October 31: 95 Theses

Luther's 95 Theses, printed copy

A thesis is a proposition for academic discussion.  The scholastic method in medieval universities developed the disputation of a thesis to a high art, exemplified in many works including the Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas. In a formal debate setting, the proponent would state the thesis and lay out the arguments in favor of… Continue reading October 31: 95 Theses

October 30: Lucas Watzenrode

Lukasz Watzenrode

On this date in 1447, Lucas Watzenrode was born. A nobleman from Weizenrodau in Poland, he studied theology at universities in Krakow, Cologne, and Bolona, became a priest and then bishop under Pope Innocent VIII, and in a political compromise between the King of Poland and the Pope, became Prince-Bishop of Warmia, an autonomous Bishop.… Continue reading October 30: Lucas Watzenrode

October 29: Arpanet

ARPANET network nodes, 1977

On October 29, 1969, around 10:30pm PST, Charley Kline, a student at UCLA using the SDS host computer in Boelter Hall, logged into the SDS 940 computer at the Stanford Research Center 350 miles away in the first successful ARPANET computer-to-computer transmission using a wide-area packet-switched network. Within a month, the UCLA-Stanford computers were permanently… Continue reading October 29: Arpanet