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Flashback calendar

Yahoo confirms the first data breach

Yahoo! reported the first data breach to the public, believing that the hackers obtained data from over 500 million accounts. The breach had taken place sometime by the end of 2014. The stolen data included account names, email addresses, phone numbers, births, passwords and security questions with answers.

'Avatar' becomes the top-grossing film

Avatar, marketed as James Cameron's Avatar, is a 2009 American epic science fiction film. During its theatrical run, the film broke several box office records and became the highest-grossing film of all time, as well as in the United States and Canada, surpassing Cameron's Titanic, which had held those records for twelve years.

Brazilian real falls to its all-time low

The broad strengthening of the US currency led to the Brazilian real falling to its all-time low, going above 4 real to the dollar. During the year, real has lost about 34% of its value against the dollar, resulting in its place among the worst-performing currencies. The economy suffered from a crisis caused by a corruption scandal.

Chinese Alibaba raises $25 billion in the biggest ever IPO

Alibaba Group is a Chinese multinational conglomerate, with operations in over 200 countries, boosted their deal size by 15% and claimed the title for the largest global IPO ever. Alibaba’s IPO surpassed that of the Agricultural Bank of China from 2010, which raised $22.1 billion in its debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

F-14 Tomcat retires from the U. S. Navy

Tomcat was an iconic aircraft designed with combat experience against Soviet MiG fighters during the Vietnam War in mind. I was a two-seater capable of Mach 2,3 speed. Tomcat had a variable-geometry wing. It served as the U.S. Navy's primary air superiority fighter. Its Soviet counterpart was MIG-23 Flogger.

British voters take to streets over fox hunts

Fox hunting with hounds, as a formalized activity, originated in England in the 16th century, in a form very similar to that practiced until February 2005, when a law banning the activity in England and Wales came into force. A ban on hunting in Scotland had been passed in 2002, but it continues to be within the law in Northern Ireland and several other countries.

The Iran-Iraq war begins

The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq, beginning in September 1980, when Iraq invaded Iran and ending in August 1988, when Iran accepted the UN-brokered ceasefire. Iraq wanted to replace Iran as the dominant Persian Gulf state and was worried that the 1979 Iranian Revolution would lead Iraq's Shi'ite majority to rebel against the Ba'athist government.

President Ford survives second assassination attempt

Moore's assassination attempt of US president Gerald Ford took place in San Francisco in September just 17 days after Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme's attempted assassination of Ford. She was standing in the crowd across the street from the St. Francis Hotel and was about 40 feet away from Ford when she fired a single shot at him with a .38 caliber revolver.

Swearing in ceremony of Kissinger

In 1973, Henry Kissinger became the U.S. Secretary of State. For his actions negotiating a ceasefire in Vietnam, Kissinger also received the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize under controversial circumstances, with two members of the committee resigning in protest. Kissinger later sought, unsuccessfully, to return the prize after the ceasefire failed.

ITV goes live for the first time

ITV is the biggest and most popular commercial TV channel in the UK. Since its launch, the ITV have contended with BBC One for the status of the UK’s most watched TV channel. At the time of its launch, it was known nationally as Independent Television. Local names were decided by the regional branding of the local ITV operator.

National Geographic Magazine is published

The first issue of National Geographic Magazine was published in September 1888, 9 months after the Society was founded. It was initially a scholarly journal sent to 165 charter members and nowadays it reaches the hands of 40 million people each month.

Lincoln sets a deadline to free all slaves

The Emancipation Proclamation, issued in September 1862 declared free the slaves in 10 states not under Union control, with exemptions specified for areas already under Union control in 2 states. Lincoln spent the next 100 days preparing the army and the nation for emancipation, while Democrats rallied their voters in the 1862 off-year elections by warning of the threat freed slaves posed to northern whites.

The first British "Prime Minister" lives at 10 Downing Street

George II offered this home to Walpole as a gift in 1732, but Walpole accepted it only as the official residence of the First Lord of the Treasury, taking up his residence there in 1735. His immediate successors did not always reside in Number 10 but the home has nevertheless become established as the official residence of the Prime Minister.

Switzerland becomes an independent state

The Treaty of Basel was an armistice following the Battle of Dornach, concluding the Swabian War, fought between the Swabian League and the Old Swiss Confederacy. In 19th-century Swiss historiography, the treaty was presented as an important step towards de facto independence of the Swiss Confederacy from the Holy Roman Empire.

Anniversaries of the (in)famous

born 1969

Sue Perkins

died 1828

Shaka Zulu

died 1967

Harald Quandt