Good morning. Oklahoma City could soon be home to the tallest skyscraper in the US. Once completed, the newly announced Legends Tower will stand 1,907 feet tall, beating out NYC’s Freedom Tower at One World Trade Center by 131 feet.

Coming next: Texas announces it’ll top Oklahoma City and build America’s largest building. Because “Everything’s bigger in Oklahoma” just doesn’t have the same ring to it.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be about a 4.79-minute read.

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“Try all things, hold fast that which is good.”

–John Locke (1632-1704)

On Friday, the Biden administration hit the proverbial pause button on the approval of new US licenses to export liquefied natural gas, citing environmental concerns related to climate change.

Biden officials holding the remote say the temporary halt, which affects billions of dollars in projects, will allow the Energy Department to evaluate and update the guidance it uses to approve such licenses. The halt won’t affect already authorized exports, or natural gas exports to US allies including Europe.

Some quick background: Natural gas is used around the world to generate electricity, heat buildings, and power appliances like stoves. In the US, it’s often produced through a technique known as fracking, which has unlocked vast underground supplies in recent decades.

When it comes to carbon emissions, experts say natural gas is similar to a hybrid EV, existing between a less environmentally friendly option (coal or gas-powered cars) and the environmental gold standard (100% renewable energy and EVs).

• Since 2018, the US has tripled its natural gas production en route to becoming the world’s top exporter, with production set to further double by 2030 based on projects under construction.

But many environmental advocates are pushing back on natural gas. Activists and Democrats in favor of the Biden admin’s licensing pause argue that new natural gas projects can harm local communities with pollution, lock in reliance on fossil fuels for decades, and cause excess emissions due to frequent methane leaks.

• On the flip side, many industry groups and Republicans criticize the Biden admin’s move. They argue it will harm America’s economic growth, destabilize global energy markets, and force more countries to seek natural gas exports from Russia and China – who create more emissions during production than the US.

👀 Looking ahead… The Biden admin’s temporary pause on new natural gas export licenses is expected to last until after the November election.

📊 Flash poll: Do you agree with the Biden admin’s decision to pause new licenses for natural gas exports to non-allied countries?

• Yes
• No
• Unsure/other

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🇺🇸🇯🇴 Three US troops were killed, and at least 25 more injured, in an Iran-backed drone strike in Jordan. US officials said the attack at a military base overnight on Saturday struck living quarters for the troops, contributing to the high casualties. President Biden blamed the attack on “radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq.” It marks the first American troops killed since Iran-backed militias across the Middle East – including Houthi rebels in Yemen – began a campaign of airstrikes following the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

🇮🇱⚖️ The International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take humanitarian measures in Gaza. The ICJ instructed Israel to limit casualties and increase humanitarian aid in Gaza, but stopped short of ordering a complete cease-fire. Under the ruling, Israel must report back to the ICJ within a month on measures taken to implement the order, while the court will continue considering South Africa's claims of genocide against Palestinians. All UN countries are expected to abide by the ICJ’s rulings, though the court lacks any enforcement mechanism. Separately, Israel has reportedly concluded that a significant number of weapons used by Hamas since its October 7 attack were created from unexploded Israeli rockets previously launched at Gaza.

🇹🇷 Turkey’s central bank raised baseline interest rates to 45% (!) to curb inflation. The bank increased the rate by 2.5 percentage points on Thursday to combat inflation, which reached 65% in December. It marks Turkey’s eighth consecutive rate hike after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan scrapped his policy of cutting interest rates to combat inflation, which economists say actually helped cause inflation.

Tens of thousands of people converged on Park City, Utah, over the past week and a half for the 40th annual Sundance Film Festival. So if you also happened to be there, those four loud men you saw shredding on the slopes were probably Vinnie Chase & co.

Why it matters: What happens at Sundance has a way of becoming tomorrow’s mainstream – it’s kind of like a crystal ball that provides a glimpse of the people and movies that will shape Hollywood over the next few years. Filmmakers get a chance to showcase their work, and studios come ready to write checks.

• Some of the most iconic films of the past few decades have debuted at Sundance, including Napoleon Dynamite, Little Miss Sunshine, Get Out, and The Blair Witch Project (which made $250+ million on a $60,000 production budget and launched with a rather ingenious marketing campaign).

Studios have cut back on content spending overall, but this year’s festival still saw some big deals. A Real Pain, a Jesse Eisenberg-directed film that also sees him starring alongside Kieran Culkin, sold to Searchlight for $10 million. It's What's Inside, a horror film from first-time filmmaker Greg Jardin, was bought by Netflix for $17 million. And Amazon's MGM Studios is reportedly in final negotiations to acquire My Old Ass, a coming of age dramedy starring Aubrey Plaza and Maisy Stella, for $15 million.

+Dive deeper: Some other takeaways from Sundance 2024.

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💬 Quoted… “This is maybe the most exciting thing I’ll ever do in my life. I feel like a 10-year-old going on a treasure hunt.”

• National Treasure is getting a real-life remake. Tony Romeo, a former US Air Force intelligence officer and pilot, believes he’s discovered the plane that record-breaking aviator and American national treasure Amelia Earhart flew on her 1937 attempt to become the first person to fly around the world – aka the trip that resulted in her mysterious disappearance. Romeo recently captured images showing what he and some experts believe is Earhart’s plane resting on the floor of the central Pacific Ocean. The image was taken following an $11 million private investigation in which Romeo and two of his brothers, all pilots, tried to identify Earhart’s flight path by studying her direction, location, and fuel levels based on her last known radio signals.

