May 10

1788: Optics researcher Augustin Fresnel was born. 1829: Thomas Young, after whom Young's Modulus of elasticity was named, died. 1869: The Transcontinental Railroad was officially completed with the driving of a special "golden spike" during a ceremony at Promontory Point, UT. 1928: The first U.S. television station, WGY, began regular broadcasting. 1933: The Nazis staged massive public book burnings in Germany. 1940: Pacifist Neville Chamberlain was replaced by Winston Churchill. 1960: The USS Triton completed the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe. 1979: A world record 32 MV was generated by the National Electrostatics Corporation, Oak Ridge, TN.