May 4-5
- IDF vs. Gaza schools
- La Liberté’s Louvre comeback
- Bicycle pedal 2.0
- … and much more.
🎲 OUR WEEKLY NEWS QUIZ
1. Clashes between pro-Palestinian protesters and police erupted across U.S. campuses, including which major school in California?
2. Which eastern European country has been rocked by violent protests against a controversial “foreign influence” bill?
3. The EU celebrated 20 years since its latest major enlargement. How many new countries joined the bloc back in 2004?
4. According to newfound scrolls, what did Greek philosopher Plato do on his deathbed? Complained about the music / Asked for a shadow puppet show / Started speaking in Latin / Confessed that philosophy was just one big prank
[Answers at the bottom of this newsletter]
#️⃣ TRENDING
Robotics company Boston Dynamics show off their new Robodog wearing a furry custom costume. They’ve transformed their dystopian four-legged machine into a slightly less terrifying version. The internet had a field day with memes and quips, with a user pointing out that “Everybody wants to pet the dog until its neck extends four feet,” while another pondered the robot’s existential implications, joking that “Humans have invented: dog.”
🎭 5 CULTURE THINGS TO KNOW
• Looted gold artifacts put on display in Ghana: Some 150 years after British colonizers snatched them, 32 gold artifacts from the Asante kingdom are now on display at the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the capital of Ghana’s Asante region. The items, which include what some call “Ghana's crown jewels,” have been loaned by the Victoria & Albert Museum and the British Museum for at least three years.
• In memoriam: Bestselling American author Paul Auster, who wrote more than 20 novels, including The New York Trilogy, died of lung cancer at age 77; Indonesian poet Joko “Jokpin” Pinurbo died in Yogyakarta at age 61; U.S. Grammy-winning guitarist Duane Eddy, who inspired countless musicians with his signature “twang” sound, died at 86; British keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist of Electric Light Orchestra Richard Tandy died at 76.
• South Korean shows are booming, and not just K-pop: According to new data, the country’s performing art scene (musicals, theatrical plays, classical concerts, etc.) saw its highest ticket sales since the COVID-19 pandemic in the January-March period of this year. Combined box-office sales reached 290.4 billion won ($210.1 million) — a 32.5% increase compared with 2023. Musicals in particular dominated the sales, followed closely by K-pop concerts.
• French masterpiece makes Louvre comeback after restoration: Eugene Delacroix's La Liberté guidant le peuple (“Liberty Leading the People”) is back at the Louvre museum following a six-month restoration. The goal was to remove layers of varnish which had been applied over the years to brighten the painting’s colors but ended up forming a coating of drab yellow. The 1830 artwork, which depicts a woman personifying Liberty brandishing the French flag, is considered a national treasure.
• Malmö, Malmö, Malmö: The Swedish city of Malmö has opened a new exhibition dedicated entirely to ABBA as it is set to host the Eurovision Song Contest from May 7 to 11. The show includes costumes from the digital concert ABBA Voyage and immerse experiences, as a way to celebrate the Swedish supergroup’s 50th anniversary since its 1974 Eurovision victory with Waterloo.
🏚️ Gaza schools in IDF’s crosshairs
In the war in Gaza, Israel’s bombing campaign has done nothing to spare schools, universities and other educational facilities. Its army has also turned many universities into military barracks and interrogation sites, before blowing them up. Once the war ends, at least 67% of schools in Gaza “will either need full reconstruction or major rehabilitation work to be functional again,” a report by UNICEF and NGOs the Education Cluster and Save The Children said. For Mohamed Abu Shahma, writing in Arabic-language independent digital media Daraj, Israel’s strategy is part of a premeditated policy to destroy Gaza's entire education system.
Read the full story: Tracking Israel's Systematic Annihilation Of The Schools Of Gaza
💥“Proxy war armies” or glorified cartels?
The term “proxy war” is popular among media talking heads and conflict analysts describing the various battles unfolding in the Middle East, from the Houthis in Yemen to Hezbollah in Lebanon. But is this the right term for wars in the region? Have we even agreed on its meaning in a context of fast-changing geo-strategic conditions? In Persian-language media Kayhan-London, Mahmoud Masaeli writes that these groups may actually have more in common with the cartels of a globalized war than with the fighters with a cause.
