Discover key historical events from the 17th of May, including Radhanath Sikdar’s contribution to measuring Mount Everest, Sher Shah Suri’s legacy, the first merry-go-round, and more fascinating facts from science, technology, and history.
Dear Students,
Before I share the historical events from the 17th of May, let me first share with you some very important information.
All of you know that the highest peak in the world is Mount Everest. But do you know how Peak 15 came to be known as Mount Everest?
Well, during the 1830s, the world believed Mount Kanchenjunga to be the highest peak. It was then that Radhanath Sikdar discovered — with the help of trigonometry — that Peak 15 was 8,839 metres high, which is 253 metres higher than Kanchenjunga.
In 1852, he shared this information with Andrew Scott Waugh, who was the Director of the Survey of India at that time. However, Waugh did not give credit to Radhanath Sikdar. Instead, he regarded Sir George Everest as his mentor and sent a proposal for the peak to be named Mount Everest. As a result, all the credit for measuring the official height of Mount Everest was taken away from Radhanath Sikdar and given to an Englishman who had not even seen it.
So, join me in saluting Radhanath Sikdar on his death anniversary today.
Now, let me share the events from the 17th of May:
1) 17th May 1540: On this day, Sher Shah Suri was crowned the ruler of Hindustan. He was the one who built the Grand Trunk Road (GT Road), which we still use today. It begins from Kabul, goes through India, and finally reaches Bangladesh. The total length is 3,655 kilometres. Besides this, Sher Shah also standardised a currency system in India.
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2) Moving on to the year 1620, the first-ever merry-go-round was used at a fair in Philippopolis, Turkey, on the 17th of May. So, next time you visit an amusement park or a fair and enjoy the thrilling ride, do remember this bit of history.
3) Did you know that Jupiter has two different belts or regions? The light-coloured areas are where the atmosphere is rising, while the dark-coloured belts are where the atmosphere is sinking. These bands are caused by differences in temperature and the composition of clouds in Jupiter’s atmosphere. This fascinating phenomenon was first observed on 17th May 1630 by Niccolò Zucchi, an Italian Jesuit astronomer and physicist.
4) Coming to the year 1769, it was on the 17th of May that the East India Company imposed several restrictions on the weavers of Bengal in a deliberate attempt to ruin Bengal’s thriving textile industry and promote the sale of textiles manufactured in England.
5) You all take pictures on your mobiles these days, but did you know that the first-ever colour photograph was shown to the world by Scottish scientist James Clerk Maxwell at the Royal Institution in London on this day in 1861?
6) On 17th May 1877, Edwin T. Holmes installed the first telephone switchboard burglar alarm.
7) It was also on this day in 1897 that the first successful submarine, capable of running submerged for a considerable distance and combining electric and gasoline engines, was launched in the USA by its designer, John Philip Holland.
8) You all use computers today, but do you know that in 1902, a Greek archaeologist named Valerios Stais discovered the Antikythera mechanism — an ancient Greek orrery or mechanical celestial globe. It is thought to be the oldest known example of an analogue computer. It was used to predict astronomical positions, including the movements of the sun, moon, and planets, and to calculate eclipses.
9) It was on 17th May 2009 that the video game Minecraft was first released to the public while still in development.
10) And finally, it was on this day in 2023 that Sherpa Kami Rita of Nepal climbed Mount Everest for a record 27th time.
Have a wonderful weekend. Good bye.
