Four gifts for the festive season
Splainer almost never goes on sale except during this time of the year. So we hope you will take full advantage of our big discounts—available until November 7. Here are four wonderful deals for you:
- Gift friends, colleagues and relatives an annual subscription at a whopping discount. It now costs only Rs 1000. Click ‘Gift a friend’ on our ‘subscribe’ page.
- Add 12 months to your own subscription by heading over to the ‘subscribe’ page—and hitting renew.
- Use your magical referral link—available in every daily email and your account page—to offer a free month to anyone you want.
- That same link also offers that sweet Rs 500 discount on our annual subscription.
Want a bulk Diwali discount? If you plan to gift splainer to a bunch of people in your organisation or family, be sure to email us at talktous@splainer.in.
A leaked climate change report
A big trove of internal UN documents show how governments are frantically lobbying scientists to play down the urgent need to move away from fossil fuels. For example: A Saudi oil ministry adviser demands phrases like “the need for urgent and accelerated mitigation actions at all scales…” should be eliminated from their final report. The leaked documents also show that India—the world's second-largest consumer of coal—has told the UN that coal will “remain the mainstay of energy production in the next few decades for sustainable economic growth of the country.” Why this matters: India is under pressure to commit to net zero emissions. BBC News has more on the leak, and the India angle.
Speaking of climate change: A new Lancet study shows that climate change poses a great danger to public health—especially in India which had the biggest absolute increase in heat-related mortality between 2018 and 2019. Also read: Bloomberg News on the same study, which also shows that global warming is creating ideal conditions for the spread of infectious diseases. (The Hindu)
A billion doses of vaccines
India crossed a major milestone yesterday, administering 1.08 billion doses of the Covid vaccine—to vaccinate 944 million people. It was a cause of great and deserved celebration all around—and even the US Secretary of State took note. The Telegraph and Indian Express have more on the challenges that still lie ahead.
Alec Baldwin accidentally kills cinematographer
The actor fired a prop gun on a movie set in New Mexico, causing the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin was reportedly in tears when questioned by the police. No one has been arrested and no charges have been filed—but the incident remains under an “open and active” investigation. (Variety)
PayPal is eyeing Pinterest
PayPal is contemplating a $45 billion takeover of the Pinterest platform—which is puzzling investors who are not exactly sure why it would pay so much for “the millennial-mom scrapbooking party.” The primary play here is ecommerce since Pinterest drives shopping choices for its largely women users:
“The attraction for PayPal is that owning Pinterest is not only an opportunity to control valuable user data that provides a detailed window into a consumer’s tastes, it may also be a chance to make PayPal the primary transaction method for Pinners. PayPal has been seeking to forge a more direct relationship with consumers instead of being merely a payment prompt when they’re transacting on other sites.”
Also making a splash: WeWork which had a very successful debut on the stock market—two years after a spectacularly dismal IPO attempt which led to the exit of its founder Adam Neumann. Quartz has more on WeWork’s big comeback.
Speaking of big moves: Donald Trump unveiled a social media company called Truth Social to take on the likes of Twitter and Facebook—kinda like an Amreeki Koo. It will initially launch for invited users next month and is expected to be widely available in early 2022. CNBC has more on the announcement. Bloomberg News has more on the pitch deck released along with the announcement. Wall Street Journal (paywall) looks at the company’s plans to go public. Intriguing side note:
“The chairman/CEO of Digital World Acquisition Group that is merging with Trump’s new media company, is also CEO of Yunhong International, a Cayman Islands incorporated blank check company with headquarters in Wuhan, China.”
In less alarming news: Twitter has launched its first community outside the US for Indian cricket fans. Economic Times has more details.
In other biz news: Zee Entertainment has agreed to consider its investor Invesco’s demand for an extraordinary shareholder meeting—after being nudged by the Bombay High Court. We explained this corporate drama here. (Mint)
Christopher Columbus loses his crown
Nope, he did not discover America after all. Researchers have now discovered that Vikings crossed the Atlantic 1,000 years ago—thanks to evidence gathered from a settlement in the Canadian island of Newfoundland. So the Scandinavians got there first, 471 years before Columbus’ first ship voyage. Why this matters:
“The Viking voyage represents multiple milestones for humankind. The settlement offers the earliest-known evidence of a transatlantic crossing. It also marks the place where the globe was finally encircled by humans, who thousands of years earlier had trekked into North America over a land bridge that once connected Siberia to Alaska.”
Reuters has more intriguing details.
Gender bias in unexpected places
A new study shows that the world’s top natural history museums have a deep-seated gender bias… in their bird collections! Only 40% of their specimens are female—which poses a serious limitation to ecological research. One possible reason: Male birds are showy and bright—which attract humans just as well as they do potential mates. (Audubon)
Speaking of gender bias: A new report shows that women accounted for only 14% of Indian news stories as either subjects or as sources in 2020—which is down from 22% in 2010. We are actually moving backwards! NewsLaundry has more dismaying data.
Speaking of feminists: A women’s rights group has sued the national beauty pageant Miss France for a selection criteria that discriminates against participants. They’re arguing that contestants are employees, and therefore requiring a minimum height, single status, etc breaks labour laws. (France 24)
Say hello to the ‘Brimato’
Scientists in Varanasi have found a way to cultivate a plant that yields both brinjals and tomatoes—and named it ‘Brimato’. Each plant yields 3-4 kilograms of brinjals and 2-3 kilograms of tomatoes—which is good news for urban gardening. FYI: We already have something called a ‘Pomato’ which bears both potatoes and tomatoes. (The Print)
Four animal things
One: Scientists unveiled a perfectly preserved 100 million-year-old crab in amber—the oldest crustacean ever found. Cnet explains why this matters.
Two: Remember MDT-23, the tiger who was recently captured by wildlife officials in Tamil Nadu? (If not, we did a big story here) According to Indian Express, the alleged man-eater is recovering well at a rescue centre near Mysore Zoo. The News Minute offers an illuminating interview with a veterinary expert on why tigers turn into man-eaters. See MDT-23 below:
Three: A Spanish drone operator has got permission to rescue three starving dogs stranded on one of the Canary islands. They have been cut off by streaming lava from the La Palma volcano which erupted this month. This is the first time animals will be rescued using a drone—which will deploy a wide net to capture and haul them out. (CNN)
Four: A marine biologist rescued a 1000 kg sunfish tangled in the nets of a tuna-fishing boat off the northern coast of Africa. He said: “I was stunned. We’d read about such individuals ... but never thought we’d actually touch one day.” Look at it! It’s truly astonishing. (Reuters)
