https://thenewneo.com/2020/09/23/update-on-notre-dame-the-cathedral-not-the-university/

The reconstruction of Notre Dame relied on both modern and ancient techniques. The wooden trusses were built onsite using medeival building methods. Lifting the trusses into place relied on massive modern cranes to place the trusses into final position. The main problem according to the narrator was not the carpentry but the stone masonry. Much of this ancient craft has been forgotten.

It is worth remembering that after WWII ( two not eleven) dozens, if not hundreds of German cathedrals and monuments were reconstructed using ancient methods and modern technology. One of the finest examples of this was the reconstruction of Dresden’s Frauenkirche. The german firm I worked for was the Primary Contractor for Masonry and Structural Shell. Each stone in the rubble was measured, catalogued and reused in the reconstructed church. An inspiring
feat, like the rebuild of Paris’ Notre Dame, connecting the past with the present.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABhKy0dk3QU

Another look at Dresden:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc9PScONCSo

For those who want more econ stats, plus ai, here’s a link.
https://econstats.org/

When Notre Dame burned, the Macron government was inundated with suggestions (of varying degrees of demandingness) about what changes to make when it was rebuilt. One architect thought they should add Islamic minarets as a gesture to interfaith unity. Another wanted a transparent glass ceiling.* There was talk of new ‘modern’ stained glass images. It was the usual potpourri of modernist ‘progressive’ nonsense plus architects on ego trips.

To their lasting credit, Macron and/or his appointees and officials rejected all that nonsense, instead opting to recreate the cathedral as close as was practical to what it was before, right down to the hand-cut wooden beams. The result was an amazing restoration, and the French deserve credit for getting this one right, and in a reasonable time frame, too.

*I actually like some modern buildings with transparent ceilings. But it had no place in this.

https://www.pikeplacemarket.org/market-history/

Reminds me of Weiss, who spent 40 years working on the LIGO project before the first gravity waves were detected. It is an amazing bit of hardware.