On August 20, 1920, Detroit’s 8MK radio station began daily broadcasts. Still in operation today, the station often claims to be the first commercial radio station, though a few others have also staked their claim on that title.
On August 6, 1991, Tim Berners-Lee published the first-ever website, heralding the start of the world wide web. The web has grown to over 1.8 billion websites today, and continues to grow every day.
Chemist Percy Lavon Julian was born on April 11, 1899, in Montgomery, Alabama. Julian was one of the first African Americans to receive a doctorate in chemistry, and the first to be inducted into the National Academy of Sciences. He owned more than 100 chemical patents and was a pioneer in chemical synthesis of drugs used in medicine.
Mathematician and electrical engineer Charles Proteus Steinmetz was born Karl August Rudolph Steinmetz on April 9, 1865, in Breslau, Province of Silesia, Prussia (present-day Wrocław, Poland). Steinmetz developed the electrical theories that allowed for the expansion of the electric power industry. He was also known as the “Forger of Thunderbolts” and the “Wizard of Schenectady.”
Biochemist Melvin Calvin was born on April 8, 1911, in St. Paul, Minnesota. He earned the 1961 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his discover of the Calvin cycle – the conversion of carbon dioxide into organic molecules during photosynthesis.
Naturalist and artist Maria Sibylla Merian was born on April 2, 1647, in Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany. Merian spent her life studying insects and plants and capturing them in beautifully detailed paintings and drawings.
On March 16, 1926, Robert H. Goddard launched his first liquid-fueled rocket in Auburn, Massachusetts. Though his work went largely unrecognized during his lifetime, today he’s known as the father modern rocketry.
Horticulturalist Liberty Hyde Bailey was born on March 15, 1858, in South Haven, Michigan. The gardening and horticulture stamp issued for Bailey’s centennial birthday also marked a significant US postal first!
Doctor and research scientist Alice Hamilton was born on February 27, 1869, in Manhattan, New York. Hamilton was a pioneer in the fields of occupational health and industrial toxicology. Her extensive research and thorough reports helped improve working conditions across America.