Researched by: Aarthi Ramnath, Anannya Parekh & Aakriti Anand
Wanted: A fabulous editor for Advisory
Our weekend edition—the Advisory—is all about helping our community get the best advice on what to watch, where to travel, what to buy etc. All of it served with wonderful essays on art, music, food, history and more. We are looking for someone who really gets what makes the Advisory special—and can take it to the next level. Requirements of the job include:
- At least five years experience in lifestyle/culture content.
- A well-informed taste in books, travel, movies and more—and the network to commission content across a range of categories.
- Impeccable writing and editing skills is a must.
- Ability to work closely with our partners—and forge new relationships with institutions and brands.
- Willingness to explore lifestyle & culture in new and innovative ways.
- A knowledge of and love for splainer is a huge plus—since we’re not the usual news product.
Please note this isn’t a job for someone who is looking to edit the standard lifestyle section of a newspaper or site. Our aim is to break new ground—and build something truly valuable for our subscribers.
As for the rest: There is a six-month probation period and the pay will be industry standard. We are an equal opportunity employer and work remotely. Please send your resumes and cover letter—telling us why you want this job—to talktous@splainer.in. We will reach out to you if you’re shortlisted.
US election chaos: The latest update
The presidential campaign is now the stuff of political farce. Joe Biden now has Covid—yup, you read that right. He’s cancelled campaign events and is “self-isolating.” Is this his face-saving way out of the race? Maybe. Biden recently made noises about Kamala Harris making an excellent president. And now even Barack Obama has joined the campaign to pressure Biden out of the race. FYI: The real danger here is that the Dems won’t just lose the White House—but also both houses of Congress. CNN has more on the Covid scare. AP via The Telegraph has more on the pressure on Biden.
Bangladesh riots are getting ugly
The context: Students have been staging angry protests against job reservations—which was recently reinstated after a High Court order. The system reserves 30% of government posts for kids of Bangladeshi freedom fighters during the 1971 war—plus 10% for women, and 10% for other communities.
What happened now: The Supreme Court has suspended the lower court ruling—but it has not appeased the protesters. Bangladesh TV has gone off air after its premises were set on fire. The government has shut down the internet. Around 20 people have been killed so far. Why this matters: The uprising comes as a rude shock for Sheikh Haseena—who won the recent election after disqualifying most of her rivals (see: This Big Story). (The Hindu)
Unhappy numbers on child marriage
A new report reveals that three girls are forced into child marriage every minute in India. According to data from the 2011 Census, there are 1.6 million illegal child marriages taking place each year—an average of 4,442 every day. But, but, but: The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) shows a much smaller number—a mere 3,863 child marriages between 2018-2022. Even in those cases, 92% are still open—with a conviction rate of just 11%. (Economic Times)
New controversy over Kanwariyas
The context: Every year, Hindu devotees called Kanwars take a pilgrimage or yatra to collect holy Ganga water from Gomukh, Haridwar, and Gangotri, to offer to Shiva idols in their native place. They wear saffron and walk barefoot, carrying water-filled matkas during their journey—through states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Delhi—which happens around July-August, during the Hindu month of Sawan. They usually rest at roadside camps, and eat at local dhabas and carts.
What happened now: The UP police in Muzaffarnagar have ordered all shops and carts on the yatra route to display the names of their owners. The reason: it offers important information for fasting Hindus who may want to eat at a pure vegetarian restaurant—“where the likelihood of them being served Satvik food is higher.” Critics say it creates an unnecessary communal divide—by forcing Muslims to publicise their names:
Across the western UP belt from where the Yatra passes, there are places where 30-40% of the population is Muslim. Muslim artisans are also involved in making the kanwars which the pilgrims carry, and in arranging food for the Yatris.
After a lot of political hue and cry, the requirement has now been made “voluntary.” (Indian Express)
Get ready for mini ChatGPT
OpenAI rolled out a smaller, cheaper version of its most powerful AI model. The GPT-4o mini 60% cheaper than GPT-3.5 Turbo—making it more affordable for developers building applications on OpenAI’s models:
GPT-4o mini is priced at 15 cents per 1 million input tokens — or the unit of information an AI model uses, for example, a word or phrase — and 60 cents per 1 million output tokens. That is equivalent to 2,500 pages in a book.
Quartz has more on the new version.
Big changes in cricket line-up
Suryakumar Yadav has replaced Hardik Pandya as captain of the T20I team—for the three-match series against Sri Lanka starting July 27. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are still part of the ODI squad. And Shubman Gill is vice-captain for both formats. Nope, Pandya didn’t get that position either. The not-so-great news coincided with Pandya’s announcement of his divorce. So not a happy day for him. (The Telegraph)
Abracadabra: Butter made from thin air!
A Bill Gates-backed startup—Savor—unveiled a magical kind of butter—that can be made from thin air:
[I]t uses a thermochemical process that pulls carbon dioxide from the air and combines it with hydrogen and oxygen to create fat synthetically. This fat is then turned into butter by adding water, an emulsifier, beta-carotene for colour and rosemary oil for flavour.
The end result tastes “just like butter!” Why this matters: livestock are a significant source of CO2 emissions. Regular unsalted butter produces 3X the CO2 than Savor. On the menu: other faux dairy products such as ice cream, cheese, and milk. (Smithsonian Magazine)
A breakthrough in anti-ageing drugs?
According to a new study, a 'supermodel granny' drug can increase the lifespan of mice by 25%:
The treated mice were known as "supermodel grannies" in the lab because of their youthful appearance. They were healthier, stronger and developed fewer cancers than their unmedicated peers.
The drug targets and purges a protein called interleukin-11 (IL-11)—that is also found in humans. It causes inflammation and “flips several biological switches that control the pace of ageing.” It is being tested on humans, as well. BBC News has more nerdy details. See the supermodel grannies in action here. Below is an image for comparison:
Four things to see
One: With a week to go for the Olympics, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swam in the River Seine—to prove it is perfectly safe. This is to reassure triathlon athletes who will be required to swim in a river with a reputation for being filthy. Not so reassuring: The hashtag “jechiedanslaSeine” (“I’m pooping in the Seine”) has been trending on social media—as some plan to protest the Olympics by pooping upstream. Watch Hidalgo selling the Seine below. (Associated Press)
Two: Trump supporters at the Republican National Convention have slapped bandages on their ears—in solidarity with their supreme leader Donald Trump. We have no comment. Behold the scene below. (Washington Post, paywall, The Hill)
Three: This is the most expensive dinosaur ever. A stegosaurus named Apex—who was bought by a hedge fund manager for a staggering sum of $45 million. The 11-feet-tall and 20-feet-long dinosaur would’ve roamed the earth 150 million years ago. FYI: scientists think auctioning priceless fossils to private collectors is a terrible idea. (Quartz)
Four: We’re intrigued by this trailer for ‘A Different Man’—starring Sebastian Stan and Adam Pearson. Movies are all about the female ugly duckling who becomes the swan. This one flips the gender roles. The film is slated for release on September 20. (Hollywood Reporter)
