Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today and over the weekend
The annual Fed conference begins in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen and European Central Bank president Mario Draghi will both be delivering speeches, but the elephant in the room will be whether Yellen will continue for a second term (paywall). Donald Trump has said he is considering nominating her for another term, but his economic policy director Gary Cohn is also a contender.
Samsung’s heir apparent receives a verdict on corruption charges. A Seoul court will decide the fate of Lee Jae-yong, charged with embezzlement and perjury for allegedly funneling $38 million to bribe a close friend of then-president Park Geun-hye. Lee could face up to 12 years in prison—the longest term ever given to a South Korean business leader.
Hurricane Harvey hits Texas. The intensifying cyclone is expected to make landfall late Friday or early Saturday as a Category 3 storm in the heart of the US oil refinery sector. Catastrophic flooding is feared from Corpus Christi to the Louisiana coast, and up to 100 miles (160 km) inland.
While you were sleeping
A Thai court issued an arrest warrant for former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Yingluck, who was deposed in a 2014 military coup, failed to appear in court over charges of her mishandling of a rice subsidy scheme that resulted in huge amounts of unsold rice and monetary losses. The judge ruled the court would issue an arrest warrant and seize her bail bond.
At least 16 people at the American embassy in Havana fell mysteriously ill last year. In what has been described as a possible sonic attack in media reports, the State Department disclosed the number of affected embassy employees, but stopped short of assigning responsibility to the Cuban government. CBS earlier reported that one of the American embassy staff suffered mild traumatic brain injury with likely damage to the central nervous system.
Qantas announced plans to make the world’s longest flight a reality. Australia’s national carrier said it hopes to offer the 20-hour, 17,000 km trip between Sydney and London by 2022, if aircraft makers can deliver planes that can fly that distance.
Amazon unveiled its preliminary plan for Whole Foods. The retailer’s $13.7 billion acquisition, expected to close on Monday, will result in price cuts at the infamously expensive grocery store, give special discounts to Amazon Prime subscribers, and make Whole Foods’ house brand available on Amazon’s e-commerce platforms.
Quartz obsession interlude
Max de Haldevang on the mysterious circumstances surrounding nine dead Russian diplomats. “Being a Russian diplomat seems to be bad for your health. When Migayas Shirinsky, ambassador to Sudan, was found dead in his residency’s swimming pool in Khartoum on Aug. 23, he became the ninth Russian foreign official to surprisingly pass away since January 2016.” Read more here.
Markets haiku
“Whole paycheck” no more / Amazon’s cutting prices / Grocers catch a chill
Matters of debate
Companies should prioritize investor welfare, not value. It would enable them to consider critical social and ethical issues.
All lives should matter to self-driving cars. Germany wants to ban autonomous vehicles from prioritizing age, race, or gender in a collision.
Eavesdropping actually makes us better people. A large part of our development and early education is made possible by our ability to listen in on other people’s conversations.
Surprising discoveries
Google made a cuddly knitwear robot that watches YouTube videos. Researchers eventually want “Blossom” to help kids with autism.
Japan has a rent-a-dad service… Tokyo’s Heart Project offers everything from “parent” to “bridesmaid” surrogates.
… And a ninja-studies major. Sadly, the focus is on historical research, not practical training.
Americans stopped watching TV and porn for the solar eclipse. Netflix and Pornhub traffic showed a noticeable drop.
The driest place on Earth is currently covered in flowers. It only rains every five to seven years in Chile’s Atacama desert.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, Atacama flowers, and ninja-studies dissertations to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android.