Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
SpaceX launches a much-delayed ISS resupply mission. The launch of the Dragon spacecraft, initially scheduled for April 26 but delayed by several mishaps, will carry supplies, equipment, and experiments to the International Space Station—as long as the weather cooperates.
Cyclone Fani makes landfall in India. Nearly a million people are being evacuated from the country’s east coast ahead of the storm, which has wind speeds in excess of 200 km/h (127 mph), as it heads towards land.
Terry Gou arrives in Wisconsin. The Foxconn chairman and Taiwanese presidential candidate will visit his company’s controversial US factory site, which promised some 13,000 jobs but has mostly failed to materialize.
While you were sleeping
Donald Trump withdrew his Federal Reserve pick. Stephen Moore, who had come under fire for a series of sexist and racist opinion columns, insisted he was “all in” on the nomination just hours before Trump made his announcement via Twitter. Another Trump Fed pick, former presidential Herman Cain, also withdrew himself from consideration.
The founder of a US opioid maker was convicted of racketeering. Insys Therapeutics’s John Kapoor conspired to bribe doctors in order to increase sales of a powerful opioid spray called Subsys and deceived insurers into paying for illegitimate prescriptions.
Facebook and Instagram banned far-right extremists. Alex Jones, Infowars, Milo Yiannopoulos, Paul Joseph Watson, Laura Loomer, and Paul Nehlen were removed for disseminating content that promotes violence and hate. The company also banned Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, known for making anti-Semitic statements.
A fake meat IPO raised $241 million in the best market performance of the year. Beyond Meat, backed by Bill Gates and Leonardo DiCaprio, is worth more than $3.7 billion (paywall) after shares rose 192% in their first day of trading. The company makes plant-based beef and sausage substitutes.
A former CIA officer pleaded guilty to spying for China. Jerry Chun Shing Lee, the third American to be busted for spying for Beijing in the past year, was approached by Chinese officers in 2010, three years after leaving the agency. Prosecutors said he revealed the names of sources, methods, and covert facilities; he faces life in prison.
Membership
Silicon Valley can escape regulation from Washington—but not from the world. The tech industry is now a symbol of what’s wrong in America for liberals and conservatives alike—though legislation to seriously curb Google and Facebook still looks like a longshot. But if DC dallies, plenty of other governments are ready to lead the charge.
Matters of debate
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Knowing your colleague’s salary may not be a good thing. Full transparency can increase dissatisfaction and lead a company to cut wages.
Indulge yourself in the name of health. Adding prebiotics to your favorite foods could be the key to a healthy microbiome.
Party places contain dangerous spaces. Where college students drink could put them in more danger of sexual assault than how much alcohol they consume.
Surprising discoveries
“OK” is now OK in Scrabble. The ultra-competitive board game’s official dictionary also added “bae,” “cisgender,” and “mansplaining.”
The Russian spy whale wants to defect. A suspected Kremlin-trained beluga is refusing to leave Norway.
Warren Buffett treated a $2 billion college endowment like a trust fund. The billionaire trustee says he made “outrageous” investments (paywall) on behalf of Grinnell College.
Burger King’s meals are far from happy. A new menu of “pissed,” “blue,” “salty,” “yaaas,” and “DGAF” options take a bite out of McDonald’s iconic children’s meals.
Blame your allergies on botanical patriarchy. Planners favor male plants because they reduce messy seed litter, but they’re the ones producing all that pollen.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, turncoat whales, and pollen-free plants 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 Adam Pasick and Susan Howson.