Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
NATO holds talks with Russia. Topics on the agenda at the ambassador-level meeting include the crisis in Ukraine and Europe’s overall security situation. European leaders are also concerned about Moscow’s relationship with US president-elect Donald Trump.
South Korea puts the president’s confidante on trial. Choi Soon-sil, a 40-year friend to disgraced president Park Geun-hye and the person at the heart of her corruption scandal, is being charged with abuse of power, extortion, and attempted fraud. While the trial is open to the public, the court—worried about overcrowding—has raffled admission tickets.
A verdict is issued in the Christine Lagarde trial. Lagarde, head of the IMF, is charged with “serious negligence” over a massive payout to a businessman in 2008 during her time as French finance minister. Lagarde maintains she was acting in the public interest.
The US electoral college officially votes. America’s 538-member electoral college, usually considered a rubber stamp, has been urged this year to block Donald Trump as president (though it’s believed unlikely to do so). Trump lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton by nearly three million votes.
Over the weekend
Evacuations resumed in Aleppo. The safe removal of thousands of civilians and rebels began in government-controlled eastern Aleppo and four other cities, under a complex deal between pro-Syrian-government forces and rebels. The evacuations stalled on Sunday when rebel forces set six buses aflame, but resumed shortly afterwards.
China said it will give back a seized US drone. The Pentagon complained after China seized an American underwater drone in the South China Sea last week. Both countries announced on Saturday that the drone would be returned, but it’s possible that China might keep its data or place additional demands on the US as a consequence.
Germany threatened to punish Facebook for fake news. The chairman of Germany’s Social Democratic Party proposed a new law that would require companies like Facebook to set up round-the-clock offices specifically to deal with fake news, and be fined €500,000 ($520,000) for each fake post. Germany fears fake news could affect its parliamentary elections next year.
BP made a big bet on offshore gas. The energy giant is buying nearly $1 billion worth of drilling licenses from Kosmos Energy in an enormous natural gas field off the coast of West Africa. The field is believed to hold up to 50 trillion cubic feet (paywall) of natural gas, and adds to other recent licensing deals as BP tries to find new sources of growth.
The German economy was in a “festive mood.” In the latest report from the Ifo Institute, the German business climate index hit its highest level in nearly five years, thanks in large part to a continuing construction boom. Surveys from Market and ZEW last week also said (paywall) the German economy was ending the year in good shape.
Star Wars gave the box office a jolt. Disney’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story had the second-biggest December opening on record. The film raked in $155 million at North American theaters—despite winter storms blanketing most of the continent—and an additional $135.5 million internationally.
Quartz obsession interlude
Olivia Goldhill on Silicon Valley’s embrace of Stoicism. “But there’s also something a little, well, eye-rollingly predictable about Silicon Valley elites latching onto a philosophy that teaches them how to accept the things they cannot change. This is a world that’s already seen as doing far too little to address real world concerns, is largely populated by privileged white men who are less affected by such issues, and is notorious for being a closed bubble.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
The female orgasm is a form of social control. The latest theory is that it allows men to exert influence over their partners.
Saying you’re “busy” gets you respect. A study found “busyness” confers higher social status in the US.
Neuroscience can predict which kids grow up to be criminals. Examining the brains of three-year-olds in this way is helpful, not deterministic, researchers argue.
Surprising discoveries
Anne Frank’s family may not have been betrayed. Their hiding place could have been discovered by mere coincidence.
A child got a seriously mistaken Christmas gift. An American couple who ordered a toy plane for their daughter received a semi-automatic rifle instead.
Whipped cream is facing a shortage. A fatal explosion at a nitrous oxide plant has stunted the US’s supply of the frothy topping this holiday season.
The biggest glacier in East Antarctica is melting. Warm ocean waters are chipping at the largest ice sheet in the world, suggesting mounting global climate instability.
A pagan priest got the right to wear goat horns in his driver’s license photo. The horns count as “religious attire.”
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, goat horns, and whipped cream alternatives to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android.