Read the full story: "Proxy War" Armies Of The Middle East? Just A New Way To Say Gangsters And Cartels
👟 Just Develop It: rare look into Nike’s Sport Research Lab
On the road to the 2024 Olympic Games, the global leader of sport has launched a major offensive to regain ground lost in recent years in the athletic gear market, and is preparing a flurry of innovations to rekindle the flame of fuel-starved global sales, from shock-absorbing nitrogen capsules to the Vaporfly shoe model. “In the midst of the retro sneaker craze, where rivals are bringing their old glories up to date, Nike is taking on a resolutely futuristic look. A risky gamble, but one that should illustrate the brands' ability to reinvent itself,” writes Pierre Demoux in French business daily Les Echos.
Read the full story: Inside Nike's Research Lab: A Final Sprint To Paris
🚲 BRIGHT IDEA
To clip, or not to clip? Four students from Laval University, in Canada, have created a new adaptable bicycle pedal to address every cyclist’s dilemma. Their invention, named “cyclip,” caught the attention of French sports retailer Decathlon. Unlike existing adapters on the market, the "cyclip" allows the use of road pedals with or without a clipping system through a removable platform and a strap. The goal is to make road cycling more accessible and reduce environmental impact by using sustainable materials.
🦜📱 SMILE OF THE WEEK
Birds of a feather chat together? Researchers from the University of Glasgow gave tablets to nine pet parrots and found out that they preferred ringing bells for live calls with feathery fellows, over watching pre-recorded bird videos. The study suggests parrots can differentiate between live and recorded content, opting for real-time interaction over binge-watching.
👓 WORLDCRUNCH MAGAZINE
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⏩ LOOKING AHEAD
• Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to visit Europe for the first time in five years, with planned stops in France, Serbia and Hungary. Since his last visit in 2019, significant shifts have occurred in China-EU relations, notably with Italy withdrawing from the Belt and Road Initiative and increased scrutiny on China's economic activities in Europe. Tensions have also arisen due to China's perceived alignment with Russia amidst the Ukraine conflict.
• International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi is set to visit Iran next week amidst growing concerns over the country's nuclear program. This comes following recent tensions between Iran and Israel, including Iran's first-ever direct attack on Israel and reported Israeli strikes in retaliation. Despite downplaying the attacks, concerns remain about Iran's nuclear ambitions, especially as the Vienna-based IAEA has faced challenges in monitoring Iran's program.
• Madonna's highly anticipated free concert on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Beach is set to draw more than a million fans, making it the biggest show of her 40-year career. Arriving with three planes and 270 tons of equipment, Madonna is staying at the luxurious Copacabana Palace hotel, connected to the stage by a suspended catwalk. With free admission, organizers expect as many as 1.5 million people to create the "world's biggest dance floor."
• It’s Cinco de Mayo on Sunday! This relatively minor holiday in Mexico celebrates the country’s 1862 victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla. But in the U.S. it has evolved into a commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage, with parades and themed parties. May 5 is often mistaken as a celebration of Mexican independence (celebrated on Sept.16), which was declared more than 50 years before the Battle of Puebla.
⁉️ WHAT THE WORLD
From Plato’s deathbed shade to one heck of a Cartier discount, take a quick world tour of the internationally weird!
News quiz answers:
1. Police removed barricades and began dismantling encampments at UCLA on Thursday. Tent encampments of student protestors have spread across the U.S. as students call on universities and companies to break ties with Israel. Clashes between protestors and police have escalated over the last couple of weeks, with more than 2,000 protesters being arrested at universities across the U.S., including at Columbia University in New York and the University of Texas in Austin.
2. The UN, EU and U.S. have urged Georgia to drop its contested “foreign agents” bill, which would require organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as agents of foreign influence, which opponents have compared to authoritarian Russian laws. The bill has sparked weeklong protests, notably outside the parliament in Georgia’s capital, Tbilisi.
3. On May 1, the EU celebrated 20 years since 10 countries joined the EU. European Parliament President Roberta Metsola and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, as well as former presidents, participated in a formal sitting of Parliament to mark the anniversary. In a speech before Parliament, President von der Leyen described the moment in the EU’s integration process as “the birth of a new era.”
4. Newly-deciphered texts from ancient scrolls reveal that Greek philosopher Plato complained about the music being played while he was on his deathbed, saying that the flute music had a “scant sense of rhythm.” The scrolls also revealed that Plato is believed to have been buried in a secret garden near a shrine to the Muses in the Platonic Academy of Athens.
✍️ Newsletter by Worldcrunch
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*Photo: ABBA The Museum