Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The Thai cave rescue continues. On Sunday, divers rescued four boys who had been trapped inside the Tham Luang cave with their soccer team for more than two weeks. Eight additional boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach are still stranded. Rescue operations are set to resume at 8am local time.
Xiaomi starts trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The Chinese smartphone maker’s IPO had been hotly anticipated, but investor interest has cooled following a drastic cut in the company’s valuation (almost in half to $54 billion), and the start of the US-China trade war.
Donald Trump announces his Supreme Court nominee. Although several contenders to replace retiring justice Anthony Kennedy have been identified, most bets are on self-proclaimed “introvert” Raymond Kethledge, who “praises the virtues of unplugging and is prone to calls for civility” (paywall).
Over the weekend
North Korea and the US sounded like enemies again. The state media claimed the US behaved “gangster-like” in weekend denuclearization talks. US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, however, called the talks productive, and encouraged North Korea’s leaders to look to Vietnam’s economic “miracle” as a model for their country’s future.
Flooding killed at least 85 people in Japan. Three days of severe rain caused deadly flooding and landslides in central and southwestern Japan, forcing two million to evacuate. Prime minister Shinzo Abe warned that military and police rescue efforts were in “a race against time.”
The leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea met for a historic peace summit. Abiy Ahmed, the prime minister of Ethiopia, traveled to Eritrea’s capital to meet president Isaias Afewerki for talks that are expected to end a 20-year border dispute that has taken an estimated 80,000 lives. Earlier this year, the newly elected Abiy declared, “Love is the only way with our Eritrean brothers.”
The fate of the imprisoned Lula captivated Brazil. A judge in Brazil declared that former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva should be released from prison on Sunday, only to be overturned by another judge soon after. The popular former leader was leading polls for the country’s elections when he was arrested and jailed on corruption charges.
A UK government strategy for Brexit was finally agreed. Prime minister Theresa May won approval from her cabinet for a framework on the future relationship between the EU and the UK at a retreat in Chequers. “The good news is that it is softer than she has previously claimed it would be,” the Guardian wrote in a Sunday editorial about the plan. “The bad news is that it is still Brexit.”
Quartz obsession interlude
Ephrat Livni argues that the age of heroes is over. “We’d be a lot less disappointed, distraught, and shocked by the news that society’s most successful are complex and limited people with psychological problems if we didn’t make so much ado about a few seemingly special humans.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Xiaomi shouldn’t be compared to Apple. It looks more like Muji—the Japanese retailer of eclectic, ordinary, good-quality products.
Identity politics—and a cycle of progress, followed by backlash—have shaped US history. Which suggests that things will swing back towards progress again.
No one really knows what ICE is supposed to be. Which allows US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be whatever politicians want.
Surprising discoveries
The children of mothers who are stressed while pregnant deal with the effects in their own lives. A Swedish study suggests they are more likely to be diagnosed with depression.
US book sales are up. Booksellers can thank Donald Trump (and his tweets) for the strong start to 2018 .
The heatwave in the UK is exposing history. Because of varying soil quality underneath, the outlines of archaeological settlements are showing up in the grass.
Owning an iPhone makes people think you’re rich. Although it’s not always an accurate indicator of wealth.
The swimsuit competition ban is dividing the Miss America Organization. Nearly half the board has resigned (paywall) and 22 state pageant leaders are organizing a coup to remove the current chairwoman.
A large study linked air pollution to 14% of global diabetes cases worldwide in 2016. Particulate matter in emissions from cars and trucks appears to cause inflammation, which can trigger insulin resistance.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, Xiaomi shares, and rounds of applause for the brave Thai rescue divers to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day. This Daily Brief was written by Lila MacLellan and edited by Kabir Chibber.