This Day in History: August 12

1990 The largest dinosaur fossil is found

Coming across the fossilised remains of a Tyrannosaurus rex in South Dakota, American palaeontologist Sue Hendrickson made a notable discovery. After her, the dinosaur was informally named Sue, who is believed to have stood 14 feet tall when alive.

1981 The IBM Personal Computer is stocked in stores for the first time

Referred to as the IBM PC or the IBM 5150, this computer was launched with no disk drives and was initially priced around $1500.

1976 About 3000 refugees are killed during a massacre at a Palestinian refugee camp

The UN-managed Tel al-Zaatar Palestinian refugee camp situated on the outskirts of Beirut, Lebanon witnessed a massacre. The camp had been besieged by Phalange members, a far-right extremist group, during the Lebanese civil war.

1883 The last quagga dies in captivity at the Natura Artis Magistra zoo in Amsterdam

Originating from South Africa, quaggas were a distinct type of zebra that only had stripes at the front of their bodies. Uncontrolled hunting for their skin and meat along with human activities led to their extinction.

1877 Mars' moon Deimos is discovered by American astronomer Asaph Hall

The discovery occurred at the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. Deimos is one amongst the two natural satellites of Mars, with the other being Phobos. The latter, which was also found by Hall, is the larger of the two and is closer to Mars compared to Deimos.

1121 Battle of Didgori: the Georgian army under King David the Builder wins a decisive victory over the famous Seljuk commander Ilghazi

In this historic battle, the Georgian military forces under the command of King David the Builder emerged victoriously over the esteemed Seljuk commander Ilghazi.

1480 Battle of Otranto - Ottoman troops behead 800 Christians for refusing to convert to Islam

The Battle of Otranto saw the brutal execution of 800 Christians by Ottoman soldiers, as a punishment for their refusal to convert to Islam.

1851 American inventor Isaac Singer patents the sewing machine

A significant invention in the history of clothing, the sewing machine was patented by the American inventor Isaac Singer in this year.

1908 Henry Ford's company builds the first Model T car

In a landmark development in the automobile industry, Henry Ford's company rolled out the first Model T car in 1908.

1981 IBM introduces its first Personal Computer (PC & PC-DOS version 1.0)

Marking a pivotal moment in the technology world, IBM launched its first Personal Computer (PC & PC-DOS version 1.0) in 1981.