Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
British lawmakers debate the next steps for Brexit. Members of parliament will consider a series of amendments in a bid to change the direction of Brexit, with 45 days left until the UK is due to leave the European Union.
The US House votes on a bill to avoid another government shutdown. Lawmakers are expected to pass the legislation, which frees up $1.4 billion for the construction of a 55-mile (89 km) barrier along the Mexico border—an amount significantly lower than Donald Trump’s requested $5.7 billion for border security. He will nonetheless likely sign the bill.
Renault’s new chairman visits Japan. Jean-Dominique Senard, who is also expected to be named to Nissan’s board, will meet with CEO Hiroto Saikawa, board members, and management teams today and tomorrow. This is the first visit by the French carmaker’s top brass since former boss Carlos Ghosn was arrested in Tokyo for financial misconduct last November. Renault has a 43% stake in Nissan.
The first anniversary of the Parkland massacre. Memorials have been erected (paywall) commemorating the lives of all 17 victims killed at the Florida high school. The city will hold a “Day of Service and Love,” and survivors who formed the March For Our Lives group will step away from social media.
The US and China resume high-level trade talks. Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin and trade representative Robert Lighthizer will meet China’s top economic adviser, Liu He, for a two-day summit. The two sides are trying to hammer out a deal before a March 1 deadline when additional US tariffs will be imposed, though Bloomberg reported (paywall) that Donald Trump is considering extending the deadline by 60 days.
A controversial US-led summit on the Middle East continues. Some world powers have slammed the event for being overly focused on Iran, with Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif bashing the US for not directly communicating with his government. Today’s main session in Warsaw includes speeches by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, secretary of state Mike Pompeo, and vice president Mike Pence.
While you were sleeping
Same-sex couples across Japan sued for equal marital rights. The 13 couples filed the lawsuits in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Sapporo, arguing that the country’s refusal to allow them to marry is unconstitutional and discriminatory. Ten Japanese municipalities have enacted “partnership” ordinances for gay couples, but they are not legally binding.
Philippine journalist Maria Ressa was released on bail. The CEO of news site Rappler and fierce critic of the government spent a night in detention after she was arrested on cyber libel charges. President Rodrigo Duterte denied political motivations, but critics contend that his government is attempting to silence Ressa, recently named by Time as person of the year.
A US judge ruled Paul Manafort “intentionally” lied and breached his plea deal. Trump’s former campaign manager and the star cooperator in the Russia investigation “made multiple false statements” to special counsel Robert Mueller’s office, the FBI, and the grand jury “concerning matters that were material to the investigation,” judge Amy Berman Jackson wrote.
NASA’s Opportunity rover was formally declared dead. Workers stopped attempting to communicate with the rover after more than 1,000 radio signals went unanswered. Oppy discovered water and drove over 45 km (28 miles), further than any other craft on Mars in its 15 Earth years on the planet, before a dust storm covered its solar panels, robbing it of power.
Seven women accused American singer Ryan Adams of emotional abuse. The women, including his ex-wife singer Mandy Moore as well as more than a dozen of his associates, told the New York Times (paywall) that the Grammy-nominated singer “dangled career opportunities” then turned things sexual, and that he sometimes became controlling and abusive.
Quartz obsession interlude
Pop songs are getting shorter. Blame—or thank—the economics of streaming, and the rappers and country musicians who have figured it out. Think about it: an artist gets paid per stream, so more streamed songs in the same amount of time puts more money in their pockets, so they’re going back to lengths of the 45-rpm single despite infinite storage. Is it a bad thing? Maybe not, since consumer choice seems to point in that direction too. Tune in to the Quartz Obsession.
Membership
Our field guide on cryptocurrency brings you a thought-provoking essay by Matt De Silva about privacy coins and how they may have a bigger future than Bitcoin (which is less anonymous than is often admitted). And in this week’s Tipping Points feature, Allison Schrager looks at how to value the money you haven’t made yet.
Matters of debate
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Brexiteers should stop fantasizing about the UK being another Singapore. Some of the conditions that helped lead the city-state to success—including strong government intervention and high rates of immigration—won’t sit well with Brexit supporters.
Pricing algorithms are terrible for consumers. Researchers say the AI can unwittingly learn to collude, drive prices up, and leave no trace of bad activity.
Truly understanding—and fixing—the gender pay gap requires focusing on the median. Companies should disclose the statistic if they’re committed to working toward equity.
Surprising discoveries
The African black panther was caught on camera for the first time in over a century. Biologists photographed and videotaped the rare, elusive cat—also known as a black leopard—in Kenya.
There’s a new Tinder for cattle. The company behind the app says 42,000 UK farms are using Tudder to match cows and bulls for breeding purposes.
A new battle royale game signed up 25 million players in a single week. Apex Legends also surged past both Fortnite and League of Legends on the game-streaming network Twitch.
Mastercards will now emit a jingle. The credit card’s new “sonic logo” plays a peppy six-note tune when you swipe it.
Chuck E. Cheese’s is at the center of a pizza conspiracy theory. A YouTuber is using photos to accuse the American entertainment restaurant chain of serving pies made up of random unsold slices.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, leftover pizza, and credit card melodies to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written and edited by Yenni Kwok and Isabella Steger.