Unix Timestamp: 1235779200
Saturday, February 28. 2009, 12:00:00 AM UTC

IBM claims to be on the verge of creating the world's first quantum computer. (//www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2400930,00.asp "PC Magazine")

Crude oil prices rise to their highest levels in two years as stock market indexes fall in Europe and the United States due to continued uncertainty in the Middle East. //www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-28/asia-stocks-fall-as-oil-gains-china-cuts-outlook-euro-drops-on-ireland.html (Bloomberg)

Ecuador suspends oil exports after a landslide cuts off its main pipeline. //www.afp.com/english/news/stories/newsmlmmd.bb09ef63d59e962f61f490388129a0f9.1b1.html (AFP)

At least ten militants are killed in a rocket attack on a house in the Pakistani village of Kalosha in South Waziristan near the Afghanistan border. //news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7268253.stm (BBC News)

Two paintings by Pablo Picasso, "Maya with Doll" and "Jacqueline", have been stolen from the painter's granddaughter's apartment in Paris, France. //www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1452612.ece (The Times)

The New Horizonsspace probe makes a gravitational slingshot against Jupiter, which changes its trajectory towards Pluto.

Over 1 million Taiwanese participating in the 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally form a long human chain to commemorate the 228 Incident in 1947.

Canada's prime minister Jean Chrétien indicates that he believes that regime change is a dangerous goal for an invasion of Iraq, and that disarmament only should be the goal of international pressure. //cbc.ca/stories/2003/02/28/chretienmex030228

Gulbarg Society massacre : During the 2002 Gujarat riots, a mob attacked the Gulbarg Society, a lower middle-class Muslim neighbourhood in Chamanpura, Ahmedabad. Most of the houses were burnt, and at least 35 victims including a former Congress, Member of Parliament, Ehsan Jafri, were burnt alive, while 31 others went missing after the incident, later presumed dead, bringing the total of the dead to 69.

An earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter Scale hits the Northwest area of the United States. There were no reports of any deaths.

North Hollywood shootout: Two robbers wearing kevlar body armor armed with AK-47s containing armor-piercing bullets injure 17 police officers and civilians in a gun battle. The incident sparked debate on the appropriate firepower for United States patrol officers to have available in similar situations in the future.

Canadian singer Alanis Morissette wins the top honor, Album of the Year award, at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards. She is the youngest person to ever win this award, a record she held until 2010.

In Lumberton, North Carolina, Daniel Green is convicted of the murder of James Jordan, the father of basketball star Michael Jordan.

At least 81 people drown when a boat capsizes 120 kilometres east of Kala, Uganda.

Faucett Flight 251 in route from Lima to Rodriguez Ballon airport crashes into a mountain near Arequipa all 123 people on board are killed.

The Bosnian government declares the end of the Siege of Sarajevo.

Members of the group Patriot's Council are convicted in Minnesota of manufacturing ricin.

Polish Prime Minister Waldemar Pawlak resigns from Parliament and is replaced by ex-communist Jozef Oleksy.

In Moscow, Russian anti-corruption journalist Vladislav Listyev is killed by a gunman.

South Africa cedes Walvis Bay to Namibia.

Mary Ellen Withrow begins her term of office as Treasurer of the United States, serving under President Bill Clinton.

A lone terrorist kills Ari Halberstam during an attack on 14 Jewish students on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City. //www.arihalberstam.com

4 United StatesF-16s shoot down 4 Serbian J-21s over Bosnia and Herzegovina for violation of the Operation Deny Flight and its no-fly zone.

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents raid the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas, with a warrant to arrest leader David Koresh on federal firearms violations. Four agents and 5 Davidians die in the raid and a 51-day standoff begins.

MarchndashApril ndash Iraqi forces suppress rebellions in the southern and northern parts of the country, creating a humanitarian disaster on the borders of Turkey and Iran.

In the Estonian independence referendum and the Latvian independence and democracy poll, voters vote more than 3 to 1 in favor of independence from the Soviet Union.

Clayton Keith Yeutter ends his term as United States Secretary of Agriculture.

