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James Madison (1751–1836) was a Founding Father of the United States and its fourth president, serving from March 4, 1809, to March 4, 1817. Dubbed the "Father of the Constitution" for his role in creating the U.S. Constitution, he had been dissatisfied with the weak government under the Articles of Confederation, and helped organize the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He then joined Alexander Hamilton and John Jay in writing The Federalist Papers, a series of essays that remains prominent, and served in Congress. With Thomas Jefferson, Madison organized the Democratic-Republican Party, and was Jefferson's secretary of state from 1801 to 1809. Madison was elected president in 1808, was re-elected in 1812, and led the U.S. in the War of 1812, which convinced him of the need for a stronger federal government. He presided over the creation of the Second Bank of the United States and the passage of the protective Tariff of 1816. Historians have ranked him as an above-average president. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Mammillaria glassii

... that Bob Foster named a small cactus species (pictured) after his best friend, Charlie Glass, with whom he undertook more than a dozen plant-hunting expeditions to Mexico?
... that Autechre used something called "the system" during the composition of Sign?
... that a Roman Catholic archbishop was the first person to translate William Shakespeare's works into Polish?
... that there was once a stalagmite heist from the longest cave in Arkansas?
... that the Korean royal palace Deoksugung mixes Korean and Western architectural styles?
... that May You Stay Forever Young is the first Hong Kong film to be banned following the amendment of the Film Censorship Ordinance?
... that Reine Abbas chose the name Wixel Studios, a blend of "Weird Pixel", in recognition of being one of the only gaming studios in Lebanon?
... that the Ibn Shillif brothers, evading the Ottoman authorities' pursuit after leading a local rebellion, found safe haven in the Alawite villages of Ayn al-Kurum and Annab?
... that Tina Leung dressed as her comic book alter ego when accepting an award for the House of Slay?

In the news

Blue Ghost lunar lander

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost (rendering shown) successfully soft-lands on the Moon as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.
At the Academy Awards, Anora wins five awards, including Best Picture.
In the German federal election, the CDU/CSU, led by Friedrich Merz, wins the most seats in the Bundestag.
Archaeologists announce that the empty tomb Wadi C-4 near Luxor, Egypt, was that of the pharaoh Thutmose II.

On this day

March 4: Feast day of Saint Casimir (Catholicism), Mardi Gras / Shrove Tuesday (2025)

Władysław II Jagiełło

1386 – Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania, was crowned King of Poland as Władysław II Jagiełło (pictured), beginning the Jagiellonian dynasty.
1773 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart departed Italy after the last of his three journeys there.
1899 – Cyclone Mahina struck Bathurst Bay, Queensland, killing more than 300 people in one of the deadliest natural disasters in Australian history.
1918 – A case of influenza was recorded at Camp Funston, Kansas, conventionally marking the beginning of the Spanish flu pandemic.
2017 – Construction began on a 69-metre (226 ft) statue of the Buddha at Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen in Bangkok.

Hindal Mirza (b. 1519)
Rosalind Pitt-Rivers (b. 1907)
Harold Barrowclough (d. 1972)
Gary Gygax (d. 2008)

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Today's featured picture

The Alpine marmot (Marmota marmota) is a large ground-dwelling squirrel, from the genus of marmots. It is found in high numbers in mountainous areas of central and southern Europe, at heights between 800 and 3,200 metres (2,600 and 10,500 feet) in the Alps, the Carpathians, the Tatras, and the northern Apennines. In 1948, the species was reintroduced with success in the Pyrenees, where it had disappeared at the end of the Pleistocene epoch. This Alpine marmot was photographed in the Grand Muveran federal game reserve, in the Swiss canton of Vaud.

Photograph credit: Giles Laurent

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