Hazardous Substances

Sanity Break #1

‘There I Ruined It’ is the name of this YouTube channel.They certainly did as promised with ‘Shallow’, and is hilarious. Imagine the most achy-breaky love song turned into a chirpy polka… Well, you don’t have to.

Headlines that matter

THE DISAPPEARING DEFENCE MINISTRY DOCUMENT The Ministry website posted that acknowledged a well-known (but never officially acknowledged) fact: > “Chinese aggression has been increasing along the LAC and more particularly in Galwan Valley since 5th May, 2020. The Chinese > side transgressed in the areas of Kugrang Nala, Gogra and north bank of Pangong Tso lake on 17-18 May, 2020.” This is notable since the PM has long insisted that the Chinese did not cross into India-controlled territory. Also notable, this line: > "While engagement and dialogue at military and diplomatic level is continuing to arrive at mutually acceptable consensus, the > present standoff is likely to be prolonged." Translation: Beijing has not fully rolled back its positions on the border. In any case, the document has since been pulled down, and the ministry is refusing to comment. ‘Made in China’ murdabad: It’s official! President Trump an executive order that bans TikTok from operating in the US in 45 days if it is not sold by ByteDance. The order cites censorship of anti-China content and capture of user data as national security threats. Microsoft to buy TikTok India? According to a exclusive (paywall), Microsoft wants to buy not just the US arm, but also the app’s other operations around the world—“to ensure that TikTok users in one country could still use the app if they travelled to another.” The India angle: > “One person close to ByteDance in India said there was a “deal in the works” with Microsoft for TikTok India but that if it fell > through, ByteDance could sell TikTok India either to foreign investors or Indian buyers. ByteDance would then license its > technology to the company and share revenue.” ByteDance sources denied the report when contacted by . ‘Made in China’ zindabad: Despite all the anti-China hungama, Chinese brands dominated the festival sales on both Flipkart and Amazon. The most prominently displayed brand: Redmi. has the story. Does IPL need China? The Vivo pullout of the 2020 tournament is now official. But the loss of its title sponsor may not hurt the league’s TV advertising revenue. According to , only two Chinese companies—Vivo and Oppo—were amongst the top 10 TV advertisers for IPL 2019. INDIA CROSSES TWO MILLION MARK We hit another yesterday. Reminder: We hit one million on July 16. The big source of worry: the spread of the disease to smaller cities and towns—where there are very few hospital beds. explains. A global trend: As notes, nearly 40 countries recorded their highest single-day spikes in the last week of July. Countries that had brought down their totals are now experiencing a new surge. A happier global trend: Dharavi, Mumbai, has become an unexpected success story, as have slums around the world—including favelas in Brazil and Daulatdia in Bangladesh, which houses the world’s largest red light district. It suggests that wealth may not offer greater protection. explains: > “The pattern that emerges is not of the disease being driven by poverty and congestion, but of its coming into the richer areas > of the city via international travel, spreading from there to the lower income areas, and then coming back to the city's better > off areas often via domestic help.” Covid collateral damage: Companies are cutting costs to survive the pandemic—and employees are the primary target, especially in non-essential goods and services. reveal just how much employee-related spending has been slashed: Mahindra Finance (36.7%), Havells India (27%), Tata Motors (26%), HDFC Life Insurance (21%) and Maruti Suzuki India (15%). All those numbers translate to thousands of lost jobs and reduced salaries. Covid idiot alert: The Malaysian Foreign Minister was caught smoking an e-cigarette in Parliament—hiding it behind his face mask. Watch the . Covid gyaan that matters: Seriously ill patients receive blood plasma from recovered patients in the hope that their antibodies will help fight the virus. Sadly, an shows that such therapy may not reduce the risk of death. Also read: Actor with the disease—which is astonishing because she repeatedly tested negative when she was very ill, and displayed “every Covid symptom.” Her test came up positive months later—after she’d recovered! RICE IS A DANGEROUS SOURCE OF ARSENIC A new UK study reveals that prolonged consumption of rice can lead to chronic exposure to “inorganic arsenic.” What does this mean? is found in rocks, soil and groundwater—and is far more toxic that organic arsenic which is found in plants and animals. Due to increased levels of pollution, the levels of inorganic arsenic has been increasing around the world. Why rice? It absorbs heavy metals from the soil than other grains—and is considered the single of inorganic arsenic. The arsenic effect: Prolonged exposure is linked to a range of cardiovascular diseases, and therefore, premature death. According to the study, over three billion people consume rice as part of their staple diet—which in turn leads to 50,000 avoidable premature deaths per year. So no more rice? Researchers are not advocating a total ban on rice. Their instead contradicts almost every dietitian’s advice: > “[P]eople could consume rice varieties, such as basmati, and different types like polished rice (rather whole grain rice) which > are known to typically have lower inorganic arsenic contents.” Point to note: The US authorities have for the first time set a limit for inorganic arsenic . Doctors note: > “Rice cereal is often one of a baby’s first foods, and some babies eat up to three servings per day… Exposure to even low levels > of inorganic arsenic—the most toxic form—in infant rice cereal can have a damaging effect on a baby’s developing IQ and > neurodevelopmental system.” The good news: most baby cereals already meet this new requirement. SIMA AUNTY IS NOW AN INSTA FILTER It’s called the ‘Sima Roast’ and was created by . Just upload your photo and brace yourself for auntie-ji’s passive-aggressive insults. Here’s what Sima Aunty had to say about our team members (Note: we used our real photos for the experiment) (h/t founding member Ameera Ali Soni): YOU CAN RENT A TATA EV NOW Tata Motors announced the launch of a first-of-its-kind subscription plan for its electric vehicle, Nexon EV. The car is available for rent at Rs 41,900 per month. Rental contracts range from 18 to 36 months. And you can either return the car or extend your lease at the end of it. The company is betting on people whose jobs entail frequent transfers and expats who are in the country for a limited time. ()