📈 Stat of the Day: The S&P 500’s recent streak of record highs can be attributed to just one of the index’s 11 sectors – information technology, which is also trading at its highest level ever. All 10 of the index’s other sectors are trading at an average of 15% below their all-time highs, per the WSJ. As they say, a rising tide lifts all ships.

🤔 Did You Know?... The Bronx High School of Science in New York City has more Nobel Prize winners (nine) than 170+ countries, including China and Spain.

📰 Worth a Read: The Man in Room 117 → (NY Times)

• ☝️ The world's largest cruise ship, called the Icon of the Seas, set sail from Miami on its maiden voyage this weekend; the $2 billion vessel measures a record 1,197 feet long and can hold up to 7,600 passengers across its 20 decks.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

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• 💰 US markets closed mixed on Friday (S&P: -0.1%; Dow: +0.2%; Nasdaq: -0.4%).
• 📉 Investment in US startups fell in 2023 for the second straight year, reaching its lowest level since 2020.
• 🥩 US meat prices are projected to fall slightly in the coming months due to increased production of soybean-based jet fuel and diesel, which also creates an ingredient widely used in animal feed as a byproduct.

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SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🏈 The Super Bowl matchup is set: The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers will face-off on February 11; the Chiefs beat the Ravens 17-10 yesterday to secure their bid, while the 49ers topped the Lions by a score of 34-31. | 🎾 Australia Open: Italian Jannik Sinner, 22, won his first major men’s title, while Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her Aussie Open women’s title without dropping a set.
• 😆🤖 Comedian George Carlin’s estate filed a lawsuit over a comedy special that used AI to recreate the late comedian’s voice and style without permission. | 🚫 X, formerly Twitter, halted all searches for Taylor Swift on Saturday after explicit, digitally created fakes of the singer spread across the site last week.
• 🤼 Vince McMahon resigned from wrestling giant TKO Group – and its subsidiary, WWE, which he founded – over a lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault and trafficking; McMahon denies the charges and says he plans to fight them in court.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with Incogni

• 🪐🌊 NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover confirmed the existence of an ancient lake that once existed within a large crater on the red planet; Perseverance also collected sediment samples that scientists hope could reveal traces of life on Mars.
• 👶🫀 The first baby to undergo a partial heart transplant is likely to be spared further surgeries because the implanted tissue is growing along with him – an outcome never before seen in humans.
• ☀️🚀 The European Space Agency is planning to launch a pair of spacecraft that’ll create frequent, artificial solar eclipses in space; the mission will allow researchers to closely study the sun's outer atmosphere (aka corona) for the first time.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• 🏳️‍🌈 28% of Gen Z identifies as LGBTQ, compared to 16% of millennials, 7% of Gen X, and 4% of baby boomers, per new polling from the Public Religion Research Institute.
• 🚜💰 The FTC issued a $2 million fine to tractor manufacturing giant Kubota for mislabeling some of its parts as “Made in the USA”; it marks the largest such fine in US history.
• ⚖️ Former President Trump was ordered by a New York jury to pay $83.3 million in a defamation suit brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, who previously won a $5 million civil sexual assault case against Trump. (From the Left | From the Center | From the Right)

CLICKBAIT

• 👶🚫 Baby names at risk of going extinct in 2024.

Monday: The IRS begins accepting 2023 returns

Tuesday: National Puzzle Day

Wednesday: The Federal Reserve concludes its first meeting of 2024; is expected to hold interest rates steady

Thursday: Black History Month kicks off with the first day of February; weekly unemployment claims

Friday: January jobs report; Apple begins delivering Vision Pro headsets; Groundhog Day

On Friday, we covered how Alabama carried out the world’s first judicial execution using nitrogen gas, which could soon be adopted by other states where the death penalty is legal.

❓ Our question to you: In general, do you support the existence of the death penalty?

• 👍 Yes: 43%
• 👎 No: 43%
• 🤷 Unsure/other: 14%

Click here to read some of the best responses.

+Note on sample size: We received 7,628 votes and 555 longform responses.

"Jumbo Jump" in Karachi, Pakistan just claimed the coveted title of the world's largest inflatable bouncy castle.

Talk about childhood dreams... Jumbo Jump measures ~15,300 square feet and has a maximum capacity of 200 people.

• The castle took six months to create and features multiple slides, climbing walls, a maze, an obstacle course, and more. 
• "Remarkably," reports Guinness World Records, "it only took a short 10 minutes to completely inflate."

Today’s trivia is inspired by OKC’s Legends Tower announcement. Can you name the current top-five tallest buildings in the world?

(keep scrolling for the answers)

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1. Burj Khalifa located in Dubai, UAE (2,717 feet)
2. Merdeka 118 located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2,227 feet)
3. Shanghai Tower located in Shanghai, China (2,073 feet)
4. Abraj Al-Bait Clock Tower located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia (1,972 feet)
5. Ping An International Finance Center in Shenzhen, China (1,966 feet)

(Source: Wikipedia)