Almanac August 8 :: Paul Dirac

Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac (8 August 1902 – 20 October 1984) was an English theoretical physicist who made fundamental contributions to the early development of both quantum mechanics and quantum electrodynamics. He held the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge, was a member of the Center for Theoretical Studies, University of Miami, and spent the last decade of his life at Florida State University.

Among other discoveries, he formulated the Dirac equation, which describes the behaviour of fermions, and predicted the existence of antimatter.

Dirac shared the Nobel Prize in Physics for 1933 with Erwin Schrödinger, "for the discovery of new productive forms of atomic theory."

Events

• 1220 – Sweden is defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula.
• 1503 – King James IV of Scotland marries Margaret Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England at Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh, Scotland.
• 1576 – The cornerstone for Tycho Brahe's Uraniborg observatory is laid on Hven.
• 1585 – John Davis enters Cumberland Sound in search of the Northwest Passage.
• 1588 – Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines – The naval engagement ends, ending the Spanish Armada's attempt to invade England.
• 1605 – The city of Oulu, Finland, is founded by Charles IX of Sweden.
• 1647 – The Irish Confederate Wars and Wars of the Three Kingdoms: Battle of Dungans Hill – English Parliamentary forces defeat Irish forces.
• 1709 – Bartolomeu de Gusmão demonstrates the lifting power of hot air in an audience before the King of Portugal in Lisbon
• 1786 – Mont Blanc on the French – Italian border is climbed for the first time by Jacques Balmat and Dr Michel-Gabriel Paccard.
• 1793 – The insurrection of Lyon occurs during the French Revolution.
• 1794 – Joseph Whidbey leads an expedition to search for the Northwest Passage near Juneau, Alaska.
• 1844 – The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, headed by Brigham Young, is reaffirmed as the leading body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).
• 1863 – American Civil War: following his defeat in the Battle of Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee sends a letter of resignation to Confederate President Jefferson Davis (which is refused upon receipt).
• 1870 – The Republic of Ploiesti, a failed Radical-Liberal rising against Domnitor Carol of Romania.
• 1876 – Thomas Edison receives a patent for his mimeograph.
• 1908 – Wilbur Wright makes his first flight at a racecourse at Le Mans, France. It is the Wright Brothers' first public flight.
• 1918 – World War I: the Battle of Amiens begins a string of almost continuous victories with a push through the German front lines (Hundred Days Offensive).
• 1927 – The predecessor to the Philippine Stock Exchange opens.
• 1929 – The German airship Graf Zeppelin begins a round-the-world flight.
• 1940 – The "Aufbau Ost" directive is signed by Wilhelm Keitel.
• 1942 – Quit India Movement is launched in India against the British rule in response to Mahatma Gandhi's call for swaraj or complete independence.
• 1946 – First flight of the Convair B-36, the world's first mass-produce nuclear weapon delivery vehicle.
• 1960 – South Kasai secedes from the Congo.
• 1963 – Great Train Robbery: in England, a gang of 15 train robbers steal 2.6 million pounds in bank notes.
• 1967 – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is founded by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
• 1969 – At a zebra crossing in London, photographer Iain Macmillan takes the photo that becomes the cover of the Beatles album Abbey Road, one of the most famous album covers in recording history.
• 1973 – Kim Dae-Jung, a South Korean politician and later president of South Korea, is kidnapped.
• 1974 – President Richard Nixon, in a nationwide television address, announces his resignation from the office of the President of the United States effective noon the next day.
• 1980 – The Central Hotel Fire occurs in Bundoran, Ireland.
• 1988 – The "8888 Uprising" occurs in Burma.
• 1989 – Space Shuttle program: STS-28 Mission – Space Shuttle Columbia takes off on a secret five-day military mission.
• 1990 – Iraq occupies Kuwait and the state is annexed to Iraq. This would lead to the Gulf War shortly afterward.
• 1991 – The Warsaw radio mast, at one time the tallest construction ever built, collapses.
• 2000 – Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley is raised to the surface after 136 years on the ocean floor and 30 years after its discovery by undersea explorer E. Lee Spence and 5 years after being filmed by a dive team funded by novelist Clive Cussler.
• 2007 – An EF2 tornado touches down in Kings County and Richmond County, New York State, the most powerful tornado in New York to date and the first in Brooklyn since 1889.
• 2008 – A EuroCity express train en-route from Kraków, Poland to Prague, Czech Republic strikes a part of a motorway bridge that had fallen onto the railroad track near Studénka railway station in the Czech Republic and derails, killing 8 people and injuring 64 others.
• 2010 – 2010 China floods: A mudslide in Zhugqu County, Gansu, China, kills more than 1,400 people.