Sanity Break #2

We are in ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ with this short 1.50-minute virtuoso by an entire cast of CGI animals. It puts every schlocky Disney gaana to shame. And we don’t even like opera. (h/t Founding member Ameya Nagarajan)

Smart & Curious

A GOOD LIST OF WEEKEND READS * You may build a perfectly engineered bridge over a river… but what will you do when the river shifts its course? Excellent perspective that we all need at this time on . This was forwarded to us so many times we’re not exactly sure who to namecheck! * Good masala read. The latest installment of tell-all series: Eight shocking secrets learned while working on a private jet. Please! This is better than Stardust—though it features an alarming amount of inappropriate pooping! * Did you know that the government’s plan to redo Lutyen’s Delhi—dubbed the ‘Central Vista project’—will make the city more unsafe for women? explains why. * Do you know what Cottagecore is? No? Never mind. is here to explain this hottest social media trend—which is basically some weird angrezi grameen fantasy. More interesting: This that explains why Marie Antoinette was the original Cottagecorer! * Lovely monsoon read: on the Goan tradition of ‘purumenth’—or stocking up. * put together a brilliant Insta vid on why Mumbai roads become clogged every year. * Did you know that the women you see in Mughal paintings—even when they’re supposed to represent real people—are entirely made up? Historian explains why Mughal-era painters practiced a whole new level of facet-tuning. Recommended as a good weekend-pottering listen. * Also highly recommended: analysis of the serious breach of Dunzo user data. This is a must-read but requires creating a free account.

Life advisory

A BUNCH OF USEFUL HOW-TO GUIDES * How to . Yes, this is very useful and essential information for your health. * How to . There is so much damn information out there, here’s a guide that cuts through the crap and sticks to what matters. * How to algorithms. Yes, there is a new cutting-edge and free app for that. SO YOU WANNA WATCH SOMETHING… on HotStar—recommended by founding member Akanksha Sharma—is an award-winning documentary that tracks climber Alex Honnold, as he prepares to climb the face of the world’s most famous rock: the 3,000ft El Capitan in Yosemite National Park... without a rope! Akanksha says: Watch this on a big screen! Review . ‘’ on Amazon Prime has Naseeruddin Shah, a gorgeous classical music soundtrack and a bit too much emo drama. But hey, two out of three ain’t bad. Review . ‘’ is a brilliantly funny Brit comedy that makes all the right points about Islamophobia, working class poverty and gang culture without once preaching—or lapsing into predictable sexism. Only downside: you will need to turn captions on to understand that Birmingham accent. explains why this is a truly groundbreaking comedy.