Jan 24, 1984: The Apple Macintosh computer first goes on sale, featuring a graphical user interface and a mouse. Two days prior to the sale, Apple announced the new computer’s launch via a dramatic ad during Super Bowl XVIII. In the first three months after the launch, Apple sold over 5,000 Macintosh computers. The One Device: The Secret Read More …
January 16, 1853: André Michelin, founder of Michelin Tire Company, is born in Paris. Michelin took over his family’s failing farm equipment company, which manufactured rubber parts such as belts and valves, in 1886. A few years later, he was approached by a cyclist who was having trouble with his tires. At that time, bicycle Read More …
Jan. 4, 2010: Burj Khalifa in Dubai, U.A.E., opens as the worlds tallest building at 2,717 feet (828m). At over 160 stories tall, it also has the highest occupied floor in the world. The building includes 900 residential apartments, office space and a 304 room hotel, as well as an observation deck. Sources: Burj Khalifa Read More …
January 1, 1958: The European Economic Community, known as the Common Market, becomes official. Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands signed the Treaty of Rome in March 1957, which laid the plan for this trade community, and was later joined by the United Kingdom, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Portugal,and Spain. East Germany also Read More …
December 31, 1935: Charles B. Darrow patented the real-estate board game, Monopoly (Patent Number 2,026,082). Although Darrow has been given credit for creating the now “ubiquitous winner-take-all board game,” it was actually invented in 1903 by Elizabeth “Lizzie” Magie. Magie created the pre-cursor to Monopoly, The Landlord’s Game, as an educational tool to help explain Read More …
December 23, 1913: The U.S. Senate signed into law the Federal Reserve Act. Before this date, the United States was one of the only major financial powers without a central bank, having to turn to wealthy benefactors in 1907, particularly J.P. Morgan, to help bail the government out of financial crises. Realizing the nation could not Read More …
December 8, 1812: Henry Varnum Poor was born on this day and would lay the groundwork for the business information industry. As the editor of the American Railroad Journal, he became aware of the ways that businesses across states were becoming increasingly interconnected. Managers found a lot of value in information about companies and economics in partnering Read More …
December 6, 1889: Robert Winship Woodruff was the president of The Coca-Cola Company from 1923 until his death in 1985. Under his leadership, he transformed the struggling company into a world renowned brand. Through his many philanthropic contributions in health, education, and culture, he helped Atlanta evolve from “the small, bustling railroad town into Read More …
November 20, 1923: Patent #1,475,024 was granted to inventor Garrett Augustus Morgan for his automatic traffic signal. Morgan, who had a deep interest in public safety, was inspired to invent a device to control traffic after a tragic collision between an automobile and horse and carriage in his hometown of Cleveland. He sold the manufacturing rights to General Read More …
November 19, 1909: Peter Drucker, widely considered the inventor of of management, was born on this day in 1909. He described himself as a “social ecologist,” and wrote 39 books and numerous articles on how humans interact and communicate with each other. In 2002, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Source: The Drucker Institute Read More …
