Short answers, pulled from the story.
A toy or plaything is an object used primarily to provide entertainment. Toys can also provide utilitarian benefits including physical exercise, cultural awareness, and academic education, and they support early cognitive development such as problem-solving, memory, and understanding cause and effect.
The oldest known doll toy is thought to be 4,000 years old. The origin of toys is prehistoric, and dolls have been found in Egyptian tombs dating to as early as 2000 BCE. A set of three stone balls found in the tomb of a four-year-old girl at the Xi'an Banpo Neolithic site is one of the earliest examples of children's toys.
Richard James invented the Slinky after a spring came loose and fell to the floor during his military research in 1943. He spent two years finding the best gauge of steel and coil, and the result sold in stores throughout the United States.
The Rubik's Cube was invented by the Hungarian Ernő Rubik in 1974 and popularized in the 1980s. Solving it requires planning, problem-solving skills, and the use of algorithms.
China manufactures about 70 percent of the world's toys and is home to more than 8,000 toy firms, most located in the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong Province. About 75% of all toys sold in the U.S. are manufactured in China.
The turning point came in the 1960s and 1970s. Before 1975, only about two percent of toys were labeled by gender, whereas today on the Disney store's website all toys are labeled by gender. The journal Sex Roles began publishing research on the topic in 1975.
In 2005, toy sales in the United States totaled about $22.9 billion. Money spent on children between the ages of 8 and twelve totals approximately $221 million annually in the U.S., and in 2011 an estimated 88% of toy sales fell in the 0 to 11 age group.