Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The US observes Veterans’ Day. Bond markets are closed for the federal holiday but stock markets will remain open.
Mike Pence talks North Korea in Japan. The US vice president begins his Asia tour in Tokyo, where he will discuss North Korea and other security issues with prime minister Shinzo Abe.
Italy hosts a Libyan peace conference. Leaders of the North African country’s warring factions will gather in Palermo in the latest attempt to end years of strife. Italy is tussling with France for influence in Libya, an important source of fossil fuels (paywall).
Over the weekend
The death toll in the California fires rose to 31. Three major wildfires sweeping California have forced some 250,000 people to evacuate, destroyed more than 6,700 structures, and are expected to wreak further havoc. In southern California, Hollywood celebrities affected by the Hill and Woolsey fires have been tweeting about evacuating their mansions.
Emmanuel Macron warned against nationalism. At a Paris event marking the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, the French president called nationalism “a betrayal of patriotism” and warned that “old demons are reawakening, ready to sow chaos and death.” Some 70 world leaders attended, including nationalists Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump. Trump was criticized for canceling a visit to a cemetery on Saturday; the White House said he didn’t want to disrupt Paris traffic with his motorcade, and the helicopter couldn’t fly because of rain.
SoftBank’s domestic telecoms unit got approval to list in Tokyo. The regulatory filing showed that the IPO is expected to be one of the biggest ever in Japan (paywall) at 2.4 trillion yen ($21 billion). SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son has been growing the former telecoms company into a global investment powerhouse with his $100 billion Vision Fund. The money raised from this IPO would free up more money for his tech investments.
SAP announced it will buy US-based Qualtrics for $8 billion. SAP boss Bill McDermott said buying Qualtrics, which makes survey software, would allow his company to merge its operational data with Qualtrics’ user experience data, and will mean for SAP what buying Instagram meant for Facebook.
Rocket Lab’s first commercial launch was a success. The US-New Zealand startup shot its Electron booster into orbit on Sunday. The Electron is about a quarter the size of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and is designed to loft cargos weighing 330 to 496lb into orbit. Rocket Lab is poised to pick up business from dozens of companies building constellations of small satellites that rely on powerful, miniaturized electronics.
Florida ordered statewide recounts in three elections. Local officials have just five days to tally 8 million ballots and identify the winners in the races for governor, US Senate, and state agricultural commissioner. Republicans, including Donald Trump, decried attempts to “steal” the elections and filed several lawsuits to halt the process.
The world’s biggest shopping day got even bigger. This year’s Singles’ Day, a retail holiday created by Alibaba a decade ago, led to a record $30.7 billion in sales. But momentum is slowing: The 27% increase was the lowest year-over-year growth in the event’s history.
Obsession interlude
Lipstick is one of life’s little pleasures. During recessionary times, it’s synonymous with an inexpensive way of treating yourself, known as the lipstick effect. It’s also an empowering pleasure, historically associated with Cleopatra, Queen Puabi of Ur, and the suffragette movement. Pucker up with today’s Quartz Obsession.
Matters of debate
The US is biased towards schools rather than skills. Qualified labor is being locked out (paywall) of the job market for lack of a degree, even if one isn’t required.
Foreign contractors prolong wars. Intended to save money and boost local economies, contractors make wars more expensive and dangerous.
Businesses are right to end forced arbitration. Facebook, Google, and other tech companies are dropping the practice, which creates a toxic work culture (paywall).
Surprising discoveries
Archaeologists found dozens of mummified cats in Egypt. The three tombs full of cat mummies date back more than 6,000 years.
Scientists mail live mosquitos by packing 1,200 in a syringe. The mosquitoes’ slender exoskeletons fold up, and the close quarters insulate them from damage.
Humans burn the most calories in the afternoon. Scientists arrived at that conclusion after 10 subjects spent 37 days in a lab with no windows, clocks, or internet.
Satanists are worried Netflix’s Sabrina reboot is damaging their image. The Satanic Temple says the show is “promoting asinine satanic panic.”
Beatboxing is scientifically valuable. Researchers are using MRI scans of mouth percussionists (paywall) to understand language and how the vocal tract works.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, beatboxing tracks, and cat deities to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Jill Petzinger and edited by Jackie Bischof.