Today is Monday, May 17, the 137th day of 2010. There are 238 days left in the year.
1620 _ First merry-go-round seen at a fair (Philippapolis, Turkey)
1792 _ 24 merchants form New York Stock Exchange at 70 Wall Street
1845 _ Rubber band patents
1846 _ Saxophone is patented by Antoine Joseph Sax
1884 _ Alaska becomes a U.S. territory
1916 _ British Summer Time (Daylight Saving Time), first introduced
1948 _ Soviet Union recognized Israel
1949 _ British government recognizes Republic of Ireland
1960 _ First atomic reactor system to be patented, JW Flora, Canoga Park, Calif.
1973 _ Stevie Wonder releases ``You are the Sunshine of my Life"