A patent for the first U.S. cigarette manufacturing machine was issued to Albert Hook of New York City (No. 184,207). The Hook machine was invented in 1872, but did not come into practical commercial use until 1882. It produced a continuous cigarette of indefinite length, to be cut into individual cigarettes. Tobacco was fed onto a ribbon of paper. The paper passed over a gummed wheel as it was drawn off its spool. According revenue collection figures, the number of cigarettes manufactured in 1875 was only 50 million.

A list of 13 'enemies of the Internet' has been released by the human rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The list consists of countries that the RSF believes are suppressing freedom of expression on the Internet. Egypt has been added to the list while Nepal, Libya and the Maldives have all been taken off it. The complete list of blacklisted states is: Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.