8 Unusual and Unique World-Changing Facts That Happened on March 28

8 Unusual and Unique World-Changing Facts That Happened on March 28

By Michelle Carr Crowe, Silicon Valley real estate guide selling homes in San Jose

What do Juan Bautista de Anza, Jesse Owens and the Cold War have in common? They all have an important anniversary on March 28, 2013.

Are you an inquisitive person who enjoys learning? If you’ve read my blog, you know one of the pastimes I enjoy is discovering new facts and interesting pieces of history.

I like to share intriguing stories from our local newspaper the San Jose Mercury News, as well as my favorite print and online magazinesMental Floss, the National Geographic Society or  Smithsonian Magazine. Other times I find articles or facts online at  The History Place, Brainy History,orDates In History.These events for today’s blog post are primarily from Wikipedia.

While these interesting items are intriguing, they have nothing to do with my real estate business, helping people like you buy and sell homes in Silicon Valley, Calif. and beyond. I admit, they just add fun and fascination to life.

Here are today’s 8 Unusual and Unique World-Changing Facts That Happened on March 28. I hope you find them interesting, too.

8 Unusual and Unique World-Changing Facts That Happened on March 28

193 – Roman Emperor Pertinax is assassinated by Praetorian Guards, who then sell the throne in an auction to Didius Julianus. (After seeing the prior emperor assassinated, it’s surprising anyone would bid for the position.)

1776 – Explorer Juan Bautista de Anza discovers the site that will become the Presidio of San Francisco. It remained a fort until Congress voted to end the Presidio's status as an active military installation. On October 1, 1994, it was transferred to the National Park Service.

1930 – Constantinople and Angora change their names to Istanbul and Ankara.

1946 – Cold War: The United States State Department releases the Acheson–Lilienthal Report, outlining a plan for the international control of nuclear power.

1959 – The State Council of the People's Republic of China dissolves the Government of Tibet.

1978 – The US Supreme Court hands down 5-3 decision in Stump v. Sparkman, 435 U.S. 349, a controversial case involving involuntary sterilization and judicial immunity. In 1971, Judge Harold D. Stump granted a mother's petition to have a tubal ligation performed on her 15-year-old daughter, whom the mother alleged was "somewhat retarded." The petition was granted the same day that it was filed. The judge did not hold a hearing to receive evidence or appoint a lawyer to protect the daughter's interests. The daughter underwent the surgery a week later, having been told that she was to have her appendix removed.

The daughter married two years later. Failing to become pregnant, she learned that she had been sterilized during the 1971 operation. The daughter and her husband sued the judge and others associated with the sterilization in federal district court.

The district court found that the judge was immune from suit. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the decision, holding that the judge had lost his immunity because he failed to observe "elementary principles of due process" when he ordered the sterilization. Finally, in 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision, reversed the Court of Appeals, announcing a test for deciding when judicial immunity should apply and holding that the judge could not be sued.

1979 – Operators of Three Mile Island's Unit 2 nuclear reactor outside of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania fail to recognize that a relief valve in the primary coolant system has stuck open following an unexpected shutdown. As a result, enough coolant drains out of the system to allow the core to overheat and partially melt down. (Homer Simpson must have been the employee on duty for that one.)

1990 – President George H. W. Bush posthumously awards Jesse Owens the Congressional Gold Medal. Owens was an American track and field athlete who specialized in the sprints and the long jump. He participated in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin,Germany, where he achieved international fame by winning four gold medals: one each in the 100 meters, the200 meters, the long jump, and as part of the 4x100 meter relay team. He was the most successful athlete at the 1936 Summer Olympics.

Thank you for reading. You may want to read my blog at www.activerain.com/results for more fun facts on history, real estate, home, life and other topics. I hope you learned something new from reading about these 8 Unusual and Unique World-Changing Facts That Happened on March 28.

Homes,houses,blogs,tags, “Michelle Carr”,”Michelle Carr-Crowe”, “Lynbrook High Homes for sale”

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