Carl Jung

Swiss psychologist and psychiatrist, founder of the modern  analytic and depth psychology.

Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961),  was born today on July 26, 1875. He was born in Kesswil, Switzerland, and died in Zürich, 1961, from a short illness.

Jung noticed that the myths and fairy tales from different cultures contained certain similarities he called "archetypes", and believed that these archetypes came from a collective unconscious shared by all human beings, and that if people could get in touch with these archetypes in their lives, they will be more happy and healthy.

Carl Jung Philosophy

In his now known "Jungian" philosophy, he emphasized the importance of balance and harmony and cautioned that modern people rely too heavily on science and logic; that they would benefit from integrating spirituality and appreciation of unconscious realms.

First IVF Baby, Louise Joy Brown

Birth of the first IVF baby, Louise Joy Brown

Louise Joy Brown, the world's first in vitro fertilization (IVF), was born July 25, 1978. She was normal, except for the fact that she had been conceived outside her mother's body.

The physicians, Dr. Patrick Steptoe and Dr. Robert Edwards, took an egg from Lesley, Louise's mother, and fertilized it in a laboratory vessel, with sperm from John, the baby's father. Two days later, the embryo was implanted in Lesley Brown's womb. By the time Louise was 21, thousands of women had conceived with the help of IVF techniques.

Resource:
Dateline. Sydney Millenium House P/L, 2006

Alfred Binet: Pioneer in Intelligence Testing

French psychologist who influenced the measurement of abilities.

Alfred Binet was a French psychologist who established the first French psychology laboratory in 1889, and the first French psychology journal with Theodore Simon. He co-authored with Simon the Binet-Simon the Test of Intelligence.


Alfred Binet was born in Nice, France on July 8, 1857. In 1883, he studied hypnosis with the pioneering neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot at the Salpetrière Hospital in Paris. A year later, he married Laure Balbiani and the couple had two daughters. Six years later, he left Salpetrière Hospital to concentrate on studying his two daughters.

Francis Galton and Galtonian Approach
 
In the late 19th century, English scientist Sir Francis Galton made pioneering studies of individual differences in intelligence. He believed that people with good senses would be highly intelligent and that these individual differences in intelligence were also inherited. In his book Hereditary Genius, Galton argued that eminent fathers would raise eminent sons.

Stephen Foster

American Songwriters / Composers Datebook: July 4

Although Foster’s melodies are very familiar, it is amazing that little is known about the composer.

Stephen Collins Foster (July 4, 1826 – January 13, 1864), known as "the father of American music", was born in Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania. He was an American songwriter known mainly for his minstrel and parlor music. He wrote most of his well known songs between 1850 and 1860. Despite the popularity of his music, Foster lived in poverty. Since his songs were not protected by copyright, Foster realized only scanty income from them. He died in New York City in 1864.

Foster’s songs are characterized by moving melodies and simple harmonies. He composed more than 200 songs, hymns, arrangements and instrumental works and wrote the lyrics for most of them as well. Among his best-known are "Beautiful Dreamer", "Oh! Susanna", "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair", "Hard Times Come Again No More", "Camptown Races", "Old Folks at Home" ("Swanee River"), "My Old Kentucky Home", and "Old Black Joe".




His compositions are thought to be autobiographical, and many of them have remained popular through time.  He has been identified as "the most famous songwriter of the nineteenth century" and may be the most recognizable American composer in other countries. His compositions are sometimes referred to as "childhood songs" because they have been included in the music curriculum of early education. Most of his handwritten music manuscripts are lost, but copies printed by publishers of his day can be found in various collections.
 

Mezzo-soprano, Mary Beth Nelson, exquisitely sings Foster's Beautiful Dreamer, accompanied by Lachlan Glen.  Youtube, accessed February 14, 2023.   

Youngest and Oldest Nobel Prize Winner

Nobel laureates are our most influential thinkers, best minds that ever lived. We are blest to have benefited from their works and their persevering dedications. Their works have helped immense

Australian-born British Nobel laureate William Lawrence Bragg (31 March 1890 – 1 July 1971) is the youngest Nobel Laureate. He was physicist and crystallographer. He was awarded Nobel Prize in Physics in 1915. His age at the time of awarding: 25years-8months-10days old.  He shared the award with his father, Sir William Henry Bragg, "for their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays." Sir William Bragg (the older) was born on July 2, 1862, a pioneer scientist in solid-state physics.

The oldest Nobel Laureate is Russian-born American Leonid Hurwicz, a prominent economist and mathematician. He was awarded Nobel Prize for Economics in 2007. He was 90years-3months-28days old.

Nobel Prizes are awarded on Alfred Nobel's birthday, December 10.  The laureate's age is his or her age at the date of the award ceremony.  Read the full article:  Top 10 - Youngest and Oldest Nobel Prize Winners.