Births

• 1079 – Emperor Horikawa of Japan (d. 1107)
• 1518 – Conrad Lycosthenes, French-born German humanist and encyclopedist (d. 1561)
• 1605 – Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, British colonial Governor of Maryland (d. 1675)
• 1640 – Amalia Catharina, German poet and composer (d. 1697)
• 1646 – Godfrey Kneller, German-born painter (d. 1723)
• 1673 – John Ker, Scottish spy (d. 1726)
• 1693 – Laurent Belissen, French composer (d. 1762)
• 1694 – Francis Hutcheson, Irish philosopher (d. 1746)
• 1709 – Hermann Anton Gelinek, German monk and musician (d. 1779)
• 1720 – Carl Fredrik Pechlin, Swedish politician (d. 1796)
• 1790 – Ferenc Kölcsey, Hungarian poet and politician (d. 1838)
• 1807 – Emilie Flygare-Carlén, Swedish novelist (d. 1892)
• 1814 – Esther Morris, American jurist (d. 1902)
• 1824 – Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (d. 1880)
• 1839 – Nelson Miles, American general (d. 1925)
• 1857 – Cécile Chaminade, French pianist and composer (d. 1944)
• 1866 – Matthew Henson, American Arctic explorer (d. 1955)
• 1875 – Artur da Silva Bernardes, President of Brazil (d. 1955)
• 1876 – Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly, Indian Syrian Catholic priest and Servant of God (d. 1929)
• 1879 – Bob Smith, American founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (d. 1950)
• 1879 – Emiliano Zapata, Mexican revolutionary (d. 1919)
• 1880 – Earle Page, Australian politician (d. 1961)
• 1881 – Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist, German field marshal (d. 1954)
• 1882 – Ladislas Starevich, Polish animator (d. 1965)
• 1884 – Sara Teasdale, American poet (d. 1933)
• 1889 – Jack Ryder, Australian cricketer (d. 1977)
• 1891 – Adolf Busch, German violinist (d. 1952)
• 1892 – Rafael Moreno Aranzadi, Spanish footballer (d. 1922)
• 1896 – Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, American author (d. 1953)
• 1898 – Alexis Minotis, Greek actor (d. 1990)
• 1901 – Ernest O. Lawrence, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
• 1902 – Paul Dirac, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1984)
• 1904 – Achille Varzi, Italian race car driver (d. 1948)
• 1905 – André Jolivet, French composer (d. 1974)
• 1907 – Benny Carter, American musician (d. 2003)
• 1908 – Arthur Goldberg, U.S. Supreme Court justice (d. 1990)
• 1909 – Bill Voce, England cricketer (d. 1984)
• 1910 – Sylvia Sidney, American actress (d. 1999)
• 1911 – Rosetta LeNoire, American actress (d. 2002)
• 1915 – James "Jumbo" Elliott, American track coach (d. 1981)
• 1919 – Dino De Laurentiis, Italian film producer (d. 2010)
• 1920 – Leo Chiosso, Italian lyricist (d. 2006)
• 1920 – Carol Lambrino, son of Carol II of Romania and Zizi Lambrino (d. 2006)
• 1920 – Jimmy Witherspoon, American singer (d. 1997)
• 1921 – William Asher, American film producer (d. 2012)
• 1921 – John Herbert Chapman, British physicist (d. 1979)
• 1921 – Webb Pierce, American singer (d. 1991)
• 1921 – Vulimiri Ramalingaswami, Indian medical scientist (d. 2001)
• 1921 – Esther Williams, American actress and swimmer
• 1922 – Rory Calhoun, American actor (d. 1999)
• 1922 – Rudi Gernreich, Austrian-born fashion designer (d. 1985)
• 1922 – Károly Reich, Hungarian illustrator (d. 1988)
• 1922 – Gertrude Himmelfarb, American historian
• 1925 – Alija Izetbegovic, Bosniak politician (d. 2003)
• 1926 – Richard Anderson, American actor
• 1927 – Johnny Temple, American baseball player (d. 1994)
• 1928 – Don Burrows, Australian musician
• 1929 – Ronald Biggs, British criminal
• 1929 – Larisa Bogoraz, Soviet dissident (d. 2004)
• 1930 – Terry Nation, Welsh novelist and screenwriter (d. 1997)
• 1930 – Jerry Tarkanian, American basketball coach
• 1931 – Sir Roger Penrose, British physicist
• 1932 – Luis García Meza Tejada, Bolivian dictator
• 1932 – Mel Tillis, American singer
• 1933 – Joe Tex, American singer (d. 1982)
• 1933 – Serena Wilson, American belly dancer (d. 2007)
• 1935 – Donald P. Bellisario, American television producer
• 1935 – John Laws, Australia radio personality
• 1936 – Keith Barron, English actor
