Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Venezuela protests against its president. An opposition coalition has organized a “Takeover of Caracas” to contest Nicolás Maduro’s crackdown on opposition leaders, amid severe shortages, crime, and rampant inflation.
The WHO committee on Zika meets. The emergency committee, which convenes every three months, will discuss efforts to fight the disease, after Singapore confirmed 26 new cases of locally transmitted infections, amounting to the largest cluster in Asia.
Lululemon reports earnings. Analysts expect the apparel maker’s revenues to increase 14% from the year prior, as it weathers a storm that has caused stock prices for competitors like Nike and Under Armour to plummet. Campbell’s and Land’s End will also reveal their quarterly numbers.
While you were sleeping
Trump and Peña Nieto met. After returning from a last-minute trip to visit the Mexican president, the US Republican nominee told media the two discussed the wall he wants to build along the border, but not which country would pay for it. Peña Nieto disputed this account, tweeting that he told Trump at the beginning of the meeting that Mexico would not pay.
Brazil swore in its new president. Hours after the Brazilian Senate voted to impeach embattled leader Dilma Rousseff for violating budget rules, her replacement, Michel Temer, addressed the nation promising austerity measures. Meanwhile, anti-riot police arrived in São Paulo to quell angered Rousseff supporters.
Protestors in Gabon set the parliament on fire. After incumbent president Ali Bongo won his bid for re-election, bystanders outside spotted smoke emitting from the National Assembly building as protestors gathered nearby. Bongo’s rival, the former head of the African Union commission Jean Ping, has demanded a recount.
Turkey arrested an American journalist. Lindsey Snell, a freelance journalist, was detained by Turkish authorities on Aug. 7 while attempting to cross the Syrian border, according to the US State Department. Prior to her arrest in Turkey, Snell posted messages on Facebook stating she was held captive by Syrian militants.
Quartz Markets Haiku
The climber stumbles
After a long upward slog
He rests, and climbs on
Quartz obsession interlude
Lauren Alix Brown on what the hospital of the future sounds like. “The goal of changing the soundscape of hospitals isn’t to cover up suffering, but rather to make them more healing environments for those who work and receive treatment there. We may never get to a place where a hospital has the full comfort of home, but this is sounding like a start.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Naked breasts are more French than headscarves. In a speech at a government rally, French prime minister Manual Valls called the bare breasts of painter Eugène Delacroix’s Marianne a national symbol of freedom, inferring a contrast with the Muslim attire.
Hair is political. Rigid policies banning afros and unfairly policing black students in South African schools are a dangerous holdover from apartheid.
Facebook is a “media company.” Sorry to burst Mark Zuckerberg’s bubble but distributing content and controlling the world’s news coverage is the definition of media.
Surprising discoveries
Only half of America thinks schools are for academics. The remainder think they’re either about building work skills or fulfilling civic duties.
NASA space blankets are keeping refugees warm. The reflective, flyweight, plastic sheets used after marathons and to protect refugees were originally used to shield space crafts from harsh space environments.
Sharia and FIFA don’t mix. ISIL has outlawed football referees in a Syrian stronghold, suggesting that the organization implements rules “in violation of the commands of Allah.”
Africa’s elephants are going extinct. There were over 1 million on the continent in 1979, but researchers expect the species to number 160,000 by 2025.
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