begins its investigation into the assassination of US President John F. Kennedy. December 4 – The second period of the Second Vatican Council closes. December 5 – The Seliger Forschungs-und-Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH demonstrates rockets for military use to military representatives of non-NATO-countries near Cuxhaven. Although these rockets land via parachute at the end of their flight and no allied laws are violated, the Soviet Union protests this action. December 7 – The first instant replay system to use videotape instead of film is used by Tony Verna, a CBS-TV director, during a live televised sporting event, the Army–Navy Game of college football played in Philadelphia, United States. December 8 – A lightning strike causes the crash of Pan Am Flight 214 near Elkton, Maryland, United States, killing 81 people. December 10 Zanzibar gains independence from the United Kingdom, as a constitutional monarchy under Sultan Jamshid bin Abdullah. Chuck Yeager narrowly escapes death while testing an NF-104A rocket-augmented aerospace trainer when his aircraft goes out of control at 108,700 feet (nearly 21 miles up) and crashes. He parachutes to safety at 8,500 feet after vainly battling to gain control of the powerless, rapidly falling craft. In this incident he becomes the first pilot to make an emergency ejection in the full pressure suit needed for high altitude flights. December 12 – Kenya gains independence from the United Kingdom, with Jomo Kenyatta as prime minister. December 20 – The Frankfurt Auschwitz Trials begin. December 21 – Cyprus Emergency: Inter-communal fighting erupts between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. December 22 – The cruise ship TSMS Lakonia burns north of Madeira, with the loss of 128 lives. December 25 – İsmet İnönü of the Republican People's Party (CHP) forms the new government of Turkey (28th government, coalition partners; independents, İnönü has served ten times as a prime minister, this is his last government). December 31 – Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland dissolves. Date unknown David H. Frisch and J.H. Smith prove that the radioactive decay of mesons is slowed by their motion (see Einstein's special relativity and general relativity). The TAT-3 transatlantic communications cable goes into operation. Ivan Sutherland writes the revolutionary Sketchpad program and runs it on the Lincoln TX-2 computer at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Construction of Moscow's Ostankino Tower begins. The IEEE Computer Society is founded. The Urdu keyboard is standardised by the Central Language Board in Pakistan. Harvey Ball invents the ubiquitous