Jan. 6-7
- Hezbollah chief as Supreme Leader?
- 3-D printed chips to save lab animals
- An overtourism postcard from Mont Blanc
- … and much more.
🎲 OUR WEEKLY NEWS QUIZ
1. In which country was a Hamas senior official killed, raising worries of escalation in the Israel-Hamas conflict?
2. What world capital’s airport was the site of a crash of two airplanes, where a passenger jet was successfully evacuated before it was engulfed in flames?
3. The president of which major U.S. university resigned, following allegations of plagiarism and a weak response to anti-Semitism?
4. What is special about Luke Littler, who made it to the finals of the World Darts Championship? He’s 16 / He’s ambidextrous / He speaks 26 languages / He plays blindfolded
[Answers at the bottom of this newsletter]
#️⃣ TRENDING
A member of Indian company Zomato’s food delivery fleet captured the internet's attention this week after being filmed delivering food on horseback. Recent changes in hit-and-run laws in the country have led to large-scale protests and traffic jams, leaving delivery agents struggling with making sure the food gets to the customer on time. This innovative courier, hashtag-ly nicknamed #ZomatoMan explained his bold choice, saying he’d had enough to wait in long queues at gas stations to fill his motorbike.
🎭 5 CULTURE THINGS TO KNOW
• Mickey Mouse horror movies unveiled as Steamboat Willie enters public domain: Two horror films starring an early version of Mickey Mouse have been announced this week as the copyright for Disney’s 1928 animated short film, Steamboat Willie, entered the public domain in the U.S. on New Year's Day. Slasher movie Mickey’s Mouse Trap, featuring a masked killer dressed as the famous mascot, is expected to be out this March.
• In memoriam: Mexican actress Ana Ofelia Murguía, who voiced great-grandmother Mama Coco in the Oscar-winning Disney Pixar animation Coco, has died aged 90; U.S. jazz musician Les McCann, who helped popularize the soul jazz genre in the 1960s, has died at 88; South African photographer Peter Magubane, known for his coverage of the everyday struggles of Black South Africans under apartheid, died at the age of 91; Françoise Bornet, who was immortalized with then boyfriend in 1950 in the French photographer Robert Doisneau’s famous The Kiss in Paris, has died aged 93.
• Gérard Depardieu affair splits French cinema and culture world: A week after the publication of an open letter entitled “Don't Cancel Gérard Depardieu” in support of the French actor, who is facing charges of rape and sexual assault, several counter-petitions were released, arguing the text “spat in the face” of Depardieu’s accusers and that the actor’s talent didn’t “permit the indignity of his behavior.”
• Medieval cemetery unearthed in Wales leaves archaeologists puzzled: A mysterious early medieval cemetery has been uncovered in the grounds of Fonmon Castle near Cardiff, Wales, with 18 of the estimated 70 graves excavated so far. The site, which is thought to date back at least 1,400 years, has left archaeologists scratching their heads as some of the skeletons are lying in unusual positions and unexpected artifacts were found, suggesting that the people buried there were of a high status.
• TayTay beats Elvis: Taylor Swift has become the solo artist with most weeks topping the Billboard album chart, setting a new record of 68 weeks thanks to her latest 1989 (Taylor’s Version) and breaking Elvis Presley’s long-held feat of 67 weeks at No 1, for albums spanning 1956 to 2002. The 34-year-old has a while to go to challenge overall record holders the Beatles and their 132 weeks on top of the Billboard 200.
⏩ Hassan Nasrallah, from head of Hezbollah to Supreme Leader?
Iran's constitution effectively allows any Shia theologian to become Supreme Leader, and the maneuvering to succeed Ali Khamenei now appears to include Hassan Nasrallah, longtime influential leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah militia. Would ordinary Iranians and politicians stomach such an audacious imposition? Or is Nasrallah's cited as a regime ploy, to send a chill down the population's spine and push Iranians to accept the elevation of Raisi or Khamenei?, asks Yusef Mosaddeqi in Persian-language media Kayhan-London.
Read the full story: Why Hezbollah Chief Nasrallah Could Become Iran's Next Supreme Leader
✊ Actions, not words: a Ukrainian soldier’s call to arms
A writer serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) calls for a widespread mobilization to help soldiers whose strength is gradually diminishing after nearly two years on the frontline since the start of Russia’s invasion. “Will the civilian population continue to believe in the Ukrainian Armed Forces and enthusiastically support those who make it all work, without actually helping them along the way?,” writes Artem Chen in Ukrainian publication Ukrainska Pravda.
Read the full story: Ukraine Needs You, Now — A Soldier's Note To The Poets And Smartphone Scrollers
🏔 The peak politics of Mont Blanc over-tourism
This is the story of a quarrel between two mayors: one who prides himself on defending the mythical Mont Blanc against the alleged capitalist appetites of the other. This conflict, writes Daniel Fortin in French daily Les Echos, is more than the unequal struggle between a rural community attached to local values and a globalized society. It is about the fight against the risk of over-tourism, which has already begun.
Read the full story: Mont Blanc Postcard: Where Mass Tourism Fears Meet The Fangs Of Local Politics
🐁 BRIGHT IDEA
The University of Edinburgh has come up with a small plastic 3D-printed chip that could save millions of animals. According to PETA figures, more than 110 million animals are killed every year in pharmaceutical testing and subjected to barbaric invasive procedures. The new device, called a “body-on-chip” faithfully replicates the human heart, lungs, kidneys, liver and brain to allow researchers to simulate how different drugs move through human organs, without the need to experiment on animals.
🕹️ SMILE OF THE WEEK
Willis Gibson has entered gaming history by becoming the first human player to beat Nintendo's classic video game Tetris. After 38 minutes, the 13-year-old from Oklahoma reached level 157, triggering a game-ending glitch in a feat that had only been previously achieved by artificial intelligence. The teenager, who started playing the game at 11, finished third at the 2023 Classic Tetris World Championships.
📹 THIS HAPPENED VIDEO — TODAY IN HISTORY, IN ONE ICONIC PHOTO
➡️ Watch the video: THIS HAPPENED
⏩ LOOKING AHEAD
• Israel is set to defend itself against accusations of genocidal actions as part of its conflict with Hamas in Gaza at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague. Israel has rejected the charges, led by South Africa, and described them as a “blood libel.”
• Japan intends to use part of its reserve funds to increase the provision of relief supplies for areas affected by the recent earthquake. Prime Minister Kishida Fumio’s Cabinet is expected to approve a plan next week allocating 4 billion yen (over $27 million) from reserves for the current fiscal year.
• Artificial Intelligence giant OpenAI is reportedly planning on launching GPT Store next week. The marketplace is expected to enable users to share customized versions of ChatGPT with other customers.
👓 WORLDCRUNCH MAGAZINE
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News quiz answers:
1. Top Hamas official Saleh al-Arouri was killed by a drone strike in Beirut, Lebanon, triggering fears of expansion of the war between Hamas and Israel.
2. Two planes collided at Tokyo's Haneda Airport, resulting in the death of two coast guards in one airplane and 379 being evacuated in the other.
3. Harvard President Claudine Gay resigned, only six months into her presidency, over allegations of plagiarism and anti-Semitism.
4. Luke Littler, a 16-year-old darts prodigy hailing from the UK, became the youngest person to ever reach the final of the World Darts Championship, which he lost to world n.1 Luke Humphries.
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*Photo: IMDB