United Airlines Flight 585 crashes in Colorado Springs, Colorado, killing all 25 people on board.

An amateur video captures the beating of motorist Rodney King by Los Angeles, California police officers.

The ballistic missile submarine "USS-ex-Sam Houston SSBN-609" is deactivated.

Estonia and Latvia vote for independence from the Soviet Union.

The São Tomé and Príncipe presidential election, the first contested presidential election in the history of São Tomé and Príncipe, is won by Miguel Trovoada.

A fire at the Sheraton Hotel in Cairo, Egypt, kills 16 people.

President of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega announces a cease-fire with the U.S.-backed "contras".

The Royal New Zealand Navy discontinues its daily rum ration.

Steve Jackson Games is raided by the U.S. Secret Service, prompting the later formation of the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme is assassinated on his way home from the cinema.

The Provisional Irish Republican Army carries out a mortar attack on the Royal Ulster Constabulary police station at Newry, killing 9 officers in the highest loss of life for the RUC on a single day.

The final episode of MASH is aired and the record of most watched episode is broken.

Elizabeth II opens the Parliament of New Zealand.

Madagascar becomes the first country to recognise the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).

U.K. Home Secretary Merlyn Rees ends Special Category Status for those sentenced for scheduled terrorist crimes relating to the civil violence in Northern Ireland.

Burundi recognizes the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).

The Asama-Sanso incident ends in a standoff between five members of the Japanese United Red Army and the authorities, in which two policemen are killed and 12 injured.

The Club of Rome publishes its report "Limits to Growth".

The "Pioneer 10" spacecraft is launched from Cape Kennedy, to be the first man-made satellite to leave the solar system.

Jean-Bédel Bokassa becomes President of the Central African Republic.

The Thai province Yasothon is created after being split off from the Ubon Ratchathani Province.

Pakistani President Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan indefinitely postpones the pending National Assembly session, precipitating massive civil disobedience in East Pakistan.

Canadian John Robarts ends his term of office as the 17th Premier of Ontario.

A bomb explodes in the men's room at the United States Capitol. Weather Underground Organization claims responsibility.

Evel Knievel sets a world record and jumps 19 cars in Ontario, California.

U.S. astronauts Charles Bassett and Elliott See are killed in an aircraft accident in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Ba'ath Party takes power in Syria.

Soviet space probe "Venera 3" crashes on Venus, becoming the first spacecraft to land on another planet's surface.

Iron Man debuts in Marvel Comics's Tales of Suspense #39.

Dorothy Schiff resigns from the New York Newspaper Publisher's Association, feeling that the city needs at least one paper. Her paper, the "New York Post", resumes publication on March 4.

The divorce case of The Duke and Duchess of Argyll causes scandal in the United Kingdom.

March

One of the worst school bus accidents in U.S. history occurs at Prestonburg, Kentucky 29 are killed.

Ho Chi Minh is elected President of North Vietnam.

British troops withdraw from Iran according to treaty the Soviets do not.

In Philadelphia, General Electric strikers and police clash.

In Bucharest, a violent demonstration takes place, during which the "bolşevic" group opens fire on the army and protesters. In response, Andrei Y. Vishinsky, USSR vice commissioner of foreign affairs and president of the Allied Control Commission for Romania, travels to Bucharest to compel Nicolae Rădescu to resign as premier.

March ndash Anne Frank, dies in the Bergen-Belsen concentration c, Lower Saxony, Germany, of typhus.

Operation Gunnerside: 6 Norwegians led by Joachim Ronneberg successfully attack the heavy water plant Vemork.

The Reichstag Fire Decree is passed in response to the Reichstag fire, nullifying many German civil liberties.

İsmet İnönü is appointed as the prime minister in Turkey (Turkey's 4th and İnönü's 3rd government).

The 1925 Charlevoix-Kamouraska earthquake strikes northeastern North America.

The inauguration of Calvin Coolidge as President of the United States becomes the first to be broadcast on radio.

An ice mass breaks the Oder Dam in Breslau.