• 1936 – Frank Howard, American baseball player
• 1937 – Dustin Hoffman, American actor
• 1937 – Cornelis Vreeswijk, Dutch-Swedish musician (d. 1987)
• 1938 – Jacques Hétu, French Canadian composer
• 1938 – Connie Stevens, American singer and actress
• 1939 – Alexander Watson, American ambassador and diplomat
• 1939 – Phil Balsley, baritone singer with The Statler Brothers
• 1940 – Dennis Tito, American businessman and space tourist
• 1940 – Dilip Sardesai, Indian cricketer (d. 2007)
• 1943 – Denis Payton, English saxophonist, member of The Dave Clark Five
• 1944 – Brooke Bundy, American actress
• 1944 – John Holmes, American pornographic actor (d. 1988)
• 1944 – Uli Derickson, TWA Flight 847 survivor
• 1944 – John Renbourn, English musician
• 1944 – Michael Johnson, American pop, country and folk singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1946 – James W. Lewis, American convicted extortionist
• 1947 – José Cruz, Puerto Rican baseball player
• 1947 – Ken Dryden, Canadian ice hockey player and parliamentarian
• 1947 – Larry Wilcox, American actor
• 1947 – Terangi Adam, Nauruan politician
• 1948 – Svetlana Savitskaya, Russian cosmonaut
• 1949 – Keith Carradine, American actor
• 1949 – Ricardo Londoño, Colombian racing driver
• 1950 – Ken Kutaragi, Founder of PlayStation
• 1950 – Willie Hall, American drummer
• 1951 – Mamoru Oshii, Japanese film director
• 1951 – Randy Shilts, American journalist and author (d. 1994)
• 1951 – Phil Carlson, Australian cricketer
• 1952 – Jostein Gaarder, Norwegian author
• 1952 – Robin Quivers, American radio personality
• 1952 – Sudhakar Rao, Indian cricketer
• 1952 – Anton Fig, South African musician
• 1952 – Doug Melvin, Canadian Major League Baseball executive
• 1953 – Nigel Mansell, English race car driver
• 1953 – Don Most, American actor
• 1953 – Mark Lazarowicz, British Politician
• 1955 – Diddú, Icelandic soprano and songwriter
• 1955 – Herbert Prohaska, Austrian footballer
• 1956 – David Grant, English singer and vocal coach
• 1956 – Branscombe Richmond, American actor
• 1956 – Chris Foreman, English guitarist (Madness)
• 1956 – Cecilia Roth, Argentine actress
• 1957 – Dennis Drew, keyboardist for the band 10,000 Maniacs
• 1958 – Deborah Norville, American television host
• 1960 – Ulrich Maly, German politician
• 1961 – The Edge, Irish guitarist (U2)
• 1961 – Daniel House, American musician and music executive
• 1961 – Bruce Matthews, American football player
• 1961 – Rikki Rockett, American drummer (Poison)
• 1962 – Mike Zanier, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1962 – Kool Moe Dee, American rapper
• 1963 – Ron Karkovice, American baseball player
• 1963 – Jon Turteltaub, American director
• 1963 – Stephen Walkom, Canadian ice hockey official and executive
• 1964 – Anastasia Ashman, American writer
• 1964 – Paul Taylor, England cricketer
• 1964 – Eddie Trunk, American radio show host and author
• 1965 – Kate Langbroek, Australian media personality
• 1965 – Aaron Abeyta, American musician
• 1965 – Angus Fraser, England cricketer
• 1966 – Chris Eubank, English boxer
• 1966 – John Hudek, American baseball player
• 1967 – Eric Angle, American wrestler
• 1967 – Marcelo Balboa, American soccer player
• 1967 – Rena Mero, American wrestler
• 1967 – Lee Unkrich, American director and film editor
• 1968 – Abey Kuruvilla, Indian cricketer
• 1968 – Huey Morgan, American singer / guitarist (Fun Lovin' Criminals)
• 1969 – Faye Wong, Hong Kong singer and actress
• 1969 – Dick Togo, Japanese professional wrestler
• 1969 – Yvie Burnett, British television vocal coach
• 1970 – Trev Alberts, American football player
• 1970 – Pascal Duquenne, Belgian actor
• 1972 – Joely Collins, Canadian actress
• 1972 – Axel Merckx, Belgian bicycle racer
• 1972 – Andrea de Rossi, Italian rugby player and coach
• 1972 – Steven Tweed, Scottish footballer
• 1973 – Toby Allen, Australian singer (Human Nature)
• 1973 – Shane Lee, Australian cricketer
• 1973 – Senta Moses, American actress
• 1973 – Scott Stapp, American singer (Creed)
• 1974 – Scott D'Amore, Canadian professional wrestler and manager
• 1974 – Brian Harvey, English singer

