August 7th Through History

Explanation: Napoleon was exiled to Saint Helena after his defeat at Waterloo in June 1815. He lived there under British surveillance until his death on May 5, 1821. The island, located in the South Atlantic, was chosen precisely for its extreme geographical isolation, making any escape nearly impossible.

Explanation: Ivory Coast proclaimed its independence from France on August 7, 1960, under the presidency of Félix Houphouët-Boigny, who led the country until 1993. This date is today celebrated as the Ivorian national holiday. Ivory Coast was one of the many French African colonies to gain independence during that same year, nicknamed "the Year of Africa".

Explanation: The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed after the United States claimed its ships had been attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats. Decades later, it was established that the second alleged attack had probably never taken place. This resolution served as the legal basis for the massive escalation of American involvement in Vietnam.

Explanation: Operation Desert Shield was the defensive and deployment phase preceding Operation Desert Storm, which drove Iraqi forces out of Kuwait in 1991. Saddam Hussein had invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990, citing historical and economic reasons. The international coalition brought together more than 34 countries.

Explanation: Abebe Bikila ran the 42 km of the 1960 Rome marathon barefoot, becoming the first sub-Saharan African Olympic champion. He repeated his performance in Tokyo in 1964, this time wearing shoes. A car accident in 1969 left him a quadriplegic. He then turned to wheelchair sports before dying in 1973.

Explanation: Viking 2 entered Martian orbit on August 7, 1976 before landing its lander on September 3, 1976 in the Utopia plain. The Viking mission, made up of two orbiters and two landers, had the goal of detecting traces of microbial life on Mars. The results of the biological experiments remained ambiguous and fueled a long scientific debate.

Explanation: Avicenna (Ibn Sina in Arabic) is best known for his Canon of Medicine, a medical encyclopedia used in European universities until the XVIIth century. He also contributed to philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy. Born in Persia (present-day Uzbekistan), he wrote the majority of his works in Arabic, the scholarly language of his time.

Explanation: Oliver Hardy formed with Stan Laurel one of the most famous comedy duos in cinema history: Laurel and Hardy. Active mainly from the 1920s to the 1940s, they made more than 100 films together. Hardy played the pompous and bossy character, contrasting with Laurel's naivety.

Explanation: Jimmy Wales co-founded Wikipedia in January 2001 with Larry Sanger. The revolutionary concept is based on the voluntary and collaborative contributions of internet users from around the world. Wikipedia is now available in more than 300 languages and is one of the most consulted sources of information in the world, managed by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation.

Explanation: Jacquard invented the mechanical loom that bears his name, capable of reproducing complex patterns thanks to a system of punched cards. This invention directly influenced the pioneers of computing: Charles Babbage drew inspiration from it for his analytical engine, and the principle of punched cards was used in computing until the 20th century. Jacquard was initially persecuted by the Lyon silk workers, who feared for their jobs.