The mistaken message that changed the course of the largest naval battle in history; the oldest artificial satellite still in orbit; the Cold War tunnels underneath Beijing; and the country that lost 80% of its land to strip-mining.
A nonsense phrase accidentally left on the end of an encrypted message changed the course of the largest naval battle in history.
Vanguard 1, launched in 1958, is the oldest satellite still in orbit.
In response to the threat of the Cold War, the Chinese government build tunnels to shelter three million people underneath Beijing.
Over the course of the 20th century, eighty percent of the land surface of Nauru was strip-mined and shipped overseas.
For more surprising events, famous people, and odd happenings of the 20th century, begin here:
The Generalist Academy 
