Spacewar!, one of the earliest interactive computer games, was born from a demo to show off a new MIT computer

pop & funWikipedia1961 · Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

Spacewar!, one of the earliest interactive computer games, was born from a demo to show off a new MIT computer

the gist

In September 1961 a Digital Equipment Corporation PDP-1 minicomputer was installed at MIT, complementing an older machine called the TX-0. Earlier MIT games such as Tic-Tac-Toe and Mouse in the Maze used a light pen, and a group of students and staff wanted a program that would show off the PDP-1's display. Steve Russell, Martin Graetz and Wayne Wiitanen came up with the idea for Spacewar! after a summer of brainstorming. Russell noted that a kaleidoscope-style pattern program was not a good demonstration, and that a display that could do much more was needed. They decided on a two-dimensional manoeuvring game, and the obvious choice was spaceships. The game let two players fire at each other with a cathode-ray tube display, making it one of the first interactive graphical games.

so what

Spacewar! set the template for many later games, with two players controlling moving objects on a shared screen. It shows that computer games began as demonstrations of what a machine could do, rather than as products.

fun fact

Mouse in the Maze, an earlier MIT game, let players build a maze with a light pen for a virtual mouse to run through.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

historyWikipediaclassic1336–1565 · Karnataka, India

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