Today is the 307th day of 2015 and the 42nd day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2 with a dog named Laika aboard. Laika was the first creature to be sent into orbit.

In 1964, residents of Washington, D.C., were eligible to vote in the presidential election for the first time since the city was established in 1800.

In 1992, Democrat Bill Clinton defeated incumbent Republican George Bush and independent candidate Ross Perot to win the U.S. presidency.

In 2014, One World Trade Center opened in New York City.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878), poet/journalist; Walker Evans (1903-1975), photographer; Charles Bronson (1921-2003), actor; Michael Dukakis (1933- ), politician; Larry Holmes (1949- ), boxer; Anna Wintour (1949- ), fashion journalist; Roseanne Barr (1952- ), comedian/actress; Kate Capshaw (1953- ), actress; Dennis Miller (1953- ), comedian; Phil Simms (1955- ), football player/sportscaster; Dolph Lundgren (1957- ), actor; Evgeni Plushenko (1982- ), figure skater.

TODAY'S FACT: Though he didn't receive a single electoral vote, third-party candidate Ross Perot won 18.9 percent of the popular vote nationally in 1992.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1990, quarterbacks David Klingler of Houston and Matt Vogler of Texas Christian University achieved a combined 80 completions and 12 touchdowns in Houston's 56-35 win.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "To say that he who holds unpopular opinions must hold them at the peril of his life, and that, if he expresses them in public, he has only himself to blame if they who disagree with him should rise and put him to death, is to strike at all rights, all liberties, all protection of the laws, and to justify and extenuate all crimes." -- William Cullen Bryant

TODAY'S NUMBER: 162 -- days Sputnik 2 was in orbit. Laika, its canine passenger, died within hours of the launch due to overheating.

TODAY'S MOON: Last quarter moon (Nov. 3).

Today is the 306th day of 2015 and the 41st day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1889, North Dakota and South Dakota were admitted as the 39th and 40th U.S. states.

In 1947, designer Howard Hughes piloted his "Spruce Goose," the largest fixed-wing aircraft ever built, on its maiden (and only) flight.

In 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation making the third Monday of January a federal holiday marking the birth of Martin Luther King Jr.

In 2000, the first permanent crew arrived at the International Space Station.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), queen of France; James Polk (1795-1849), 11th U.S. president; Warren G. Harding (1865-1923), 29th U.S. president; Burt Lancaster (1913-1994), actor; Steve Ditko (1927- ), comic-book artist/writer; Pat Buchanan (1938- ), political commentator; Michael Buffer (1944- ), boxing announcer; k.d. lang (1961- ), singer-songwriter; David Schwimmer (1966- ), actor; Nelly (1974- ), rapper.

TODAY'S FACT: Jimmy Carter, elected president on this day in 1976, was the first U.S. president from the Deep South since before the Civil War.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1991, down 49-14 in the third quarter against Weber State, the Nevada Wolf Pack football team scored 41 points, winning 55-49 and setting the record for the biggest comeback in NCAA history.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "No president who performs his duties faithfully and conscientiously can have any leisure. If he entrusts the details and smaller matters to subordinates, constant errors will occur." -- James Polk

TODAY'S NUMBER: 14 -- age at which Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria married French King Louis XVI and became Marie Antoinette, Dauphine of France.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Oct. 27) and last quarter moon (Nov. 3).

Today is the 305th day of 2015 and the 40th day of autumn.

TODAY'S HISTORY: In 1800, John Adams became the first president to reside in the newly constructed "President's House" (later named the White House).

In 1848, the Boston Female Medical School, the first medical school for women, opened.

In 1870, the Weather Bureau (later renamed the National Weather Service) made its first meteorological forecast.

In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty went into effect, formally establishing the European Union.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS: Stephen Crane (1871-1900), writer; James Kilpatrick (1920-2010), journalist; Gary Player (1935- ), golfer; Lyle Lovett (1957- ), singer-songwriter; Tim Cook (1960- ), business executive; Anthony Kiedis (1962- ), singer-songwriter; Toni Collette (1972- ), actress; Jenny McCarthy (1972- ), actress; Logan Marshall-Green (1976- ), actor; Penn Badgley (1986- ), actor.

TODAY'S FACT: John Adams was the only president elected as a member of the Federalist Party.

TODAY'S SPORTS: In 1959, NHL goalie Jacques Plante of the Montreal Canadiens wore the first goalie facemask, which he designed himself.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "A singular disadvantage of the sea lies in the fact that after successfully surmounting one wave you discover that there is another behind it just as important and just as nervously anxious to do something effective in the way of swamping boats." -- Stephen Crane, "The Open Boat"

TODAY'S NUMBER: 36.7 -- percentage of American physicians and surgeons who are women.

TODAY'S MOON: Between full moon (Oct. 27) and last quarter moon (Nov. 3).