What happened for the first time in 1951?

A majority of Canadians could afford adequate food, shelter and clothing — A majority of Canadians were able to afford adequate food, shelter and clothing.

In what year were Aboriginal people granted the vote?

1960 — 1960. Today every citizen over the age of 18 may vote.

What began Canada's modern energy industry?

The discovery of oil in Alberta in 1947 — The discovery of oil in Alberta in 1947.

Who were Les Automatistes?

Quebec pioneers of modern abstract art in the 1950s — Quebec pioneers of modern abstract art in the 1950s, most notably Jean-Paul Riopelle.

Who discovered insulin?

Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best — Sir Frederick Banting of Toronto and Charles Best. Insulin treats diabetes and has saved 16 million lives worldwide.

Who invented basketball, and in what year?

James Naismith, in 1891 — Canadian James Naismith, in 1891.

Who hit on the idea of the telephone at his summer house in Canada?

Alexander Graham Bell — Alexander Graham Bell.

Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie of Research In Motion are known for which invention?

The BlackBerry — The BlackBerry.

Who invented the snowmobile?

Joseph-Armand Bombardier — Joseph-Armand Bombardier — a light-weight winter vehicle.

What does the Canada Health Act ensure?

Common elements and a basic standard of coverage — Common elements and a basic standard of coverage.

Modern Canada

NotesQuestions

Trade and economic growth

Restrictive Depression-era trading policies were opened up by treaties such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), now the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The discovery of oil in Alberta in 1947 began Canada's modern energy industry.
In 1951, for the first time, a majority of Canadians were able to afford adequate food, shelter and clothing.
Between 1945 and 1970 Canada enjoyed one of the strongest economies among industrialized nations.
Canadians' high standard of living is maintained by hard work and by trade with other nations, in particular the United States.
The Canada Health Act ensures common elements and a basic standard of coverage.
Unemployment insurance (now employment insurance) was introduced in 1940; Old Age Security was devised as early as 1927; the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans came in 1965.
Publicly funded education is provided by the provinces and territories.

International engagement

The Cold War began when liberated countries of eastern Europe became part of a Communist bloc controlled by the Soviet Union under Josef Stalin.
Canada joined other democratic countries to form NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a military alliance.
Canada joined the United States in NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defence Command.
Canada participated in the UN operation defending South Korea in the Korean War (1950-53), with 500 dead and 1,000 wounded.
Canada has taken part in numerous UN peacekeeping missions in places as varied as Egypt, Cyprus and Haiti, and in operations in the former Yugoslavia and Afghanistan.

Canada and Quebec

Quebec experienced an era of rapid change in the 1960s known as the Quiet Revolution.
In 1963 Parliament established the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism, which led to the Official Languages Act (1969).
The Official Languages Act guarantees French and English services in the federal government across Canada.
In 1970 Canada helped found La Francophonie, an international association of French-speaking countries.
Quebec sovereignty was defeated in a referendum in 1980, and again in a second referendum in 1995.
In 1982 the Constitution was amended without the agreement of Quebec.

A changing society

In 1948 the Japanese-Canadians, the last Canadians of Asian descent still denied the vote, gained the right to vote.
Aboriginal people were granted the vote in 1960. Today every citizen over the age of 18 may vote.
About 37,000 refugees escaped Soviet tyranny in Hungary in 1956; over 50,000 Vietnamese sought refuge in Canada after the Communist victory in 1975.
By the 1960s, one-third of Canadians had origins that were neither British nor French.

Arts and culture

Men and women of letters included Stephen Leacock, Louis Hémon, Sir Charles G.D. Roberts, Pauline Johnson, Émile Nelligan, Robertson Davies, Margaret Laurence and Mordecai Richler.
Joy Kogawa, Michael Ondaatje and Rohinton Mistry have diversified Canada's literary experience.
The Group of Seven, founded in 1920, developed a style of painting to capture the rugged wilderness landscapes.
Emily Carr painted the forests and Aboriginal artifacts of the West Coast.
Les Automatistes of Quebec pioneered modern abstract art in the 1950s, most notably Jean-Paul Riopelle.
Kenojuak Ashevak pioneered modern Inuit art with etchings, prints and soapstone sculptures.
Louis-Philippe Hébert of Quebec was a celebrated sculptor of historical figures.

Sport

Basketball was invented by Canadian James Naismith in 1891.
Ice hockey is Canada's national sport, and Canadian teams have dominated the world.
In 1996 Donovan Bailey became a world record sprinter and double Olympic gold medallist.
Chantal Petitclerc became a world champion wheelchair racer and Paralympic gold medallist.
Wayne Gretzky, one of the greatest hockey players of all time, played for the Edmonton Oilers from 1979 to 1988.
In 1972, Paul Henderson scored the winning goal for Canada in the Canada-Soviet Summit Series — "the goal heard around the world".
In 1980, Terry Fox, who lost his right leg to cancer at 18, began the "Marathon of Hope" to raise money for cancer research.
In 1985, Rick Hansen circled the globe in a wheelchair to raise funds for spinal cord research.
Professional teams in the Canadian Football League compete for the Grey Cup, donated by Lord Grey, the Governor General, in 1909.

Science and invention

Marshall McLuhan and Harold Innis were pioneer thinkers.
Since 1989, the Canadian Space Agency and Canadian astronauts have participated in space exploration, often using the Canadian-designed Canadarm.
Nobel Prize-winning scientists include Gerhard Herzberg (a refugee from Nazi Germany), John Polanyi, Sidney Altman, Richard E. Taylor, Michael Smith and Bertram Brockhouse.
Alexander Graham Bell hit on the idea of the telephone at his summer house in Canada.
Joseph-Armand Bombardier invented the snowmobile.
Sir Sandford Fleming invented the worldwide system of standard time zones.
Matthew Evans and Henry Woodward together invented the first electric light bulb and later sold the patent to Thomas Edison.
Reginald Fessenden contributed to the invention of radio, sending the first wireless voice message in the world.
Dr. Wilder Penfield was a pioneering brain surgeon at McGill University, known as "the greatest living Canadian".
Dr. John A. Hopps invented the first cardiac pacemaker.
SPAR Aerospace and the National Research Council invented the Canadarm, a robotic arm used in outer space.
Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie of Research In Motion are known for the BlackBerry.
Sir Frederick Banting of Toronto and Charles Best discovered insulin, a hormone to treat diabetes that has saved 16 million lives worldwide.

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