In a This Day in History video, host Russ Mitchell takes us through the history of August 19th. On this day in 1812, the U.S.S. Constitution defeated the HMS Guerriere. On this day in 1960, U-2 pilot Gary Powers is convicted of espionage and sent to a Soviet prison to be later traded for a Russian spy. On this day in 2004, internet search engine Google went public on Wall Street. Also, on this day in 1909, a race was run on an unpaved oval that would become the Indianapolis Speedway.
Take a journey through the history of science fiction and examine the cultural influences—such as the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Space Race—that shaped Stanley Kubrick's visionary 1968 film, *2001: A Space Odyssey*.