Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Emmanuel Macron fleshes out his plans for Europe. The French president, who is facing plummeting approval ratings, will lay out his vision for the regional bloc as well as his foreign-policy priorities at the annual meeting of France’s ambassadors in Paris.
Donald Trump visits Texas. The US president will avoid the areas hardest hit by tropical storm Harvey, which has left at least nine dead (paywall) and as many as 30,000 people temporarily homeless. The worst storm to hit the US in a decade has caused catastrophic flooding that will likely get worse as an additional 2 ft of rain is forecast.
Best Buy announces second-quarter earnings. The big-box retailer’s shares have been on a tear this year as it seems to be making good on its pledge that 2017 would be the year it enters growth mode after a long period of cost-cutting and selling off foreign operations.
While you were sleeping
North Korea fired a missile over Hokkaido in Japan. The test was the first North Korean missile to fly over Japan’s main islands since 2009, and is the 18th missile test this year by Pyongyang. The launch took place as the US and South Korea are conducting annual joint military drills, which end on Thursday.
Ed Skrein dropped out of the Hellboy reboot because of whitewashing concerns. The British actor said in a tweet that he didn’t know that the character of Major Ben Daimio had Asian heritage when he accepted the role in the comic-book adaptation. Previous high-profile accusations of whitewashing in Hollywood include Scarlett Johansson’s role in Ghost in the Shell and Tilda Swinton’s in Doctor Strange.
Rex Tillerson outlined plans to eliminate special envoy posts at the State Department. The US secretary of state wrote in a letter to Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, that he plans to cut at least 30 positions including ones dealing with climate change, Syria, the closure of Guantanamo, and Northern Ireland. Tillerson argued that some of the roles are no longer necessary, or duplicate existing State Department roles.
Quartz obsession interlude
Isabella Steger on how a string of accidents are giving epidurals an even worse rep than before in Japan. “That might discourage even more women from opting for epidurals in Japan, which has among the lowest rates of epidural use among developed countries… 6.1% of women used an epidural in 2016, rising from 2.6% in 2007. In comparison, over half of women giving birth in the US use an epidural, according to the American Pregnancy Association, and as many as 80% in France.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Tech CEOs are monopolizing the AI conversation. Elon Musk’s doomsday stance on killer robots and Mark Zuckerberg’s unflappable optimism fail to create productive dialogue.
Playing board games makes people nicer. They allow us to enter a controlled state of conflict, where we are forced to reflect on “turn-taking and rules and fairness.”
There’s no such thing as a free exchange. But economists struggle (paywall) to know what people are getting when they trade their data and attention for digital services.
Surprising discoveries
Every year, three ewes visit a Manhattan church to “lamb-scape.” They were hired after the human who used to cut the grass retired (paywall).
If the rainfall in Texas were snow, it would top 200 inches. On Sunday, George Bush airport had 16.07 inches of rain, double the previous record set in 1945.
More people went to the movies after JFK’s assassination than last weekend. The US-Canada box office marked its slowest weekend since World War II.
A smartphone app uses selfies to screen for pancreatic cancer. It checks the eyes for jaundice, one of the disease’s earliest symptoms.
The National Rifle Association had a fashion show. America’s most powerful pro-gun organization highlighted holsters and carry purses at a Wisconsin event.
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