On September 28, 1698, Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis was born. He was a French mathematician and philosopher known for the principle of least action and his Lapland expedition, and he died in Basel in 1759. See wikipedia for more information.

On September 28, 1924, Rudolf Borissowitsch Barschai was born. He was a Soviet and Russian conductor and violist, and he spent his later years near Basel, where he was buried. See wikipedia for more information.