Francoise Gouleau of France, achieved the first stationary double back somersault in 1905.

On its release in 2000, Star Wars: Force Commander became the first ever Star Wars real-time strategy game. The very first Star Wars strategy game was Star Wars Chess, released in 1993.

Mikhail Kouzimin (Russia) achieved a triple back somersault on one stilt on 22 November 1989, performed in the former Soviet Union – an accomplishment that is unquestionably one of the most spectacular records ever achieved on a teeter board.

Stigmata are bleeding wounds that appear spontaneously and inexplicably in a person´s hands (sometimes also in their feet and side), and which correspond to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus. The first stigmatic priest in the history of the Roman Catholic Church was Padre Pio (1887-1968), who spent much of his priesthood as a Capuchin priest at Our Lady of Grace Friary in San Giovanni Rotondo, near Foggia, Italy. He gained the five classic stigmata on Friday 20 September 1918, which he retained for the rest Continue reading →

Metal Gear Solid 2 was the first stealth game to feature guards who could operate as a team and even communicate with other guards off-screen to organize a counter-attack. Disabling them before they could call for help was a major part of the gameplay, and this level of Artificial Intelligence has since become integral to the stealth sub-genre as a whole. GWR Video Gamer’s Edition 2008, title: First collective AI in a stealth game.

The Swiss company Rinspeed has created the world’s first, real, submersible car called the “sQuaba”. Displayed at the Geneva Motor Show 6-16 March 2008, the carsub is powered electrically by three rechargeable lithium-ion batteries: one for power on land and one for each of the twin propellers when on or in the water. In addition, two powerful Seabob jet drives in the front, assist manoeuvrability. The car design is based on the British Lotus Elise sports car and is open top for safety reasons, so Continue reading →

It was announced on 17 January 2000 that a patient named Jeremiah Teehan (USA), who lost his sight due to a blow to his head 36 years previously, could see again thanks to an artifical eye developed by William Dobelle (USA). Jeremiah became the second person to have received surgery of this kind, although the first to have had successful results. Dobelle, chairman of the Dobelle Institute, New York, USA, has developed a pair of spectacles attached to a minature camera and an ultrasonic rangefinder. Continue reading →

The Death and Return of Superman, released for the SNES and Mega Drive/Genesis in August 1994, was the first superhero video game that tied in with a comic-book storyline that was being published at the same time. As Superman, the player was defeated by Doomsday. Gameplay then followed with a series of replacement superheroes. The game was released just a few months before the Spider-Man & Venom: Maximum Carnage storyline got its own spin-off game in 1994. Guinness World Records Gamers’ Edition 2009.

The former Soviet Tupolev Tu-144 first flew on 31 December 1968, thereby becoming the first supersonic airliner to fly. It initially entered service in 1975 carrying mail and cargo, and carried its first commercial passengers in 1977, but was taken out of service in 1978 after a second fatal crash. A single TU-144 was put into service for two years until 1998 by NASA as a ‘flying laboratory’ to study the dynamics of supersonic flight.