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China officially ended its lockdown of Wuhan. A midnight light show along the Yangtze River celebrated the occasion, the first time in 11 weeks the city of 11 million could travel in and out of Wuhan. Thousands took overnight trains and flights, with permission via a smartphone app that monitors individual health status. The city’s schools remain closed, and citizens are still advised to stay home as much as they can.
Japan and Singapore make restrictions. Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe formally declared a state of emergency, putting 44% of Japan’s population—including Tokyo—under a month-long shutdown. He also announced a stimulus bill worth nearly $1 trillion. Meanwhile, Singapore moved forward in banning gatherings and shuttering non-essential businesses.
UK prime minister Boris Johnson remains “stable” in intensive care. Downing Street claimed the leader is receiving oxygen support but isn’t on a ventilator. Outside the hospital, interim minister Dominic Raab suggested the United Kingdom may have to extend its precautionary measures.
WeWork sued SoftBank for canceling its $3 billion tender offer. The startup argued SoftBank’s move to no longer buy back equity as part of an earlier rescue financial deal is in breach of contract and violating fiduciary duty rules. SoftBank said the cancellation is over WeWork failing to meet performance requirements.
The World Health Organization said masks don’t protect healthy people. The international body released guidance that said facial masks help prevent the spread of Covid-19, but there’s no evidence that they protect the wearer from infection.
We heard you
What’s up with that one drug? Many of you wrote in asking for clarification about hydroxychloroquine. As with all potential coronavirus drugs, only a small number of studies have been done on the drug’s efficacy, some showing an effect, some not. It’s hard to do good research this quickly: A French study with positive-seeming results was last week—that’s the one US president Donald Trump has been referring to—was undercut by the society whose journal published it, saying the study failed to meet its “expected standard.”
Until there are more reliable studies, it’s hard for doctors to make a responsible call between the good the drug could do and its potential side effects—which hydroxychloroquine does have.
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Quartz daily obsession
A record with an out-of-this-world following. The Golden Record was a message in a bottle—if that bottle was an 815-kg (1,797-lb) hunk of metal hurtling through space away from our solar system. Humanity’s letter to the universe explaining who we are and where we come from left Earth in 1977, accompanying the Voyager spacecraft on their mission to the outer planets and beyond. The Quartz Daily Obsession is ready to drop the needle.
Matter of debate
It’s less harmful to keep parks open. People need sunshine, fresh air, exercise, and the peace of mind that comes with being in a green space, writes Zeynep Tufekci for The Atlantic. Shutting parks down instead of keeping them open to a reasonable number of humans at a time only breeds resentment, which could very well lead to the beginning of exactly what we don’t want in a pandemic: resistance to well-meaning restrictions.
Surprising discoveries
Hawk love finds a way… A common black hawk and a red-shouldered hawk made rare hybrid babies that could lead to the evolution of the species.
…and pandas just wanted some privacy. Two who live in a closed-down Hong Kong zoo finally mated after 10 years of encouragement.
People in the UK are burning 5G towers. They somehow think it’s a Covid conspiracy.
The Great Barrier Reef suffered its third mass bleaching event in five years. Scientists blame global warming.
The palace at Versailles is replanting Marie Antoinette’s grove. The queen wanted a personal space in the public gardens.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, hawk babies, and panda babies 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 brought to you by Susan Howson, Patrick deHahn, and Katie Palmer.