The linked article and the painting say it was Stephen VII that did this, but Wikipedia and the Catholic Encyclopedia say it was Stephen VI. Someone is having trouble counting their Stephens.
I think children that age can be hyperfocused on something they consider fun. Babies learn SO much between one and two; its what they do. My daughter could identify all the letters of the alphabet before age two. It didn't stick; she had to learn them again before starting school.
Adam, if you're thinking about the yellow face smiley pictured, yes, that's a lot older. This anniversary is for the typed emoticon smiley. The history of the internet emoticon is rather well documented.