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Tuesday February 16 2021

Criminal Theory

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Sanity Break #1

Spanish artist Jose Navarro’s artworks are minimalist, simple—and each instantly grabs your attention. A big thanks to founding member Sindhu Nair for introducing us to his work. has a wonderful collection and an interview with Navarro.

Sanity Break #1

Headlines that matter

THE GREAT PANDEMIC: A QUICK UPDATE * Numbers are up in Maharashtra—which crossed 4,000-plus daily cases for the first time in 39 days. Experts are the “full unlocking” and the resumption of local trains. Others at increased socialising (family dos plus weddings) and vacation travel. * One effect of growing Covid complacency: Indians are shopping, and retail sales are surging! has that story. * Given the above, here’s a good reminder: A chief scientist at the WHO that people are becoming reinfected with new strains of the virus.  * The WHO team that went to China to investigate the origins of the virus found that there were “” strains in circulation in Wuhan by December 2019. What this means: "As there was already genetic diversity... it is likely that the virus was circulating for a while longer than that month alone." * The of real-world data from Israel shows that there has been a 94% drop in symptomatic cases and a 92% drop in serious cases after people received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine. * Is the coronavirus beautiful? Yes, if it is that is one million times larger than the real thing. A UK artist created this artwork to commemorate the vaccination of 10 million people in the country.    WHITE HOUSE WORRIES ABOUT MEENA Nope, the Biden folks aren’t concerned as much about her farmer protest tweets as the extent to which she has “meshed her personal brand” with Kamala Harris' ascendant political career. She has leveraged her relationship with her aunt for splashy media appearances, and more importantly used her aunt’s likeness and quotes to sell books and clothes—which is forbidden by the White House’s strict ethics rules. Also a problem: Her decision to jump on a private plane of a campaign donor to attend the inauguration:   > “There is increasing concern that the personal branding endeavors will bring the vice president unwanted scrutiny now that her > stature is at a new high. ‘Some things can’t be undone,’ said the White House official, who would only speak anonymously to > discuss one of the most sensitive and personal issues in the Biden-Harris White House. ‘That being said: Behavior needs to > change.’”   has this exclusive. In other celebrity news: Harry and Meghan are —a fact that was announced on Insta by the photographer who took . Yes, the Queen . And if you care: Diana revealed she was pregnant with Harry on the very same day in 1984, which is not a coincidence.   UNHAPPY NEWS FOR WOMEN'S CRICKET  While we’re all caught up in the exciting India vs England series in Chepauk, Indian women’s cricket suffered a new blow. The scheduled  ODI and T20 series with South Africa may be canceled because the Kerala Cricket Association says it can’t host the matches. The reason: stadium authorities in Thiruvananthapuram have given the ground out for an army recruitment rally—without informing the KCA. Hopes now rest on the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore. Point to note: team that has not played international cricket in over 11 months. () In happier news for women: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala  has become the first woman and first African director-general of the World Trade Organization. She is an economist and former finance minister of Nigeria. ()   JNU ACTIVISTS HEAD BACK TO COURT Former student president Kanhaiya Kumar and nine others have been summoned by a Delhi court—where they will be tried on sedition charges filed back in 2016. They were accused of raising anti-national slogans at a meeting to mark the hanging of Afzal Guru. The stalled case is finally moving forward thanks to the ruling AAP party which has given the required sanction for prosecution. ()   BYJU’S GOES SHOPPING India’s biggest online learning startup is set to buy its rival Toppr in a $150 million deal. This is after it shelled out $300 million to acquire the controversial White Hat Jr—which teaches coding to kids—and $1 billion for the brick and mortar test prep company Aakash Educational Services. Now, the biggest players in the game have come down to three: Byju’s, Unacademy and Vedantu. ()   NEW TROLLING RULES FOR CAS Two top accounting organisations—Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAI) and Institute of Company Secretaries (ICSI)—have warned its members not to troll government officials on social media, or send them “inappropriate emails.” The advisory :   > "Some of them have written to Ministry of Corporate Affairs and higher forums...some of the posts are highly objectionable which > have potential to create social and communal disharmony, threatening peace, tranquillity and may disrupt the security of the > nation."    TWO LANGUAGE THINGS One: Do you use 😂 emoji in your text messages? Yes? Let us be the first to inform you that you are and likely (god forbid!) old! Also out of favour, the ROFL staple: 🤣. When asked about that one, a Gen Z woman “visibly grimaced,” saying: "I don't like that one. "My mom doesn't even use it." If you’re worried about staying on trend, please note:   > "For many Gen Z-ers, the 💀 emoji has become a popular replacement for conveying laughter. It's the visual version of the slang > phrase "I'm dead" or "I'm dying," which signifies something is very funny. Other acceptable alternatives: the 😭 emoji > (officially called "Loudly Crying Face"), or just writing "lol" (laughing out loud) or "lmao" (laughing my, well, you probably > know the rest)."  Two: Similar to Hindi, many nouns in German are either masculine or feminine. Example: A male doctor is 'ein Arzt' while a female doctor is 'eine Ärztin'. But in sentences such as: 'I am going to the doctors' or 'Where is the doctor?', German-speakers use the masculine form of the noun. Now, Duden—which is the German equivalent of the Oxford English Dictionary—has scrapped masculine forms off 12,000 words—mostly used to describe professions and job titles. And it’s sparking a big and angry debate. Read more over at (paywall) or .

Criminal Theory

Sanity Break #2

‘’ is a nine-minute documentary that tracks a wedding in the Muthuvan tribe in the heart of the Western Ghats. The wedding ritual: “a prospective bride enters the forest with her friends, to be pursued by the groom, who, when he finds her, will marry her in a union blessed by Nature.” We recommend reading this interview with the filmmaker before watching the film—so you can better grasp his vision and achievement.

Sanity Break #2

Smart & Curious

A LIST OF CURIOUS FACTS  One: Did you know that the Stonehenge was first constructed in Wales, dismantled and then reassembled in England? has more on this new discovery.   Two: Did you know that scientists recently levitated a small plastic plate using nothing other than light? reports on this astonishing breakthrough.   Three: A rare Chinese and highly prized herb—which sells for $480 per kg—called Fritillaria delavayi used to grow bright green leaves and a short stem—and a bright, tulip-shaped, yellow-hued flower once a year. But it now hides its glory from greedy people by camouflaging itself in drab greys and browns. has more on this astonishing case of human-driven plant evolution.   Four: Researchers in a billion years of changes on Earth into this . It’s more awe-inspiring than curious, TBH.  

Smart & Curious

Feel Good Place

Ok, so the lioness probably isn’t feeling too good… but we’re with the BFF buffalo on this one.   Staying on theme, this one is for the lions…   Another kind of plot twist… No rescue missions required!  

Feel good place

archivetitle dog ic

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