Invention of the ballpoint pen

In 1938 a Hungarian journalist László Bíró invented the ballpoint pen

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Inventing Rubik’s Cube

In 1974, a Hungarian architect, Ernő Rubik invented his bestselling puzzle

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Aibo: The world’s first robot dog

The world's first robot dog called Aibo, sold out in just 20 minutes in 1999

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When disposable nappies were invented

The story of how disposable nappies were invented.

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Creating the first emoji

In 1999, Japanese designer Shigetaka Kurita created a global phenomena - the first emoji

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Tamoxifen: Breast cancer ‘wonder drug’

How the drug tamoxifen became a global success in breast cancer treatment

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The ‘Barricades’ of Latvia

More than 500,000 people barricaded the streets of Riga in January 1991

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Japan surrenders in China

The signing of the Japanese surrender documents at the Forbidden City in Beijing in 1945.

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The birth of Barbie

Ruth Handler created the Barbie doll which was first sold in 1959

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The US singer who became the Soviet Union’s Red Elvis

In 1966, American Dean Reed was the first western rock star to tour the Soviet Union

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Escaping the Nazis in Greece

Yeti Mitrani and her family escaped deportation from Greece by the Nazis in 1943

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Brain: The first personal computer virus

In 1986 a computer virus was developed accidentally by two brothers in Pakistan

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The Pope’s controversial Nicaragua visit

Pope John Paul II angered supporters of the Sandinista government during a 1983 trip

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The 1960 coup against Haile Selassie

There was an attempt to overthrow the Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie in December 1960

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Mr Bigg's: The birth of Nigeria's iconic takeaway

It’s been 50 years since Mr Bigg's was first launched in Nigeria

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José Mujica: Prison break to president

Uruguay's former president recounts his revolutionary past as a member of the Tupamaros

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First dinosaur eggs identified in India

In 1982, Ashok Sahni discovered nests of dinosaur eggs for the first time in India

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Birth of a new language

In the early 1980s deaf children in Nicaragua invented a new sign language

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Treehouse on the Berlin Wall

In 1982 a Turkish worker in Germany built a treehouse against the Berlin Wall

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Dinosaur in court

In 2012 a dinosaur skeleton became the subject of a restraining order and a court case

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Brownie Wise: The creator of Tupperware parties

How Brownie Wise inspired an army of US housewives to sell Tupperware at parties

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The Great Train Robbery

In 1963, thieves held up a Royal Mail train on its journey from Glasgow to London

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Sarajevo’s haven of peace

The Jewish charity that helped people in the Bosnian war during the siege of Sarajevo

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Valéry Giscard d'Estaing's diamonds scandal

Journalist Claude Angeli broke the story that helped topple France's President in 1981

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Jean-Michel Basquiat bursts onto the New York art scene

The success of graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiat

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The boy who discovered a new species of human ancestor

Matt Berger tripped over a hominid fossil whilst exploring with his dad in South Africa

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Iran: How the prime minister was overthrown in 1953

It's 70 years since the US-backed coup which brought the Shah of Iran to power in 1953

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Returning Benin Bronzes

In 2004, a chance encounter in Nigeria led to the return of two looted art treasures

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Judy Garland: The final shows

The last performances of Judy Garland in January 1969

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The Wizard of Oz: The stolen ruby slippers

Ruby slippers used in the film 'The Wizard of Oz' were stolen in 2005.

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Easter Rising in Ireland

In 1916, a group of Irish rebels launched an armed revolt against British rule

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How electricity came to rural Ireland

The Rural Electrification Scheme brought power to 300,000 homes in the Irish countryside

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The first Rose of Tralee

In 1959, the first Rose of Tralee festival was held in Ireland

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Celtic Tiger: Ireland's 'ghost estates'

How the collapse of Ireland's Celtic Tiger led to thousands of abandoned housing estates

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Women invade Dublin's male-only swimming spot

In 1974, women campaigned to swim at the Forty Foot in Dublin, Ireland

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The Bristol bus boycott

How a protest by black activists in 1963 led to the UK's first anti-racism laws

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North and South Korean leaders meet for the first time in decades

In June 2000, the first inter-Korean summit since the Korean War took place

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Egypt's Rabaa massacre

In August 2013, the army killed hundreds of protestors in Cairo

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Saving Guadalupe from goats

An island expedition helped save Guadalupe's wildlife from extinction...and goats

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Leaving China to study after the Cultural Revolution

We hear from one of the first students to study overseas after the Cultural Revolution

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Arctic 30: Russian arrest of Greenpeace campaigners

In 2013, campaigners were arrested for protesting against oil drilling in the Arctic

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Bi Kidude: Zanzibar's 'golden grandmother of music'

Bi Kidude was one of the first women from Zanzibar to sing in public without the veil

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Murder of Swedish politician Anna Lindh

In 2003, Swedish politician Anna Lindh was attacked and killed in Stockholm

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Organising Chile's 1973 military coup

On 11 September, General Augusto Pinochet deposed President Salvador Allende

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Victor Jara: killed in Chile's coup

The musician's widow recounts his murder at the hands of Chile's army in 1973

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Oslo Peace Accords: The secret talks behind Middle East deal

How a couple in Oslo brokered peace in the Middle East

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Camp David Summit: How Middle East peace talks failed

President Bill Clinton’s failed attempt to end the conflict in the Middle East.

