Children Overboard!
SANITY BREAK This one is for all ‘Friends’ fanatics. Lisa Kudrow and Jennifer Aniston in an for Variety’s ‘Actors on Actors’ series. We personally prefer with Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson—likely because they didn’t have to do the damn thing on Zoom.
HEADLINES THAT MATTER Message from the editor: If you’re loving your daily splainer, please share the love and spread the word! These are early days, and we rely on your support to grow and thrive! So pretty please: use that referral link at the end of your daily email notification—and at the bottom of your account page—to tell everyone you know. Friends, colleagues, rishtedar etc. We will thank you with a gift to demonstrate our eternal gratitude—the details of which are available on our . Also: we’re struggling to name our doggie mascot. Please send suggestions and all other feedback to . THE GLOBAL ECONOMY: AN UPDATE * The International Monetary Fund’s forecast for the global economy just got—and it has projected negative growth for every part of the world! The global economy is now expected to shrink by 4.9% in 2020—which is worse than the 3% prediction in April. * In , the downgrade is even more dramatic: “a sharp contraction” of –4.5 per cent. In April, the IMF projected our GDP to grow by 1.9%. The projection for the US: –8%. * Its chief economist Gita Gopinath says: “We are projecting a synchronised deep downturn in 2020 for both advanced economies (-8 per cent) and emerging market and developing economies (-3 per cent; -5 per cent if excluding China), and over 95 per cent of countries are projected to have negative per capita income growth in 2020.” CHINA VS INDIA: DISENGAGEMENT? WHAT DISENGAGEMENT? Diplomacy fail: Top level Indian and Chinese diplomats agreed to “sincerely implement the understanding on disengagement and de-escalation”—after which the Chinese Defence Ministry issued : “China has sovereignty over the Galwan Valley region and the Chinese border troops have been patrolling and on duty in this region for many years.” Trouble on a new front: Chinese troops have crossed the border at a new point in Ladakh: Depsang plains. This is 36 km southeast of India’s critical military airstrip in Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO). According to the , “Chinese deployments include troops, heavy vehicles, specialist military equipment” at a location called ‘Bottleneck’—which lies 18 km within Indian-controlled territory. Satellite images of Galwan: show zero signs of a Chinese climbdown. That single tent—which sparked the violent battle—has sprung back, and is bigger than ever. See gif shared by Australian researcher . Also: this of images taken by Maxar Technologies. has more context. And the BJP said: “Due to the misadventures of one dynasty: we lost thousands of square kilometres of land. The Siachen glacier was almost gone. And much more. No wonder India has rejected them.” That’s . Choose your response: 🙄 😂 😱 . THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC: THE US IN CRISIS * The World Health Organization the number of cases to reach 10 million next week. It’s currently at 9.3 million. * Adding to that surge: The United States, which added in one day, the highest level since April. The latest surge has wiped out two months of progress. No, this isn’t a ‘second wave’, but likely a ‘second peak’ in the first one that never went away. * The EU—which is reopening in July—is unlikely to allow travellers , or any country with a higher average number of cases. * And yes, there will be a this year. * Novak Djokovic’s parents everyone but their darling son for hosting a superspreader tournament in Croatia. Luckily, his fellow tennis players and officials that opinion. Kindest word used: stupidity. THE INDIAN PANDEMIC: DELHI IN CRISIS * Total number of cases: 4,73,105 Total number of deaths: 14,894. Total recoveries: 2,71,696. * Delhi added 3,947 cases. With 70,000-plus cases it has Mumbai to become the city with the highest caseload. * The army has now been to manage the treatment centres. And the Delhi government now plans to in the capital by July 6. * Adding to Delhi’s woes: Diesel is now than petrol for the first time in its history. * In related news: The Uttarakhand government it approved Baba Ramdev’s Coronil as an immunity booster—not a cure for Covid. He made that one all by himself. To feel less anxious: Read interview with Dr P Kuganantham, an award-winning public health expert. He says: > "The number of positive cases will increase and should increase—because this means that we are identifying more cases and > treating them and stopping the spread of the disease. So increase in positive cases means we are going towards stamping out this > epidemic… > > > > Don’t be afraid but be alert. The positive cases are only indicators of our (government’s) good performance. Our indicator is > only deaths—deaths must only come down.” A BIG HINDUJA KHANDAAN JHAGDA The family patriarch Srichand Parmanand Hinduja and his daughter Vinoo are in the midst of an ugly legal battle with his three brothers. The point of dispute: A 2004 letter signed by all brothers which affirms that “the assets held by one brother belong to all, and that each man will appoint the others as their executors.” The three brothers tried to use the letter to take control of Hinduja Bank. Now 84-year old Srichand—represented by Vinoo since he lacks capacity to instruct his lawyers—wants the court to declare the letter as having “no legal effect.” Size of the family fortune: $11.2 billion—which will all go to Vinoo if she has her way. (Bloomberg News via ) INDIANS ARE NOT EATING RIGHT A new study shows that the richest 10% consume more than 3,000 calories a day, while the poorest 10% consume only 1,645 calories. The national average: 2,200—which is 12% lower than the global recommendation. Despite such frugality, our obesity levels are still rising. The reason: we eat way too many grains, and not enough vegetables or fruit. () THE SEGWAY IS DEAD The iconic two-wheeler has officially shut shop. The reason: it was way too expensive at $5000 and ridiculously hard to drive. Only 140,000 Segways have been sold since 2001. If you’re feeling nostalgic, offers an excellent lookback at “the most hyped invention since the Macintosh.”
