Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Eurowings braces for a three-day strike. German airline Lufthansa’s low-cost carrier has cancelled more than 170 flights due to a labor action by the cabin crew union of its sister company Germanwings.
The UN Security Council discusses North Korea. Members will meet informally for a second round of negotiations on a Russian and Chinese proposal to lift some sanctions on Pyongyang. Beijing and Moscow hope their resolution can help restore nuclear talks between the US and North Korea.
Turkey pushes for troop deployment in Libya. Foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu will meet opposition leaders today to discuss legislation to send soldiers to defend Tripoli’s UN-backed government, which is fighting against rebel forces supported by Russia and the United Arab Emirates.
Over the weekend
A bombing in Somalia killed at least 79. An explosive-filled truck blew up at an intersection in Mogadishu on Saturday, the latest of several attacks in the Somali capital this year. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing.
An attacker stabbed five people at a Hanukkah party in New York. State governor Andrew Cuomo called the knife rampage at a Hasidic rabbi’s home an act of domestic terrorism. Separately, a gunman opened fire at a church in Texas, killing one and critical injuring another before being shot by parishioners.
Fires prompted massive evacuations in Australia. Tens of thousands of residents and vacationers were told to leave the southeastern state of Victoria due to worsening bushfire conditions. Since September, more than 100 fires have destroyed at least 9.9 million acres in five states.
China sentenced a scientist to three years in prison for his gene-editing work. He Jiankui, who caused a major stir last year when he claimed to have created the world’s first “gene-edited” babies, was handed the prison sentence and a fine of 3 million yuan ($430,000).
The UK lost 140,000 High Street jobs in 2019. The popularity of online shopping and slow growth in consumption led to the reduction in employment at physical stores and shopping malls, figures from the UK’s Centre for Retail Research showed.
Taiwan’s presidential candidates debated. Contenders Han Kuo-yu, James Soong, and incumbent Tsai Ing-wen participated in the sole televised debate ahead of a Jan. 11 election. Among other topics, the candidates defended their approaches to dealing with China.
Quartz membership
Are you spending time the way you want to? Many New Year’s resolutions are responses to that question. If you want to change how you spend time, start by rethinking your relationship to the concept. In this week’s state of play, Quartz at Work editor Heather Landy offers three ways to think about time: as a resource, as a currency, and as a source of conflict. Each can help you figure out how to manage your time in the New Year.
Quartz obsession
Is it the Berenstein Bears or the Berenstain bears? Did Darth Vader really say “Luke, I am your father”? Didn’t Nelson Mandela die in the 1980s? All of these inaccurate memories are examples of the Mandela effect, in which a critical mass of people believe something occurred that didn’t. This eerie phenomenon has always existed, but has been carefully documented in recent years thanks to Twitter, Reddit, and other internet forums. Demystify your memory with the Quartz Obsession.
Matters of debate
Don’t read another top 10 songs list. You should write your own instead, and share it with friends.
Dictators make bad conversationalists. The skills for wooing a crowd—a forceful manner, a simple message, extreme narcissism—simply don’t translate to intimate settings.
Twitter made the decade better. The platform has elevated voices and helped ordinary people change the world.
Surprising discoveries
Teaching a computer Chinese made it excellent at English. Understanding groups of Chinese characters in context translates nicely to predicting entire phrases in English.
The Netherlands doesn’t want to be called Holland anymore. The country hopes a rebranding will steer tourists toward its other 10 provinces.
Liberals are returning to The West Wing to escape Donald Trump. The seven-season show depicted an erudite president and healthy bipartisan cooperation.
Ants on a dry Australian island love drinking pee. Researchers found that urine provide water and nutrients for the insects, functioning as “nature’s sports drink.“
Weasels are devouring German cars. The rodents squeeze into parked vehicles and gnaw through hoses and tubes—leading to 198,000 insurance claims last year (paywall).
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, weasel-proof car parts, and rebranded country nicknames to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our app on iOS or Android, and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Mary Hui and edited by Tripti Lahiri.