By the Numbers in 1943
World Population
—
UK Life Expectancy
52.4 years
US Life Expectancy
53.6 years
Gold Price (per oz)
$35
Dow Jones Index
149
US National Debt
—
Sovereign Nations
57
How Much Did Things Cost in 1943?
| Item | UK | US |
|---|---|---|
| Average house price | £575 | $3,600 |
| Average salary | £250 | $2,000 |
| Pint of milk | 2½d | $0.14 |
| Loaf of bread | 4½d | $0.09 |
| Dozen eggs | 1s 8d | $0.51 |
| Pint of beer | 8d | $0.16 |
| Cinema ticket | 10d | $0.27 |
Technology and Inventions in 1943
Wartime necessity drove innovation at an extraordinary pace. Penicillin mass production began. The Colossus computer became operational at Bletchley Park to crack German codes. Synthetic rubber production scaled up in the US to offset supply shortages from Japanese-occupied Southeast Asia.
- ● Colossus, the first programmable electronic computer, became operational at Bletchley Park
- ● Mass production of penicillin began in the US
- ● Synthetic rubber production ramped up dramatically in America
- ● Jacques Cousteau and Émile Gagnan developed the Aqua-Lung (modern scuba equipment)
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