• ☝️ A European and Japanese robotic explorer came within 183 miles of Mercury’s surface, capturing some of the most detailed close-up images of the planet’s north pole in history.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

• 📉 US markets fell last week (S&P: -1.9%; Dow: -1.9%; Nasdaq: -2.3%). | 📈 US treasury yields are on the rise to start 2025.
• 💼 The US economy added 256,000 jobs in December, above both economist's expectations of ~160,000 and the 212,000 seen in November; the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%.
• 🛍️ Nordstrom raised its full-year sales outlook following a stronger-than-expected holiday season.

SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

in partnership with “Rate My Friends” from Dyce Games

• 👎 Venu, a sports streaming joint venture between Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery, has been given the Gladiator thumbs-down by the companies for antitrust reasons.
• 🏈 CFB Playoff: Ohio State beat Texas 28-14 on Friday to secure a spot in the national championship; the Buckeyes will face off against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish next Monday for the title. | 🏈 NFL Playoffs: The Texas, Ravens, Bills, Eagles, and Commanders punched their tickets to the next round; the Wild Card round concludes tonight, with the Rams taking on the Vikings.
• 🍿 Den of Thieves 2: Pantera topped the domestic box office with $15.5 million in its opening weekend. | 🔥 Hollywood is on pause due to the LA wildfires.

*From our partners: 🤔 Who of your friends is most ____? “Rate My Friends” includes 300 fun topics for players to rate themselves, then see if other players agree. Score by guessing closest. Amazon Prime members can save 20% on “Rate My Friends” from Dyce Games here.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

• 🐉🌊 A never-before-seen species of ancient sea monster first described in 2021 may be a forgery based on fake fossils, according to a new study.
• ☄️ A mountain-sized asteroid will be visible from Earth this week, in a rare once-in-a-decade event.
• 💪🦺 Weighted vests are making a comeback among some trainers – but do they really work?

MISCELLANEOUS

in partnership with Tuft & Needle

• 🌨️ Several cities across the US South experienced their largest snowstorms in years over the weekend, with record snow accumulation totals in many cases.
• 🇻🇪💰 The US government raised its reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to $25 million; the move coincided with Maduro’s third-term inauguration following a disputed election.
• ⚖️ President-elect Trump was sentenced to an unconditional discharge in his New York hush-money trial; the ruling means he won’t face any prison time or other penalties, but keeps the felony convictions on his record. (From the Left | From the Center | From the Right)

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CLICKBAIT

• 🤖🪦 How AI is being used to recreate realistic life-after-death experiences.