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Ariel Sharon visits al-Aqsa

In 2000, the Israeli opposition leader visited the al-Aqsa Mosque compound

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The siege at the Church of the Nativity

The final days of one of the most dramatic sieges of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

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The Ramallah concert

In 2005, an orchestra made up of young Arab and Israeli musicians performed in Ramallah

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Nazi eugenics

In 1933, Adolf Hitler ordered the sterilisation of people with disabilities

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Fighting for legal abortion in Italy

In 1978, campaigners won their fight to legalise abortion in Italy despite the opposition

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The first person inside the 'Gates of Hell'

In November 2013, George Kourounis descended into the 'Gates of Hell'

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Kenya: Nairobi shopping mall attack

In 2013, a Somali militant group attacked the Westgate Mall in Nairobi

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The year of the vuvuzela

Freddie 'Saddam' Maake tells the story of how he became known as 'Mr Vuvuzela'

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Vietnam War: Stopping nuclear disaster

In 1975, physicist Wally Hendrickson prevented nuclear disaster in Vietnam

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Concorde's first flight

On 2 March 1969 Concorde took to the skies for the first time

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Kassandra: The peacekeeping telenovela in Bosnia

The Latin American soap opera Kassandra helped keep peace in Bosnia

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The Lampedusa shipwreck tragedy

In 2013, a ship carrying more than 500 migrants sank off the coast of Lampedusa.

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The first cat cafe

In 1998, the world’s first cat cafe opened in Taiwan

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The oil crisis of 1973

In October 1973, Arab nations slashed oil production causing prices to sky rocket

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The oilfield that changed Kazakhstan

In 1993 Kazakhstan partnered with Chevron and started drilling for oil

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Nigeria strikes oil

In 1956 commercial quantities of oil were discovered in Nigeria

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The Amoco Cadiz oil spill

In 1978, a crude oil tanker was shipwrecked off the coast of France

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Protectors of the Amazon

In 2003, the Sarayaku community began a legal battle against an oil company

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Yinka Shonibare: Nelson's Ship in a Bottle

On 24 May 2010, artist Yinka Shonibare unveiled his sculpture, Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle

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The 84-year-old primary school pupil

In 2004, Kenyan great grandfather Kimani Maruge became the oldest person to start school

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Theodosia Okoh: Designer of Ghana’s flag

Ghana's independence in 1957 was marked with a new flag designed by Theodosia Okoh

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Kwame Nkrumah: Ousted from power

In 1966, Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah, one of Africa's most famous leaders was ousted from power

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Surviving an acid attack and changing the law

In 2013, acid attack survivors in India celebrated a landmark Supreme Court ruling

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Cambodian peace walk

In 1992, Cambodia held its first peace walk aimed at uniting a country torn apart by war

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Rana Plaza building collapse

In 2013, an eight-storey building in Bangladesh collapsed killing more than 1,000 people

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Mexico’s murdered women

In the 1990s, hundreds of young women were murdered in a Mexican border town

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Launching Lagos Fashion Week

Lagos Fashion Week was launched in 2011 putting Nigerian style on the global map

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Osmondmania

Donny Osmond shares his memories of teen hysteria in 1973

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The first Bosphorus Bridge

In 1973, the first bridge connecting Europe and Asia was completed

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The 1980 Turkey coup

On 12 September 1980, the military took control of Turkey

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The 1993 MAD hijack

In 1993, a Nigerian Airways flight from Lagos to Abuja was hijacked

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'The streets of Harare were littered with money'

Professor Gift Mugano describes when Zimbabwe’s inflation hit 89.7 sextillion per cent

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Turkey: Gezi Park protests

In 2013 protests in Istanbul’s Gezi Park led to civil unrest across Turkey

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The billion dollar bid to stop oil drilling in the Amazon

In 2010 a $3.6billion fund began to stop oil drilling in Ecuador’s Yasuni national park

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The discovery of the HIV virus

In 1983, scientists at the Pasteur Institute in Paris first discovered the HIV virus

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Inventing the black box

In 1962 a prototype of the cockpit flight recorder was tested in Australia

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Che Guevara’s daughter: A Cuban doctor in Angola

In 1986 Dr Aleida Guevara travelled from Cuba to treat children in communist Angola

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Freddie Mercury 'marries' Jane Seymour

The actress Jane Seymour shares what it was like being rock star Freddie Mercury's bride

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Ycuá Bolaños supermarket fire

More than 300 people died in Paraguay's capital in 2004

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Debbie McGee in Iran

Showbiz star, Debbie McGee describes being caught up in the Iranian revolution in 1978

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The Pakistani teens who became disco superstars

How Nazia and Zoheb Hassan changed South-East Asian pop with their album, Disco Deewane

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Destruction of Mostar Bridge

On 9 November 1993 the historic bridge was destroyed during the Bosnian War

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The hippo and the tortoise

In 2004, a hippo and a tortoise became friends. Their story gained worldwide fame

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The invention of the EpiPen

How engineer Sheldon Kaplan and his team made the EpiPen, the lifesaving allergy device

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Eyjafjallajökull: The volcano that stopped a continent

In 2010, a cloud of volcanic ash brought Europe’s planes back to earth

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Rosalind Franklin: DNA pioneer

The scientist produced an X-ray photograph in 1952, that helped show the structure of DNA

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The Bolivian Water War

How Bolivians in the city of Cochabamba fought against the “leasing of the rain”

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Discovering the ancient city of Thonis-Heracleion

In 2000 Franck Goddio made one of the greatest ever underwater discoveries

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The independence of Zambia

How Zambia became independent in 1964

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The invention of bubble tea

Chun Shui Tang tea house in Taiwan began selling bubble tea in 1987

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Kennedy’s nail-biter election victory

In 1960, John F Kennedy became the youngest person to be elected United States president.

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The Paris heatwave

In 2003, Paris was overwhelmed by the hottest European heatwave for 500 years

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