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The Disaster of the Space Shuttle Columbia
A space shuttle named Columbia left the planet successfully and came back 16 days later. When re-entering, it disintegrated over Texas and Louisiana, killing all 7 crew members. This happened because a piece of external foam fell off the wing, and when re-entering, the wing got to hot. -
I was born
This was the date that I was born, and it started my journey through life. This was a big moment for my parents because I was the first child, and it meant that I went through a lot of stuff much harder than my siblings because they were still seeing how to be parents. This was a big step for my parents because it meant they now had to be responsible and take after something. -
SARS Outbreak Closes Down Schools
SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, is a highly contagious disease that can be lethal, and effects the respiratory system. The disease went through Beijing very hard, and made them shut down schools for 2 weeks. This is just one example of how the world had to cope with this disease. It was quickly cured, and the schools were re-opened. -
Finding Nemo Released
Finding Nemo is released, starring Albert Brookes and Ellen DeGeneres, who is known for her show. Finding Nemo was the first movie I ever saw, and when it was released by Disney. It helped out their company a ton, and gave their brand name a little more meaning. -
Spirit Lands
Spirit, the Mars rover, officialy landed on Mars. This was a big moment for US history because this gave us all this new knowledge about Mars, and that we can get rovers up to Mars. This rover gave us a huge advancement in technology in rovers because we knew what worked, now they could make it even better. -
Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook
Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard student, opens Facebook from his dormitory. This is a big moment for him because he gets so much money from Facebook, and he probably will never have to work if he doesn't want to. This also was a big step towards social media, because everyone knew how to make it now. He really changed everyone's perspective of the world off of it. -
My First Birthday Cake
I had my first birthday cake, which showed my personality when I tried eating it. All my siblings dove right into it and it took a bit of work for my parents to get me messy. They pretty much had to force my hands into it, and once I started eating it then I got messy. Even today I still don't like getting messy, which is something that even showed when I was one. -
Massachusetts Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage
Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage, which was a huge step to today where all the states have done it. This showed a whole lot of courage to get it done because the rest of the country didn't like it. This getting legalized showed same-sex marriages being OK for everywhere, and this helped everyone push it to get the whole country legalized -
Belize Riots
In mid January, 2005, a number of huge riots started out across Belize. This was due to the new raised taxes, creating even harder times on the citizens. The riots initially were a peaceful protest, but quickly turned to violence. -
Israel and Palestinians Agree to Cease-Fire
Israel and Palestinians are normally enemies, but agree to cease-fire, and make a truce. This would help both their countries so much, after being in war for 4 years it would let their economy grow back and create a better relationship between the two countries. -
YouTube goes "Viral"
YouTube, loved by all, was founded in 2005. Today it used frequently for any video you might ever need. This really revolutionized video sharing, because all of a sudden all you needed to do was just search up the video and there would be 10 different copies that you could choose from off YouTube. This really changed the world, and is used in everything, like teaching. -
Sister is Born
My sister, Addison, was born in 2005. She still makes an impact on me today, and forever changed my life. This created responsibility for me, and it made me have to be responsible for Addison too. She changed the way my family works and if she wasn't here today then my family would be a whole lot different. -
New Horizons Probe Launched
The New Horizons Probe is launched, off on its way toward Pluto. The probe successfully made it to Pluto, and collected very valuable data. For example, they discovered small amounts of X-ray energy coming off the planet. This has helped us understand more about deep space planets. -
I Move
I moved from Virginia, my birth-town, to California. This was a big transition for me because it was the first time I had ever moved to a new place, and had to get used to the surroundings. Also, all my family friends would not come with me, so it I had to get to know new people. This move was only the first though. -
Capitol Hill Massacre
The Capitol Hill Massacre was a horrible event, where a gunman killed six people, injured two, then killed himself. He was invited to a party at Capitol Hill, where he brought a gun in and started shooting. Before the police could get him to drop his weapon he killed himself. This was a sad day for all the families, and it was one of the worst mass killings in Seattle since 1983. -
Barry Bonds Passes Babe Ruth
Barry Bonds, an exceptional baseball player hits his 715th home run in his career, passing Babe Ruth, also a amazing baseball player, on the home run list. This was a big moment for him because he had just beat one of Babe Ruth's records. -
Adam Air Flight 574
Adam Air Flight 574 was a flight in Indonesia that "disappeared". This was later found to be that the flight crashed, killing all 102 people on board. Some internal navigation problems had come up while flying, and then the pilot lost control of the plane while trying to fix it. -
Iphone Announced
Steve Jobs announced the Iphone, which created a mobile phone capable of apps and texting. This announcement created phones that we have today, because all the other brands did it too, and now we don't have phone booths everywhere, you just carry around a phone. This was a big moment in Apple history because it became one of the biggest companies after that. -
