• ☝️ It was a good weekend to be a Notre Dame fan. On Friday, the world received its first glimpse inside the restored Notre Dame cathedral one week ahead of its official reopening; on Saturday, the #5-ranked Fighting Irish beat USC to close out an 11-1 season and clinch a CFP playoff berth.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

in partnership with Switzerland Tourism

• 📈 US markets rose last week (S&P: +1.1%; Dow: +1.4%; Nasdaq: +1.1%).
• 📦 Amazon workers in 20+ countries went on strike for Black Friday, demanding more pay and better working conditions; the strike is slated to last through today.
• 💰 Black Friday set online shopping records: Americans spent a record $10.8 billion this year, per Adobe Analytics; that's up more than 10% from last year; brick-and-mortar sales stayed mostly flat or declined, depending on the data provider.

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SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• ⚽ MLS Playoffs: The New York Red Bulls will face off against the LA Galaxy next weekend for the title.
• 🏈 CFB Rivalry Week lived up to its name: Michigan beat #2 Ohio State 13-10 (a fight ensued after the game); North Carolina State beat North Carolina 35-30 (a fight also ensued after the game); Florida beat Florida State 31-11 (anotha one fight ensued after the game); and Arizona State beat Arizona 49-7 (yet another scuffle after the game).
• ⚖️ Major Canadian news outlets are suing OpenAI for copyright infringement.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with Thousand Fell

• 💡 UK researchers created the first-ever image of a photon using a groundbreaking new technique.
• ⛰️🦁 Mountain lions who live near recreational areas used by humans are more nocturnal than their counterparts in other areas, signaling a proactive adaptation from the species.
• ☀️🛰️ The European Space Agency is nearing the launch of a landmark mission that aims to use satellites flying in close formation to create artificial solar eclipses for each other above Earth.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• ❄️ Several million Americans were under winter storm alerts across the Great Lakes region yesterday, with many areas receiving 2-4 feet of snow; the weather is expected to continue through Tuesday. | ✈️ A record-high 232,000 flights traveled across the US during Thanksgiving week, per FAA figures; the TSA screened 12.1 million people over the same period, up 3% from last year.
• 💥 An Israeli airstrike on a car in the Gaza Strip killed five people on Saturday, including three employees of World Central Kitchen, per Gazan officials; Israel says the strike was targeting a WCK employee who participated in Hamas’ October 7 attack.
• 🏛️ President-elect Trump nominated Kash Patel as his new FBI Director; Patel served in intelligence and defense roles in Trump's first term. | 📝 The mother of Pete Hegseth, President-elect Trump’s pick for Secretary of Defense, sent him an email in 2018 saying he had routinely mistreated women for years, per a NY Times report; Hegseth’s mother defended her son and disavowed the email in a recent interview. | 📝 President Biden pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, last night, weeks before the younger Biden was due to be sentenced for federal gun and tax evasion charges; President Biden had previously said he wouldn't interfere on his son's behalf.

CLICKBAIT

• 🤔 Who is David Mayer, and why won't ChatGPT talk about him?