THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.”

— Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

BIRTHDAYS:

1598 Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Italian sculptor, architect, painter and city planner.

1637 Bernardo Pasquini, Italian composer, born in Massa e Cozzile, Grand Duchy of Tuscany. Toccata con lo scherzo del cucco

1648 Giovanni Maria Capelli, Italian composer, born in Parma, Duchy of Parma and Piacenza. Toccata con lo scherzo del cucco, and Toccata [in sol maggiore]

1805 Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin, French watchmaker, magician and illusionist, widely recognized as the father of the modern style of conjuring. He transformed magic from a pastime for the lower classes, seen at fairs, to an entertainment for the wealthy, which he offered in a theatre opened in Paris, a legacy preserved by the tradition of modern magicians performing in tails.

1863 Pietro Mascagni, Italian composer. Cavalleria Rusticana, Intermezzo

1928 Noam Chomsky, American linguist, philosopher, and political dissident recognized for pioneering generative grammar and universal grammar in linguistics, as well as for his sustained critiques of state power, imperialism, and media propaganda.

MISCELLANEOUS:

AN EXCELLENT USE FOR IT. AI is making spacecraft propulsion more efficient – and could even lead to nuclear-powered rockets.

RELATED. SpaceX Double in Value and IPO in Late 2026

REMINDER:

In the future, before locking things down again (including free speech and the freedom to assemble), the authorities might want to reacquaint themselves with the following:

Nuremberg Code

Disease Mitigation Measures in the Control of Pandemic Influenza

Great Barrington declaration