The British Civil Aviation Authority is established.

The United Kingdom ends its protectorate over Egypt through a Unilateral Declaration of Independence.

Amanullah Khan becomes King of Afghanistan.

Sport Lisboa e Benfica is founded in Portugal.

February concludes without having a full moon.

MarchndashMay ndash The North-West Rebellion is suppressed in Canada.

The first vaudeville theater is opened, in Boston, Massachusetts.

Bulgaria regains its independence from the Ottoman Empire.

The Treaty of San Stefano concludes the Russo-Turkish War

Mississippi State University is created by the Mississippi Legislature (under the name The Agricultural and Mechanical College of the State of Mississippi).

The Third Carlist War (Spain):The Carlist forces did not succeed, and the promises were never fulfilled. The Carlistpretender (Carlos María de Borbón y Austria-Este-duque de Madrid y conde de la Alcarria) AKA:Carlos VII went into exile in France bringing the conflict to an end after four years of war.

Spring ndash Vast numbers of Indians move north to an encment of the Sioux chief Sitting Bull in the region of the Little Bighorn River, creating the last great gathering of native peoples on the Great Plains.

The Bulgarian Exarchate is established by decree of Sultan Abd-ul-Aziz of the Ottoman Empire.

The month concludes without having a full moon.

American Civil War: Texas is admitted to the Confederate States of America.

Colorado is organized as a United States territory.

President Abraham Lincoln takes office, succeeding James Buchanan.

American Civil War: The "Stars and Bars" is adopted as the flag of the Confederate States of America.

Nevada is organized as a United States territory.

(February 19 O.S.) ndash Serfdom is abolished in Imperial Russia.

The Artists Rifles is established, as the "'38th Middlesex (Artists) Rifle Volunteer Corps"', with headquarters at Burlington House.ref name=WebsiteSee //www.artistsriflesassociation.org/regiment-artists-rifles.htm.

The Republican Party (United States) is founded in Ripon, Wisconsin.

The University of Utah opens in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Regular steamboat service from the west to the east coast of the United States begins with the arrival of the SS "California" in San Francisco Bay. The "California" leaves New York Harbor on October 6, 1848, rounds Cape Horn at the tip of South America, and arrives at San Francisco, California after the 4 month 21 day journey.

Minnesota becomes a United States territory.

Census Office within the Department of Interior (Census Board).

Patent and Trademark Office transferred to the Department of Interior.

The U.S. Congress passes the Gold Coinage Act allowing the minting of gold coins.

GLO transferred to the Department of Interior.

Regular steamboat service from the west to the east coast of the United States begins with the arrival of the SS \\\\\\'\\\\\\'California\\\\\\'\\\\\\' in San Francisco Bay. The "California" leaves New York Harbor on October 6, 1848, rounds Cape Horn at the tip of South America, and arrives at San Francisco, California after the 4 month 21 day journey.

March ndash The Frankfurt Parliament completes its drafting of a liberal constitution and elects Frederick William IV emperor of the new German national state.

Office of Indian Affairs transferred to Department of the Interior.

The United States Department of the Interior is established.

The United States Congress approves the annexation of Texas.

A gun on the USS \'\'Princeton\'\' explodes while the boat is on a Potomac River cruise, killing 2 United States Cabinet members and several others.

The Baltimore Ohio Railroad is incorporated, becoming the first railroad in America offering commercial transportation of both people and freight.

United IrishmanRoddy McCorley is executed in Toomebridge for his part in the Irish Rebellion of 1798.

A charter is granted establishing the institution known today as the University of Pittsburgh.

John Wesley ordains ministers for the Methodist Church in the United States.

At the Battle of Palkhed, Maratha Peshwa Baji Rao I defeats the Mughal Governor of Deccan, Nizam-ul-Mulk.

Battle of Helsingborg: Fourteen thousand Danish invaders under Jørgen Rantzau are decisively defeated by an equally large Swedish army under Magnus Stenbock.

Roger Scott is tried in Massachusetts for sleeping in church.

English Civil War: Uxbridge armistice talks fail.

