I just revisited the list that compiled the 100 most influential people of the millennium. Some I agree with, some I don’t. Johannes Gutenberg’s legacy is undeniable; he deserves top billing. I also wouldn’t tamper with Newton, Copernicus, or Galileo. The founders who launched the great Western experiment are all well-deserving of their place, and I wouldn’t want to know a world without the millennium’s greatest artists, as they helped us realize and imagine. But as I stood outside yesterday afternoon and drew a breath in 105-degree Philadelphia, I couldn’t help thinking that, be it Gaetan Dugas, Steven Spielberg, Princess Diana, or Bill Gates, someone should be plucked from the list to accommodate Willis Carrier.
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