Witness History Episodes Available now
How the QR code was invented
In 1994 Japanese engineer Masahiro Hara designed a square of data, now known as a QR code
The world's first general purpose electronic computer
In 1946, one of the world’s first electronic computers was unveiled in the USA.
WABOT-1: The first humanoid robot
Scientists at Waseda University in Japan built the world's first humanoid robot in 1973
Eliza: When chatbots started
1966 saw the invention of Eliza, which is said to be the first chatbot
The longest plane hijacking in Latin America
In 1973, two men pretending to be Colombian guerrillas hijacked a plane for 60 hours
The speech that inspired the Law of the Sea
In November 1967, the Maltese diplomat, Arvid Pardo, gave a historic speech at the UN
South Africa’s nuclear weapons
In 1989, South Africa became the first country to make and then dismantle nuclear weapons
Cambodia war crimes
Kerry Hamill mistakenly sailed into Cambodian waters and was killed by the Khmer Rouge
Kristallnacht: The night of broken glass
In 1938, the Nazis launched a violent anti-Jewish attack, known as Kristallnacht
The Estonia ferry disaster
In 1994 the Estonia ferry sank off Finland in one of Europe's biggest shipping tragedies