• 1974 – Andy Priaulx, British racing driver
• 1976 – JC Chasez, American singer (*NSYNC)
• 1976 – Tawny Cypress, American actress
• 1976 – Drew Lachey, American singer
• 1976 – Seung-Yeop Lee, Korean baseball player
• 1976 – Jeff Simmons, American race car driver
• 1977 – Kurt Bernard, Costa Rican footballer
• 1977 – Szilard Nemeth, Slovak footballer
• 1977 – Lindsay Sloane, American actress
• 1977 – Rocky Thompson, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1977 – Mohammad Wasim, Pakistani cricketer
• 1977 – Nicolas Vogondy, French cyclist
• 1978 – Alan Maybury, Irish footballer
• 1978 – Louis Saha, French footballer
• 1978 – Miho Shiraishi, Japanese actress
• 1978 – Countess Vaughn, American actress and singer
• 1979 – Richard Harwood, British cellist
• 1979 – Guðjón Valur Sigurðsson, Icelandic handball player
• 1979 – Paris Latsis, Greek shipping heir
• 1979 – Rashard Lewis, American basketball player
• 1979 – Dan Smith, English musician (Noisettes)
• 1980 – Craig Breslow, American baseball player
• 1980 – Mike Hindert, American musician
• 1980 – Sabine Klaschka, German tennis player
• 1980 – Pat Noonan, American soccer player
• 1980 – Michael Urie, American actor and director
• 1980 – Denisse Guerrero, Mexican Singer (Belanova)
• 1981 – Vanessa Amorosi, Australian singer and songwriter
• 1981 – Roger Federer, Swiss tennis player
• 1981 – Meagan Good, American actress
• 1981 – Kaori Iida, Japanese singer and actress
• 1981 – Bradley McIntosh, British pop singer
• 1981 – Harel Skaat, Israeli singer
• 1983 – Guy Burnet, British actor
• 1984 – Kirk Broadfoot, Scottish footballer
• 1984 – Martrez Milner, American football player
• 1984 – Norbert Michelisz, Hungarian car racer
• 1984 – Devon McTavish, American soccer player
• 1985 – Brett Ratliff, American football player
• 1985 – Toby Flood, English Rugby Union player
• 1986 – Pierre Garçon, American football player
• 1986 – Peyton List, American actress
• 1986 – Chris Pressley, American football player
• 1986 – Kateryna Bondarenko, Ukrainian tennis player
• 1987 – Katie Leung, Scottish actress
• 1987 – Pierre Boulanger, French actor
• 1987 – Tatjana Malek, German tennis player
• 1988 – Princess Beatrice of York, British royal
• 1988 – Danilo Gallinari, Italian basketball player
• 1989 – Sesil Karatantcheva, Bulgarian/Kazakhstani tennis player
• 1989 – Hannah Miley, British swimmer
• 1991 – Nélson Oliveira, Portuguese footballer
• 1993 – Ben Breedlove, American Internet personality
• 1995 – Malin Reitan, Norwegian singer

