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Donald Trump returned to the White House. The US president removed his mask and posed for photos. But his doctor said he’s not “out of the woods yet,” and according to CDC guidelines, which now urge even more caution indoors, he is still contagious. Meanwhile, the administration overruled federal guidelines for emergency approval of a vaccine.
Credit Suisse apologized for a party that featured a white man dressed up as a Black janitor. The bank claimed there was “never any intention to cause offense, and we are sorry for any offense caused.” According to the New York Times, Credit Suisse’s then-CEO Tidjane Thiam, who is Black, walked out of the room during the stage act last year.
Another former Soviet state is in turmoil. During demonstrations over allegations of widespread vote-rigging in Sunday’s elections, protesters in Kyrgyzstan broke into parliament and state security headquarters, releasing ex-president Almazbek Atambayev, who had been jailed for corruption after falling out with his successor.
Talk of military service hit demand for shares in BTS’s record label. In the first couple of days of trading, Big Hit Entertainment did ok with retail investors, without pulling up trees. But there’s been discussion in parliament about the band members having to complete their service, like all able-bodied South Korean men over 18.
THE FOUR SEASONS
It hasn’t even been a year since the first case of Covid-19 was confirmed. That means we’re just beginning to understand how seasonal variations interact with the spread of the disease. Did US computer sales shoot up in the second quarter of 2020 because of Covid-19? Or was it simply because computer sales always go up this time of year? How much can we attribute the drop in marriage to the pandemic, and not whether it was wedding season?
Not accounting for seasonality is one of the easiest ways to find an erroneous trend. As part of our field guide to the data deluge, we explain how to avoid that pitfall.
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Charting vice-presidential ratings
US vice-presidential debates are often an afterthought. Since 1984, when Nielsen started tracking TV ratings for the vice-presidential debates, they’ve garnered modest audiences, relative to their presidential counterparts. But this year’s event between Mike Pence and Kamala Harris could be more momentous than usual.
Though the sample is small, there is evidence to suggest women vice-presidential candidates draw bigger TV audiences. The 2008 debate between Joe Biden (then Barack Obama’s running mate) and Sarah Palin drew 69.9 million viewers—the most ever for a vice presidential debate, and more than any of the three presidential debates that year between Obama and John McCain.
Work smarter not harder
Every day, Quartz at Work helps create a living guide to being a better manager, building a career, and navigating the modern workplace. Here’s some breaking advice on taking next steps:
🖨 Buy a printer. It’s the ultimate unglamorous office appliance—boxy, boring, and completely indispensable.
🏓 Plan your next pivot. There’s never been a better time to learn new skills, like mastering the power of spreadsheet pivot tables.
🛠 Take in a workshop. Last week’s Quartz at Work event on building company culture remotely had a little bit of everything, from the practical—contemporary case studies—to the whimsical—a dash of 17th-century history.
🇨🇦 Explore your options. Here’s the complete list of jobs that make it incredibly easy for Americans to move to Canada.
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Obsession interlude: Because China
“In the early 1900s, most Americans saw China either through the eyes of traders seeking new markets, or missionaries seeking new converts. During World War II, China was our ally; during the Korean War, our adversary. At the dawn of the Cold War, when I was a young boy beginning to study such things, it was a cudgel in a political battle: ‘Who lost China?’”—Bill Clinton, March 9, 2000
That was the day president Clinton introduced legislation that would help China join the WTO, arguing it was America’s biggest chance in decades “to create positive change in China.” This year, Pompeo argued that this brand of US optimism has been a failure—and that China could change the rest of the world for the worse.
Great hope—and then deep disillusionment—is a place the US and China keep returning to, says John Pomfret (video), author of The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom, a history of US-China relations since the 18th century.
Americans have “these huge expectations for great changes which are invariably dashed and a huge disenchantment will set in,” said Pomfret in 2017, as relations began to spiral. “…[S]imilarly with the Chinese, they also have these views of the United States as being the key to China’s modernity, its modernization, which then inevitably are crushed and they go through their own period of disenchantment with America as well, and we’ve rotated on this cycle for many, many decades now.”
Pomfret’s book is worth a read, and so is Quartz’s Because China coverage, where you’ll find unique perspectives on the US-China frenemyship.
Your virtual guide to understanding China’s influence in Africa. Join us on Oct. 8 from 9:30-10:30am US eastern time for our free virtual event on China’s influence in Africa. Quartz Africa has assembled a group of the leading thinkers on China-Africa relations to bring you up to date on how this dynamic will impact the global economy.
Surprising discoveries
Invite an elephant to your next video chat. “The Elephant in the Zoom” will raise money for the animals’ care in Thailand to help make up for a lack of tourism revenue.
Covid-19 has changed the way Indians do dishes. With many forgoing domestic help during the pandemic, dishwashers are suddenly in high demand.
Pro wrestlers are duking it out aboard trains in Japan. The unusual entertainment programming is meant to boost local economies along the railway line.
Scientists found intact brain cells in an ancient skull. The man had died almost 2,000 years ago in a volcanic eruption, where the intense heat followed by rapid cooling helped to preserve the brain.
Apple’s new iPhone software is providing a windfall to designers. One creator made over $140,000 after posting an image of his minimalist icons.
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