Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
The Nobel Committee announces the winner in economic sciences. Although not among the prizes originally established in Alfred Nobel’s will, it stands as one of the premier awards. There is no clear favorite, though a couple of names keep popping up: Olivier Blanchard, the former top economist at the IMF, and Paul Romer, the new chief economist at the World Bank.
Euro-zone finance ministers mark Greece’s homework. Greece needs to have successfully implemented 15 key reforms to qualify for €2.8 billion ($3.1 billion) in aid— the final chunk of the €10.3 billion pledged to the struggling country in May. Privatization, energy sector reforms, and bank-governance overhauls are among the milestones.
LVMH releases third-quarter results. The luxury-goods bellwether, which recently acquired most of luggage maker Rimowa, is coming off a flat first half of the year, after terrorism fears hit tourist traffic in France. The high-end industry continues to slump, with Hermès recently abandoning a forecast and Richemont announcing a steep profit decline.
Over the weekend
The second US presidential debate was nasty and indecisive. Donald Trump responded to questions about his obscene comments toward women by ranting about ISIL, attacked Hillary Clinton over her husband’s infidelities, and said he would jail her over deleted emails. Early polls are divided over who won, and so are pundits.
Samsung reportedly suspended production of the Galaxy Note 7. Four people reported that their Galaxy Note 7 replacement phones overheated over the weekend. Two of the biggest US carriers have stopped selling the phones altogether, and an unnamed supplier told South Korean media that Samsung has temporarily stopped making the device.
A two-day manhunt ended with an arrest in Germany. Police found explosives during a raid on the apartment of Jaber Albakr, a 22-year-old Syrian refugee, but he managed to escape them and was eventually captured in Leipzig on Sunday night. Albakr sought asylum in Germany last year, and is suspected of planning a bomb attack.
Jack Ma and Steven Spielberg partnered up. Alibaba and Amblin Pictures will co-finance, produce, and distribute films in the US and China together. It gives Ma a foothold in Hollywood, and Spielberg an entry to the world’s second largest movie-going public. Ma has been slow to form a US production partnership, unlike Wanda CEO Wang Jianlin, who has bought AMC and Legendary Entertainment, and is in negotiations to buy Dick Clark Productions.
Haiti reeled from the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew. The death toll in the Caribbean country rose to 1,000, with tens of thousands left homeless. Cholera has broken out—and is spreading rapidly— due to contaminated water. At least 19 people died as the storm tore up the coast in the US. Matthew has moved out to sea, though it remains dangerous.
Ethiopia declared a state of emergency. In an attempt to calm anti-government protests, prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn declared a state of emergency for the next six months. At least 55 people died in a recent demonstration, and an estimated 500 have been killed since protests began last November over discrimination against ethnic groups.
Quartz obsession interlude
Thu-Huong Ha on why parents use animal sounds to explain life to children. “One possible reason for this pedagogical tradition’s longevity is that the sheer variety of animals and their sounds makes for good source material for the letters of the alphabet. Or maybe educators just expect kids to like animals, and that the simple sounds help them practice speech in general. And shouting ‘moooooooooooo’ is fun.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
It’s not clear that companies are too short-termist. The common criticism that they focus too much on quarterly earnings doesn’t pan out.
People fear clowns because they look human—but not quite. That’s a quality Sigmund Freud referred to as “uncanny,” and now neuroscientists agree.
Mike Pence would not be a better candidate for women than Donald Trump. He has enacted real policies that have harmed American women.
Surprising discoveries
You have no idea when your kids are lying. Research has found parents can correctly tell their kids are lying only 47% of the time.
There’s a penis museum in Iceland. The family business, set up in 1997, houses 286 specimens (lots of whale penises), and expects to welcome 50,000 visitors this year.
America went wild for an audience member at the presidential debate. Ken Bone captured hearts with his bright red sweater.
Bees can learn and teach new skills. Despite their tiny brains, they have more complex cognitive and learning skills than we previously thought.
Cannabis was discovered at a 2,500-year-old burial site in northwest China. The body of a man was found wrapped in the plant.
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