A strange little side quest
Even a quick game like Learn English for Spanish Native Speakers sits on top of decades — and sometimes centuries — of ideas. Arthur Wynne published a diamond-shaped 'Word-Cross' in the New York World on December 21, 1913; the name later shifted to 'Cross-Word' and then 'crossword'. The surprising part is how quickly the next milestone followed. The Oregon Trail began in 1971 when three student teachers created a computer simulation to help Minnesota schoolchildren learn American history. The screen is modern; the urge to test skill, pattern and timing definitely is not.
