This Day in History: Famous Firsts that Impacted the World

Estimated reading time: 3 minutesMaking in impact in one person's life isn't difficult, but what about impacting the world? What does it take to have a monumental effect on people? Some may say that kinds words, a new thought/idea, research, greater insight, or even more drastic measures like a revolution are the only ways that we can make a change. Making a difference in the world, no matter the measures that are taken, whether good or bad, all start with a thought, an idea to make a change. Looking back at these past events with our modern mindset can help us to understand the impact of our actions. Even Newton's Third Law applies here: "Every action has an equal and opposite reaction."On to the facts! February 4th -1789 - George Washington was unanimously chosen to be the first United States President.

Now look how far America has come.

1824 - J.W. Goodrich introduced rubber galoshes to the public.

Aren't you glad you don't have to get your feet and pant bottoms all wet and dirty anymore?

1948 - Alice Cooper was born. Find out more about him here.1957 - The Smith-Corona Manufacturing company started selling electric typewriters. Oh boy, look at that sucker move. Lightning fast!1959 - The iconic, and later controversial, Barbie doll was invented. But, unless you're a 5 to 13-year-old child, I doubt you care about this. Moving on...1997 - Apple Acquired NeXT, and Steve Jobs makes his return to Apple.

Steve Jobs owned the NeXT company which created the OpenStep OS. Apple purchased NeXT to build what became OS X ("ten" not x). Eventually, Gil Amelio's poor management of the company after Jobs was dismissed from the board, led to Apple's stock plummeting to an all-time low in 1996. Jobs quickly convinced the other board members to let him back as interim CEO and dismissing Amelio. And the rest is what they call history.

2000 - EA games released "The Sims."

If you're old enough to remember this game, it was the best simulation game at that time. I know, I know... what about GTA? Well, let's face it, GTA was released in 1997, so in those 3 years EA with Maxis, had plenty of time to make their product look better and target a different audience.  Since its initial release, The Sims has put out about 10 renditions of the game, each with a different theme.  The Sims became the best-selling PC game in history. I guess people like pretending to be other people. Here's a video about it.

Last, but not least ...2004 - Facebook, initially called "Thefacebook," was launched.

Who knew that Mark Zuckerberg's small social networking idea would become a global phenomenon and impact the way the world shared and connected. You might like it or even love it!