SANITY BREAK If you don’t have Disney+, you haven’t been able to check out Taylor Swift's "City of Lover" live concert, filmed in Paris last year. Good news: She just posted her of ‘Cornelia Street’ on YouTube for free.
SMART & CURIOUS LIST OF INTRIGUING THINGS A lioness-sized mystery: So we first stumbled on this story about a lioness nursing a little leopard cub in Tanzania back in 2017—which was considered an astonishing first-ever known instance (see lovely ). But the Google rabbit hole uncovered a far more recent miracle—right here in Gir forest. Sadly, neither story has a happy ending: both cubs died of congenital diseases. But the video below is still worth your time:) A v. curious face mask: This Chennai photo studio is getting international attention for its very face masks. Attention startups: This is called pivoting! Speaking of masks: This is for real and for 92 euros. A space cleaner: A Russian startup is raising money to clean up space—using its patented ‘Foam Debris Catcher’ satellite. It will “spray threads of the foam to create 150 meter-diameter sticky spheres around the satellite—creating something of a spiderweb or fly-trap for space junk.” Sounds cool? of how it might work is even cooler! (Though if you don’t speak Russian, you may want to watch it on mute) has a longer story.
LIFE ADVISORY SHOULD YOU BUY AN ANTIMICROBIAL FACE MASK? TLDR: No. This story explains why they’re not very effective—and, more importantly, what you should look for when shopping for a good safe mask. SHOULD YOU BE WORRIED ABOUT YOUR BELLY SIZE? Yes, especially if you are a woman over 50. You have a 39% higher risk of dementia within 15 years. The overall risk for both genders is 28%. According to experts, “As belly size gets larger, the memory center in the brain gets smaller.” Note: belly fat is about waist circumference not necessarily your overall BMI. Also linked to higher risk of dementia, FYI: . ( ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT GETTING THAT A/C REPAIRED? In these fraught times, inviting a complete stranger into your house can feel a little scary. This list of includes sound advice on how to keep yourself, your family and the repairperson safe during such a visit. Scroll down for very good gyaan on getting a mani/pedi as well.
THE FEEL GOOD PLACE in a mask, celebrating his latest achievement on Insta. The achievement: he’s concocted the Hindi translation of face mask: “nasikamukhsanrakshak keetaanurodhak vayuchanak vastrdoriyuktpattika.” Oh look, folks! We have a new drinking game. , consult atlas later. : Foxes adore belly rubs! And they make the most adorable noises when they receive one. to fame: priceless road signs. There’s an entire thread of such treasure when you click through. gives whole new meaning to poetic injustice. Honourable Shaghir Ahmad’s ruling in the case of ‘Smt. Parayankandiyal ... vs K. Devi & Ors’ back in 1996 (our eternal gratitude to for unearthing this gem). It begins so: > "A million million spermatozoa All of them alive : > > Out of their cataclysm but one poor Noah Dare hope to survive. > > And among that billion minus one Might have chanced to be Shakespeare, another Newton, a new Donne But the one was me" And it keeps getting better...
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