Baghdad Bombing
5 car bombs exploded in Baghad, killing 135, and injuring 339. Not only was there death, it ruined houses, and apartments. This bombing ruined peoples lives. Many lost families and others were injured for life. Peoples houses were destroyed. It really was a horrible event. -
Younger Brother Born
My younger brother, Porter, was born, which created even more responsibility for me, now I had to be a big brother for two kids. This also brought me a ton of fun for the next couple years, because he loved to play any game I made up. We enjoy so many times together and he made a real impact on my life. -
Super Tornado
A huge tornado broke put across Southern America, killing 58, and injuring countless. The destruction of property had a huge impact on US. This was a sad day because it was one of the biggest death rates since 1985, where 88 people were killed. This made a lot of peoples lives a whole lot tougher. -
Iron Man Released
Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, was released, creating the start of its series of movies. This movie also was viewed by lots of people who wanted it to come out because they had read the comics. It grabbed the attention of all types of people making it a really outstanding movie. -
Boat Vacation
This vacation was like no other. It was my first time on a house boat, and my first time out on a boat at all. It was awesome. I learned a whole lot about how a boat works, and I remember a lot about it. -
Barack Obama elected
Barack Obama was elected as president, becoming the first African American president in US history. This was a big moment for the US because it greatly reduced segregation among black and white people. He made the US take a step towards equality, which was a big thing to do. -
Israel Attacks
Israel attacks the Gaza Strip, which creates huge amounts of tension between them, and their conflict goes on even today. They ruined their relationship they had a created a war. There truce didn't last like it was supposed to. It ended on January 18, 2009. -
Boy Saves Mom
A mom in Texas was just minding her own business when, BOOM, lightning struck her house. The lightning traveled and hit her directly in the chest. Her son immediately called 911, and was rushed over to the hospital where she spent three days recovering. If her son hadn't called she would have died. -
I Move, Again
I move from California, where I have all my friends and school, to Colorado, where once again I have to make new friends, and leave everything I know behind. Except this time I am going into first grade where there is 100 kids I don't know. So it was a pretty hard transition. -
Harry Potter the 6th
Harry Potter, a well known and appreciated series release yet another movie to the series. This really shows how much the series is loved. It also spurred them to make the 7th movie. Overall the series was one that everybody has read and watched over and over again. -
Worlds Tallest Building Opens Up
The Burj Khalifa, the worlds tallest building. It opened on the fourth of January, and showed just how advanced humans are in architecture. This was a huge moment for mankind because we had made something so great and it really was like a bragging right. This may have just been a step to what we will make in the future. -
Lambro Gets Polluted
The Lambro, a river near Italy, runs black with oil after a oil ship was sabotaged, pouring 2.5 million liters into the river. This caused huge environmental problems for the nearby towns and caused a lot of death in plants around the river. The river was already polluted but the spill made it horrible. -
Suicide Bombers Hit Moscow
Two female suicide bombers carried bombs into the Moscow Metro System and blew it up. It killed 40 and injured over 100. It also effected the Metro System because the rails had been damaged. It was later found out that an Islamic leader had sent the bombers in and was saying that they would continue in Russia until Russia grants independence to Islamic states. -
My First Play
In class we did a play, on a historical character of our choice. I chose Benjamin Franklin, and it was pretty awesome. We had speeches from the character along with songs they sang. I still remember some of the characters and what they did because of that day. -
Spending One Week In Tucson
I went to Tucson with my family to see some family friends. Of course we only brought shorts and t-shirts because it was Tucson, it wasn't cold there. We were wrong. It snowed and rained the whole time, and we had nothing. We also got to go see my mom and dads university where they went to college at U of A. -
Shooting in Nederlands
A gunman walked into a mall up in Nederlands and shot people. He killed 7 and injured 17. He then killed himself before the police could get to him. The gunman had mental issues, and had tried to commit suicide twice before the incident. -
Pirates of The Caribbean: Stranger Tides
Johnny Depp, one of the greatest actors of all time, stars in Pirates of The Caribbean: Stranger Tides. This action packed movie is released with Johnny Depp in it and the movie immediately gets everyone's attention. Sadly, the movie didn't come out so well. -
Huge Earthquake Hits Van, Turkey
A Huge Earthquake hits Van, Turkey. It killed 582, and injured thousands. It dealt damage to 11 thousand homes at the least. Its magnitude was 7.1 and it really ruined the city and everybody's lives. The recovery stage was a hard one for Turkey. -
Hot Air Balloon Crashes
A hot air balloon going through a peaceful journey over Carterton, New Zealand was flying along when the pilot realized they were going to crash into a power line. Instead of using a fast descent, he decided to out climb the cord, resulting in a crash against it and starting a fire on board, and it disintegrated the aircraft and killed all 11 people aboard as it crashed. -
Sanction Against Iran
The US created a sanction against Iran because Iran was not shutting down their uranium enrichment program, or nuclear program. This restricted Iran's power, and created more safety for the US. In 2016 the sanctions were lifted after Iran limited their own program. -
My Dog Dies