Deaths

• 869 – Lothair II of Lotharingia (b. 825)
• 1445 – Oswald von Wolkenstein, Austrian composer
• 1553 – Girolamo Fracastoro, Italian physician (b. 1478)
• 1555 – Oronce Finé, French mathematician (b. 1494)
• 1588 – Alonso Sánchez Coello, Spanish painter
• 1604 – Horio Tadauji, Japanese warlord (b. 1578)
• 1631 – Konstantinas Sirvydas, Lithuanian lexicographer (b. 1579)
• 1684 – George Booth, 1st Baron Delamer (b. 1622)
• 1719 – Christoph Ludwig Agricola, German painter (b. 1667)
• 1747 – Madeleine de Verchères, New France heroine (b. 1678)
• 1759 – Carl Heinrich Graun, German composer (b. 1704)
• 1827 – George Canning, British statesman (b. 1770)
• 1828 – Carl Peter Thunberg, Swedish naturalist (b. 1743)
• 1863 – Angus MacAskill, British circus performer (b. 1825)
• 1879 – Immanuel Hermann Fichte, German philosopher (b. 1797)
• 1887 – Alexander William Doniphan, American lawyer and soldier (b. 1808)
• 1897 – Jacob Burckhardt, Swiss art historian (b. 1818)
• 1898 – Eugène Boudin, French painter (b. 1824)
• 1902 – James Tissot, French artist (b. 1836)
• 1909 – Mary MacKillop, Australian Roman Catholic nun (b. 1842)
• 1911 – William P. Frye, American politician (b. 1830)
• 1921 – Juhani Aho, Finnish author and journalist (b. 1861)
• 1928 – Stjepan Radic, Croatian politician (b. 1871)
• 1930 – Launceston Elliot, Scottish weightlifter (b. 1874)
• 1933 – Adolf Loos, Austrian architect (b. 1870)
• 1934 – Wilbert Robinson, American baseball player (b. 1863)
• 1940 – Johnny Dodds, American musician (b. 1892)
• 1944 – Chaim Soutine, Russian painter (b. 1894)
• 1944 – Erwin von Witzleben, German field marshal (b. 1881)
• 1944 – Michael Wittmann, German WWII tank commander (b. 1914)
• 1947 – Anton Ivanovich Denikin, Russian general (b. 1872)
• 1950 – Fergus McMaster, Australian businessman (b. 1879)
• 1961 – Mei Lanfang, Chinese opera performer (b. 1894)
• 1965 – Shirley Jackson, American author (b. 1916)
• 1969 – Otmar Freiherr von Verschuer, German eugenicist and Nazi physician (b. 1896)
• 1971 – Freddie Spencer Chapman, British army officer (b. 1907)
• 1972 – Andrea Feldman, American actor (b. 1948)
• 1973 – Dean Corll, American serial killer (b. 1939)
• 1973 – Vilhelm Moberg, Swedish author and historian (b. 1898)
• 1973 – Nikos Zachariadis, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (b. 1903)
• 1974 – Baldur von Schirach, Nazi youth leader (b. 1907)
• 1975 – Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, American jazz saxophonist (b. 1928)
• 1977 – Edgar Adrian, 1st Baron Adrian, British electrophysiologist; Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1889)
