April 5, 2013

When Was the Last Time This Happened?

Daniel Honan

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Today’s date is 4/5/2013–all different digits. When was the last time this happened?

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Union soldiers in blue uniforms escort prisoners past a burning building with a large hole in the wall while smoke and flames rise, during the American Civil War.

Books

The rise and fall of John Wilkes Booth: America’s first celebrity assassin

Before becoming America’s most infamous assassin, John Wilkes Booth was a magnetic actor who was beloved by audiences and courted by critics.

A collage featuring an open book, a light source, and images of the moon captures post-AI wisdom, with the title "The Night Crawler" at the top.

Business

Creating wisdom infrastructure for the next 100 years

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

A city skyline is reflected inside a single water droplet hanging from the tip of a metallic object against a gradient sky background.

The laboratory accident that saved 500 million lives

“Invention matters, but implementation matters more.”

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10 min

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with

Derek Thompson

Starts With A Bang

Why is “F = ma” still the most important equation in physics?

From high school through the professional ranks, physicists still take incredible lessons away from Newton’s second law.

Two people sit on a deck at night, illuminated by red light, looking up at a star-filled sky with mountains silhouetted in the background.

Smart Skills

The meaning of your life isn’t a puzzle to solve

It’s something to wrestle and live with, says behavioral scientist Arthur Brooks.

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