Max, one of my two loving dogs, passed away. It was the first death that I had actually been connected to the person/animal. It was a sad time for my family without him yipping around the house. It was a really hard thing to go through, but we made it and got new dogs and we still have him in his urn on our shelf. -
SOPA Created
SOPA bill was introduced to allow further control to battle online piracy. This greatly helped out the economy of the US because movies and other products were not being stolen. Although, many people disagreed with it and created many protest against it. -
FARC Members Killed
FARC, a Colombian rebel group, had 13 members die to a air strike from the Colombian military. The military bombed a rebel camp and have found 13 dead. This attack started up FARC's truces and urged the military to do the same because FARC decided they could not battle the military or their men would keep dying. -
Lance Armstrong Cheats
Lance Armstrong, a professional biker that has won multiple championships. It turns out, he had been doping in most of his tournaments, meaning he cheated with drugs. He was stripped of most of his titles including his 7 Tour de France titles, and was banned from any sport that didn't allow drugs. He lost his athletic career due to his cheating and is looked down upon now. -
Smog of Beijing
Beijing had hit a point where the air pollution had come to dangerous levels. The smog (really, really polluted air that looks like black fog) had gotten to much. Even then it was the early stages of what it is today. Beijing is ruining the environment in China, and is causing some serious damage that they need to fix. -
The Floods
The floods were a big deal for me because it was the first time I had ever personally faced an environmental incident. The floods closed down schools, and my dad and grandpa almost got swept away when coming home from it. It was a really scary time because everybody's houses were getting swamped and I was scared for our house. -
Water Vapour on Ceres
Water Vapour on Ceres is a really big discovery. This means it has an atmosphere in the outer asteroid belt, and that means life is possible out there. They checked the largest and roundest in the belt, and found Ceres, with an iced over surface and an atmosphere, which is big news in the scientific world. -
Normal to Stem Cells
Scientists discovered how to convert normal cells into stem cells. They tried it on mice and made them glow. It is a big step toward solving disorders and such. If you can just replace the cell of the disorder then the disorder will not happen. It is a big moment and if they keep advancing in the technology they can eventaully make it work on humans too. -
New Host on Tonight Show
Jimmy Fallon takes over the role of The Tonight Show, and becomes another loved host on it. This was another stepping stone for the show because the last host was so loved and transitioning is hard because if the the watchers don't like the new host then the show won't do as well. -
Graduation
I finally did it. I had made it through elementary school. It was probably my biggest transition yet. I was going to go to middle school were there was lockers and 7 teachers and passing periods. I was really nervous that day but also excited because I made it through and I was becoming a teenager. -
Fencing for First
In fencing there is age groups. These age groups you move up throughout the years. On this year I came in first in my age group of y12 (12-10 year olds) and got another plaque. It was a big moment for me though because next year would be a whole lot rougher because everyone would be super tall. -
Terrorist Attack
A satirical newspaper article had a drawing of god in it. The terrorist religion stated that drawing god is against the religion and that it is very bad if you do. The terrorists then attacked the store that made the article, killing 12 and injuring 11. This revenge was horrible and shows how badly terrorists take things. This also started a great thing in many countries that supported Paris for what had happened. -
Jon Stewart Steps Down
Jon Stewart officially announces that he is stepping down from the Daily Show, which made everybody angry and sad. He said he was stepping down before the end of the year. This may have stopped many people from watching because they liked the host so much. Many fans will stop watching because the only reason the were watching was because of him. -
Obama Signs Against Venesuela
Obama officially signs off that Venezuela is a national threat to the US, creating tension and conflict between the two countries. The US was nervous about how much effort Venezuela's government was trying to intimidate other political powers. This made Venezuela say that the US is trying to take power from them. It was a huge mess. -
Terrorist Executed
Saudi Arabia executes 47 accused terrorists, doing the world a great deed. Although, many did not agree with some of the people they executed. Some were religious leaders that people believed had been wrongly accused, others seemed to not have done anything wrong. Many thought they were never even related to an attack. It was a controversial topic for many but it went by anyways. -
Police Shooting
There was a big police shooting in Dallas, and 5 officers were killed. The officers were shot because citizens were doing a protest against black people shootings, and the police were there to protect the citizens, and then someone started shooting. The scariest part was that I was a few blocks away from where it happened. I was there for fencing nationals, which is a big tournament. -
Elections
In the recent battle for president, a certain person has become hated in the adult world, but also has become one of the most funny jokes ever in the kid world. Memes, jokes, and insults are a go-to for everyone. His name is Donald Trump. Although, many criticize Hilary too, they disagree with her opinions, but they don't want Trump to win. -
My Grandma Passes Away
My grandmother had one of those smiles that just lit up the day. She always smiled which is the best part. She had Alzheimer's early on but that didn't stop her from having one of the most amazing lives. The funeral was so beautiful and calm and sad. But she would have loved it. -
Bibliography
Thanks to-
Onthisday.com
nytimes.com
bbc.com