The Scottish National Covenant is signed in Edinburgh.

"The Scornful Lady," a comedy stage play written by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, is published.

May ndash The Thomas Overbury Murder Scandal (1615–1616) ends with the conviction of Earl and Countess of Somerset, who were, however, not hanged but imprisoned until 1622 in the Tower of London. Although King James I of England has ordered the investigation of the poet's murder and allowed his former court favorite to be arrested and tried, his court, now under the influence of the Earl of Buckingham (George Villiers) gains the reputation of being corrupt and vile. The royal visit of James's brother-in-law Christian IV, king of Denmark, a notorious soak, adds further scandal.! I removed the reference to Christopher Marlowe, since he died in 1593.dks

In the aftermath of the 1613–1614 anti-Jewish pogrom called the Fettmilch Uprising, in Frankfurt, Germany, mob leader Vincenz Fettmilch is beheaded, but the Jews, who had been expelled from the city on August 23, 1614, following the plundering of the Judengasse, can only return as a result of direct intervention by Holy Roman Emperor Matthias. After long negotiations, the Jews are left without any compensation for their plundered belongings.

Sir Walter Raleigh, English explorer of the New World, is released from prison in the Tower of London in order to conduct a second, ill-fated expedition in search of El Dorado in South America.

Nicolaus Copernicus' "De revolutionibus" is placed on the Index of Forbidden Books by the Congregation of the Index of the Roman Catholic Church.

The English Roman Catholic priest, Thomas Atkinson (born c.1546) is hanged, drawn, and quartered at York, at age 70 (he is beatified by Pope John Paul II on November 22, 1987).

Action of 1616 ndash La Goulette, Tunisia: A Spanish squadron under Francisco de Ribera defeats a Tunisian fleet.

Galileo Galilei meets Pope Paul V in person, to discuss his position.

The last Aztec Emperor, Cuauhtémoc, is killed by Hernán Cortéz.

Ch'oe Pu (1454ndash1504), the Korean Commissioner of Registers for the island of Cheju, shipwrecks on the southeast coast of China in Taizhou, Zhejiang, during the Ming Dynasty. From then until July 12 he and his crew are hosted by Chinese military courier officers to travel along the Grand Canal of China, all the way to Beijing, and then finally back across the Yalu River into Korea. His written commentary on Chinese customs, foreign and domestic trade, and transport in places such as Hangzhou and Suzhou are valuable records of Ming era culture and commerce.

Ch\\\\\\\\\\\'oe Pu (1454ndash1504), the Korean Commissioner of Registers for the island of Cheju, shipwrecks on the southeast coast of China in Taizhou, Zhejiang, during the Ming Dynasty. From then until July 12 he and his crew are hosted by Chinese military courier officers to travel along the Grand Canal of China, all the way to Beijing, and then finally back across the Yalu River into Korea. His written commentary on Chinese customs, foreign and domestic trade, and transport in places such as Hangzhou and Suzhou are valuable records of Ming era culture and commerce.

The Fourth Council of Constantinople ends.

On the death of Pepin II, his illegitimate son Charles Martel becomes mayor of the Austrasian palace and effective power behind the Frankish throne.

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang forbids all commercial vendors and shops in the Chinese capital city of Chang\\\\'an to copy and sell Buddhistsutras, so that the emperor can give the clergy of the Buddhistmonasteries the sole right to distribute written sutras to the laity.

An earthquake strikes Syria.

The Tibetan invasion of China's Tang Dynasty is defeated.

King Radbod of the Frisians defeats Charles Martel Frisia becomes independent.

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang forbids all commercial vendors and shops in the Chinese capital city of Chang'an to copy and sell Buddhist sutras, so that the emperor can give the clergy of the Buddhist monasteries the sole right to distribute written sutras to the laity.

Zaragoza falls to the Arab armies of Musa bin Nusair.

Bahrām attacks Khosrau at night Khosrau flees for Circesium the next day.

Pope Hilarius dies at Rome after a 6½-year reign and is succeeded by Simplicius as the 47th pope.