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Sanity Break #1
These hypnotically gorgeous creatures are ‘Strandbeests’— that move with the wind. They were created by Dutch artist Theo Jansen who calls them a new form of life. Want to know more? You can listen to Jansen’s or watch this video. (h/t founding member Neha Shetty)
Headlines that matter
RELIANCE UNVEILS BIG 5G PLANS Jio Platforms announced that it has locally developed and tested a 5G network in partnership with Qualcomm—and achieved a speed of 1 gigabyte per second (i.e. way faster than your 4G slowpoke). The test was conducted on a US carrier network. Point to note: Qualcomm has invested Rs 7.3 billion for 0.15% stake in Jio Platforms. () In related news: Sweden is the latest country to ban two Chinese companies—Huawei and ZTE—from bidding in the auction to develop its 5G network. Likely beneficiaries: Ericsson and Nokia. () CHINA’S VACCINE PASSES TRIAL Sinovac Biotech’s vaccine has passed a late stage trial in Brazil with 9,000 participants. According to the country’s leading biomedical institute, “among all the vaccines tested in the country, CoronaVac is the safest, the one with the best and most promising rates.” Point to note: Brazil is also hosting stage 3 trials for the Oxford vaccine. () In related China news: 300 Chinese fishing vessels—designed to hold 1,000 tons of catch—are parked near Galapagos island, ready to trawl some of the richest marine life in the world. Local environmentalists say, “They are killing the species we have protected and polluting our biota with the plastic waste they drop overboard. They are raping the Galapagos.” has a richly reported story. In related unhappy news: The lockdown has fuelled a in states like Karnataka—but of the more sophisticated kind. > “These new age poachers have added another layer of complexity for wildlife law enforcement agencies. These are not regular > poachers who are killing wildlife to earn some money by their sale. Rather these are people who are killing protected wild > animals for the thrill of it. They are generally educated, affluent and well aware about the legalities. Tackling them is a > bigger challenge.” In related Covid news: India is planning to take plasma therapy off the list of Covid therapies. The reason: there is no evidence it works. Authorities are also considering removing four other key drugs—hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir, interferon-B and lopinavir—after a WHO study showed they don’t help much either. () Also this: Medical experts are challenging claims by airline companies—including Airbus, Boeing and Embraer—that flying is perfectly safe. At a recent joint presentation, the three claimed: "With only 44 identified potential cases of flight-related transmission among 1.2 billion travellers, that's one case for every 27 million.” Turns out their math is a little faulty. The reason: Most of these 1.2 billion passengers were not tested. () TARGETING MEDIA IN KASHMIR The local government has shut down the Srinagar office of Kashmir Times—the state’s leading English-language newspaper. It is one of the few local outlets that criticised the revocation of Article 370—and challenged the internet ban in the Supreme Court. Officials, of course, deny any intent to punish. () THREE US ELECTION THINGS One: There will indeed be a second presidential debate—but this time the candidates’ mics will be when it isn’t their turn to talk. No prizes for guessing why. Two: The staff of the New Yorker was conducting some sort of a bizarre role play exercise involving the election on Zoom—when their star legal writer, Jeffrey Toobin, was unexpectedly seen… masturbating?!! Toobin has been suspended and the magazine has launched an investigation. He says it’s all a big mistake. has this 🤦🏽♀️ story. We recommend: hilarious guide that explains how to avoid accidently showing your genitals to your colleagues on Zoom. Three: Kamala Harris’ niece, Meena, tweeted a photo of her as Ma Durga. The Hindu American Foundation was . The tweet was duly deleted. But hey, the image is preserved for your judgement. TWO NEW APP THINGS One: Zomato is that allows users to post reviews and photos and ‘stories’—and connect with their friends or follow food bloggers. Sorta like foodie Insta? Two: Coming soon, , a smart credit card for kids that is controlled by parents via an app: “It allows parents to control smart cards through the app wherein they can create in-app chore lists and tie them with perks. Junio also enables instant fund transfer, notifications and flexibility to cancel the card at any moment through the app.” In entirely unrelated news: Because we don’t know where to file this: The Delhi government has suspended Delhi Gymkhana’s . The reason: They illegally sold booze during the lockdown. Of course they did. BAD NEWS ABOUT BABY BOTTLES New research shows that bottle-fed babies are exposed to an average of 1.6 million microplastic particles per day. But researchers say, “We don’t want to be alarmist. We don’t fully understand the risks to human health through exposure to these tiny plastic particles yet.” Also: they offer to prepare formula to minimise microplastics. Also bad for babies: Planned C-sections which slow their development in the first year. has that research. NASA’S COLLECTING ROCKS In a milestone event, the OSIRIS-REx—which has been circling an asteroid for two years—is getting ready to scrape rocks off its surface. It will then bring these back to Earth—and deliver them to scientists via a parachute. () A POLITICAL ROW OVER A CRICKET MOVIE Actor Vijay Sethupathi that he will no longer star in ‘800’—a slated biopic of Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan. The reason: Tamil politicians and celebs were outraged that he agreed to play Muralitharan who allegedly supported the Sri Lankan government during the civil war with the Tamil Tigers. Despite his decision, Sethupathi’s young daughter rape threats on Twitter—because that’s the kind of world we live in now. In happier cricket news: Shikhar Dhawan became the first person to score consecutive centuries in the history of the IPL. has that story. A mercifully fun cricket thing: Shahrukh Khan unveiled a new anthem for the Kolkata Knight Riders titled ‘’ composed by Badshah—to cheer up fans who can’t attend matches. Yes, bad Punjabi rap to ease Bengali pandemic blues. Added bonus: Rajni-themed meme dedicated to all Chennai Super Kings fans—who are far bluer after their loss to Rajasthan Royals.
Sanity Break #2
Sawan Dutta’s seamlessly combines recipes and song to deliver a truly unique and amusing experience. This one is titled ‘’.
Smart & Curious
A LIST OF CURIOUS FACTS One: This is one of our favourites in a list of very cool maps—which teach you new things. Consider this: 50% of Canadians live below the red line in this one. We also love the Topologist's Map Of The World—which places countries solely according to their borders, irrespective of shape or size. See the rest . Two: Egyptian Hassan al-Tourky collects and restores rare telephones—and personally uses one that dates back to the 1800s. Three: Grapefruit has a very strange creation story that dates back to Barbados in the mid-1600s—and is potentially dangerous for anyone taking medication. offers a fascinating long read (skip to latter bits for drug interactions which truly blew our mind). Four: The best way to eat sushi is with your hands NOT chopsticks. These and other mind-blowing tips on how to sushi, courtesy Nobu’s first woman head chef, . (FYI: Nobu is a very fancy Japanese restaurant much loved by the chi-chi set). Five: Even though India consumes 40% of the world’s production of hing (aka asafoetida), we don’t actually grow any of it… until now. has this fascinating story. Six: finds that even a tiny patch of nature (i.e. little pots of plants) in your garden or balcony reduces stress and increases happiness. So what are you waiting for? Seven: Finally, this is a “”—created when two galaxies are slowly pulled toward each other, and one literally ‘drips’ stars into the center of the other.
Feel Good Place
TWO GORGEOUS PICS OF GORGEOUS INDIA One: Two: The . Amritsar below, Lahore in the distance. A SHORT LIST OF WINNERS One: Winner, . Two: Winner, circa 1891: ‘Don’t Marry a Dude’. Or an ‘’ circa 2020.
