The earliest networked 3D shooter was Maze War. Maze War is the ancestor of many online gaming concepts. Its earliest version was written by Steve Colley at the NASA Ames Research Centre in 1973. It first ran on an Imlac PDS-1 computer. By connecting two Imlacs together using their serial ports, Colley and colleagues were able to play the game multiplayer– the first computer game in the world to accomplish this.
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning (USA) and wide receiver Marvin Harrison (USA) are the first quarterback-wide receiver tandem to combine for 10,000 yards, gaining 10,542 yards through the 2005 NFL season.
The first ever non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean was made by John William Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown (both UK). They took off in a Vickers Vimy biplane from St John’s, Newfoundland, Canada, on 14 June 1919, and landed near Clifden, Ireland, some 16 hr 12 min later. Both were knighted for their achievement. NB: not to be confused with Charles Lindbergh’s flight in 1927, which was the first ever solo flight across the Atlantic.
The first person to observe, measure and record the transit of the planet Venus across the Sun was Jeremiah Horrocks (UK) who monitored the event on 24 November 1639 from Lancashire, UK. The transit of 8 June 2004 was witnessed by millions of people worldwide Horrocks, along with his friend William Crabtree (also UK), were probably the only two people in the world who witnessed this event. Transits of Venus across the face of the Sun are extremely rare due to the geometry of the
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During the Cold War research was conducted by both the USA and the Soviet Union into military aircraft that could stay aloft for months at a time, powered by a nuclear reactor. The USA used a converted B-36 bomber which flew 47 test flights between 1955 and 1957. An onboard nuclear reactor was operational during some of these tests but never powered the aircraft. The Soviets performed similar experiments from 1961 to 1965 using a Tupolev Tu-119. Both projects were ultimately cancelled.
In 2006, American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang (USA) was named as a finalist in America’s prestigious National Book Award in the category of Young People’s Literature. This was the first time in the award’s 57 years that a graphic novel had been nominated. Although it failed to win, American Born Chinese went on to be the best-selling graphic novel of the year on Amazon.com. Alternative title: First graphic novel shortlisted for a national award.
Call of Duty: Real-Time Card Game is a collectable strategy card game based on the video game series. Set in World War II, it is the first officially licensed card game to be based on a first-person shooter.
The world’s first official UFO landing pad was built in the small Canadian prairie town of St Paul, in Alberta, Canada, and was formally opened on 3 June 1967 by the Hon. Paul Hellyer, Canada’s then Minister of National Defence. The main column consists of six 75-cm-tall concrete pylons, and there is a map of Canada embossed on the back stop of the landing pad. A sign next to the pad reads as follows: “The area under the World’s First UFO Landing Pad was designated
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Joe Davis (UK) was the first snooker player to achieve an officially ratified maximum break in snooker, a feat that requires a player to pot all the balls on the table in a single turn and in a specified order – all 15 reds (15 points), each followed by the black (105 points), and then all six colours (27 points). The 14-times world champion achieved the maximum 147 points in an exhibition match against Willie Smith at Leicester Square Hall in London on 22 January
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The first modern Olympics, held in Athens in 1896, hosted just 43 events across nine sports, the fewest in Olympic history. However, as interest in the Games spread and more nations began taking part, so the number of sports and individual events grew. London 1908 was the first Games to breach the 100-event barrier, with 110 events across 22 sports, but it would be another 72 years before the 200 mark was passed, with Moscow 1980 hosting 203 events across 21 sports. In 2000, the
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