable Balloon”

German Ferdinand von Zeppelin receives a US patent for a “Navigable Balloon”. The principal feature of the Zeppelin’s design was a fabric-covered rigid metal framework made up of transverse rings. In addition, it has longitudinal girders containing a number of individual gasbags.

1900 US currency goes on gold standard after Congress passes the Currency Act

The Gold Standard Act of the United States was passed in 1900 (approved on March 14) and established gold as the only standard for redeeming paper money. Above all, it put a full stop on bimetallism (which had allowed silver in exchange for gold).

1903 1st national bird reservation established

President Theodore Roosevelt established Pelican Island, FL, as the first federal bird reservation. Therefore, as the first unit in what would become the National Wildlife Refuge System. Above all, the Pelican Island was the first reserve set aside for a non-marketable game: the brown pelican.

1913 John D. Rockefeller gives $100 million to Rockefeller Foundation

The Rockefeller Foundation was started by Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller (“Senior”), along with his son John. On this day in History, the first instalment projected at $100 million endowments was made.

1923 US President Warren G. Harding becomes 1st president to pay taxes

On this day in History, Warren Harding became the first president to file a full-year income tax return. Above all, he paid $17,000 on his 1922 presidential salary of $75,000 — about $1,080,000 in today’s money.

1939 Nazi Germany dissolves the Republic of Czechoslovakia

The incorporation of the Sudetenland into Germany that began on 1 October 1938 left the rest of Czechoslovakia weak, and it became powerless to resist subsequent occupation.

1958 Recording Industry Association of American created

On this day in History, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) which is a trade organization was born.

1973 US senator John McCain gets a release as a PoW

Future US Senator John McCain is released after spending over five years in a North Vietnamese prisoner of war camp.

1983 OPEC cut oil prices for 1st time in 23 years

Hoping to regain control over the world oil market, the 13 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed today to cut prices for the first time in the group’s 23-year history. The key price cut was a 15 percent reduction – to $29 a barrel, from $34 – in the price of Saudi Light crude.

1986 European Space Agency’s Giotto flies by Halley’s Comet (605 km)

Giotto was a European robotic spacecraft mission from the European Space Agency. The spacecraft flew by and studied Halley’s Comet and in doing so became the first spacecraft to make close-up observations of Halley’s Comet.

1990 Mikhail Gorbachev becomes president of the Soviet Congress

Gorbachev became the eighth and above all, the last leader of the Soviet Union. Earlier, he was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991. His reforms – Glasnost and Perestroika had led to mass unrest amidst the political structure of the government of the USSR.

1991 “Birmingham 6” become free birds

The Birmingham Six were six Irishmen: Hugh Callaghan, Patrick Joseph Hill, Gerard Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, William Power, and John Walker. Because of their false convictions for the Birmingham pub bombings, they were given life imprisonment following. The English Court of Appeal frees them, on this day in History.

1992 Farm Aid V

Farm Aid is an annual benefit concert that takes place annually for American farmers. On this day in History, Farm Aid V was held at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas. Above all, it was a magnanimous event.

1993 Three important theatrical renditions close at theatres

“Saint Joan” closes at Lyceum Theater NYC after 49 performances, “Face Value” closes at Cort Theater NYC, and above all, “Conversations with My Father” closes at Royale NYC after 462 performances.

1993 3,000th performance of “Nunsense”

Nunsense, a musical comedy with a book, music, and lyrics by Dan Goggin get its 3000th rendition today. In addition, it is one of the most hilarious musical dramas of all time.

1993 Johan Koss skates world record 5km (6:36.57)

Johann Olav Koss was the winner of the 1,500 meters, 5,000 meters, and above all, 10,000 meters speed skating events at the 1994 Winter Games. Therefore, he set an Olympic record in each event, capped by a world record of 13:30.55 in the 10,000 meters.

1994 Mexican banker and billionaire Alfredo Harp Helu kidnapped

A ransom is put on the table for the kidnapping of Alfredo Harp Helu, a billionaire. He was also the president of Mexico’s largest banking group.

1994 Linux kernel version 1.0.0 is born

The Linux kernel is a free and open-source, monolithic, modular, multitasking, Unix-like operating system kernel. Likewise, a kernel version was born, on this day in History, back in 1994. Moreover, it has spawned a plethora of operating system distributions, commonly also called Linux.

1995 1st time 13 people in space

The first time 13 people flew in space was March 1995, when two Russians and an American on a Soyuz, in addition, joining three cosmonauts aboard the Mir Space Station and seven astronauts on the space shuttle Endeavour, which was in orbit on a separate mission.

2005 Cedar Revolution

On this day in History, Cedar Revolution takes place where over a million Lebanese march in the streets of Beirut to demonstrate against the Syrian military presence in Lebanon. Also, they protested against the government, following the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

2006 Mike Wallace retires from news program “60 Minutes” after 37 years

Wallace announced his retirement from 60 Minutes after 37 years with the program. However, he continued working for CBS News as a “Correspondent Emeritus”, albeit at a reduced pace. Above all, in August 2006, Wallace interviewed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

2013 Xi Jinping becomes the new President of the People’s Republic of China

Jinping took office in March 2013 and was re-elected in March 2018. In addition, he is a Chinese politician who was the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Above all, he was the Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) since 2012.

2016 President Putin orders Russian troops out of Syria

After the achievement of the objective of a six-month military intervention, the Russian president, Vladimir Putin withdrew the majority of Russian troops from Syria.

2017 European Court of Justice rules companies can ban staff from wearing religious symbols, including headscarves

European Court of Justice allows companies to ban religious and political symbols as part of the general policy, on this day in History. Above all, it was a violation of universal human rights.

2017 World’s oldest golf club votes to admit women as members for 1st time in 273 years

World’s oldest golf club Muirfield in Scotland, votes to admit women as members for 1st time in 273 years. Earlier, the club allowed women to play only on certain days as guests of current members.

2018 The widely-acclaimed theoretical physicist Stephan Hawking passes away

"Look up at the stars and not down at your feet" – Professor Stephen Hawking
1942-2018 https://t.co/h8uWznhEpb pic.twitter.com/RVeQx2BTxP

— Cambridge University (@Cambridge_Uni) March 14, 2018

Hawking was an English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who was director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge at the time of his death. He died at the age of 76. Above all, he survived motor neuron disease for over 50 years.

The “Theory of Everything” beautifully captures the life of Hawking. Watch its trailer here.

2018 UK announces it will expel 23 Russian diplomats after Russian-made nerve agent used on a former spy in the UK

Moscow refuses to explain the usage of a Russian-made nerve agent on a former spy in Salisbury. Consequently, on this day in History, the expelling of 23 Russian diplomats takes place. Above all, the diplomats were “undeclared intelligence officers”.

2018 Twins are no more identical – NASA’s finding

Consequently, NASA’s twin study finds that Scott Kelly is no longer identical to his twin brother after one year in space. 7% of his genes altered.

2019 Google employee breaks the world record for calculating Pi to 31.4 trillion digits

Google announces its employee Emma Haruka Iwao has broken the world record for calculating pi, to 31.4 trillion digits, on the pi day using Google Cloud.

2020 Longest-ever scheduled passenger flight by distance takes-off

Longest-ever scheduled passenger flight by distance by Air Tahiti Nui from French Polynesia to mainland France 9,765 m (15715 km) due to COVID-19. Above all, it was domestic.

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