• 1979 – Nicholas Monsarrat, British novelist (b. 1910)
• 1980 – Paul Triquet, French Canadian army officer (b. 1910)
• 1982 – Eric Brandon, British racing driver (b. 1920)
• 1984 – Ellen Raskin, American author (b. 1928)
• 1985 – Louise Brooks, American actress (b. 1906)
• 1987 – Danilo Blanuša, Croatian mathematician (b. 1903)
• 1988 – Félix Leclerc, Quebec singer and songwriter (b. 1914)
• 1988 – Alan Napier, English actor (b. 1903)
• 1991 – Julissa Gomez, American gymnast (b. 1972)
• 1991 – James Irwin, astronaut (b. 1930)
• 1992 – Grand Ayatollah Abu al-Qasim al-Khoei, Iranian religious figure (b. 1899)
• 1992 – John Kordic, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1965)
• 1992 – Bertalan Papp, Hungarian fencer (b. 1913)
• 1995 – John Adams, American football player (b. 1937)
• 1996 – Nevill Francis Mott, British physicist; Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1905)
• 1998 – Mahmoud Saremi, Iranian journalist (b. 1968)
• 2003 – Falaba Issa Traoré, Malian playwright (b. 1930)
• 2004 – Fay Wray, American actress (b. 1907)
• 2004 – Dimitris Papamichael, Greek actor (b. 1934)
• 2005 – Barbara Bel Geddes, American actress (b. 1922)
• 2005 – Ahmed Deedat, Islamic preacher (b. 1918)
• 2005 – John H. Johnson, African-American publisher (b. 1918)
• 2005 – Gene Mauch, American baseball player (b. 1925)
• 2005 – Dean Rockwell, American wrestling and football coach (b. 1912)
• 2005 – Monica Sjöö, Swedish artist (b. 1938)
• 2005 – Ilse Werner, German actress (b. 1921)
• 2007 – Joybubbles, A notable phone phreak. (b. 1949)
• 2007 – Ma Lik, Chinese politician (b. 1952)
• 2007 – Melville Shavelson, American film director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1917)
• 2008 – Orville Moody, American golfer (b. 1933)
• 2008 – Leonard Pagliero, British stationer (b. 1913)
• 2009 – Daniel Jarque, Spanish footballer (b. 1983)
• 2010 – Patricia Neal, American actress (b. 1926)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day:
  • Cyriacus
  • Dominic de Guzman, founder of the Dominican Order.
  • Hormisdas
  • Largus
  • Mary MacKillop
  • Smaragdus (and companions)
  • August 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

• Earliest day on which Melon Day can fall, while August 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday in August. (Turkmenistan)
• Farmer’s Day or Nane Nane, Swahili for "8-8". (Tanzania)
• Father's Day or Ba ba Day (???), Ba Ba is Mandarin for "father" and "8-8", or August 8. (Taiwan)
• Flag Day, namesday of Queen Silvia. (Sweden)