Good morning. In today’s edition:

• 🐘 Elephants are even smarter than we thought
• 😬 Mattel’s NSFW Wicked doll snafu
• 🤫 Europe falls silent

… and more.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~4.96-minute read (1,320 words).

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“Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit.”

–Vince Lombardi (1913-1970)

It’s time to address the elephant in the room – and tell them to put the hose away when they’re done using it.

According to a new study published in Current Biology, elephants possess remarkable skill at turning a hose into a flexible shower head, in the latest example of tool usage in the animal kingdom.

The study details how an Asian elephant named Mary at the Berlin Zoo uses a water hose to shower herself in a surprisingly sophisticated way:

• Mary systematically covers her entire body with water by coordinating the hose with her limbs.
• She typically grabs the hose behind its tip to use it as a stiff shower head – but to reach her back, she switches to a lasso strategy, grasping the hose farther up and swinging it over her body.
• When researchers presented Mary with a larger and heavier hose, she ditched the bulkier, less useful hose and used her trunk to wash instead, in an exhibition of goal-directed tool use.

Impractical Joker?

During the experiment, another elephant, Anchali, seemed to have mastered the art of sabotaging Mary’s water flow. First, Anchali pulled the hose and kinked it – then she got even craftier, using her trunk to press down and stop the water completely.

Researchers are divided on Anchali’s motivation. Some view her behavior as the elephant version of a YouTube prankster, while others see it as seeking attention from humans who are focused on the other elephant – or even deliberate sabotage.

⚒️ Zoom out: The study marks the latest example of tool use within the animal kingdom. A non-exhaustive list: octopuses use coconut shells as portable armor, sea otters keep a favorite rock in their pouch to break open hard-shelled prey, and crows and great apes can even create new tools for themselves by combining two or more otherwise non-functional elements.

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💥 Fighting in the Russia-Ukraine war is escalating once more. The two countries exchanged unprecedented drone strikes over the weekend, with Ukraine launching a record 30 drones at Moscow and Russia firing 145 drones into Ukraine (a single-night record). The attacks come as ~50,000 Russian and North Korean soldiers have amassed in Russia’s Kursk region ahead of an expected counteroffensive to retake Ukrainian-seized territory in Kursk, which could launch within days.

🇨🇳 Four friends in China started a massive night-cycling trend – and were shut down by the cops. According to Chinese media, the trend began in June, when four college friends biked ~40 miles from Zhengzhou to Kaifeng to eat a type of soup dumpling for which the city is famous. Soon, hordes of college students were also making the trip. The situation came to a head on Friday, when ~100,000 people joined the cycling journey. The massive crowd jammed major roads, overwhelmed a small city, and prompted authorities to ban future journeys over safety concerns.

🍽️ For when you want the 2 for $20 deal with a side of pancakes. The first combined Applebee’s-IHOP restaurant in the US will open near San Antonio, Texas, early next year, Dine Global, which owns both brands, recently announced. The idea is to maximize revenue while maintaining the same footprint as a single restaurant, with a combined menu covering breakfast through dinner and staff trained to work with both brands. The approach has already seen success: Dine Global’s 13 international IHOP-Applebee’s locations generate 1.5x-2x the revenue of traditional restaurants.

Detroit wants to add crypto to the list of things it’s known for – right next to cars, The Temptations, and cat-focused sports teams. Last week, the city announced it will soon accept cryptocurrency as payment for taxes and other fees, making it the largest city in America to provide residents with the option.

• City officials said the payments will be made through a secure platform and managed by PayPal. From there, the crypto will be converted to cash before it hits government accounts, so as to not expose the city to the crypto market’s volatility.
• The payment option is expected to become available sometime in mid-2025.

In the same announcement, Detroit officials also called for entrepreneurs and innovators to pitch ideas for how the city government can incorporate blockchain technology into its operations, with a focus on enhancing transparency, improving data security, and streamlining public services.

Motown isn’t the only city pushin’ C. Williston, North Dakota, and Miami Lakes, Florida, also allow residents to use crypto to pay for city services like licenses and permits. And as of November 2024, three states accept cryptocurrency for state payment – Colorado, Louisiana, and Utah.

🪙 A crypto resurgence? Bitcoin is up ~30% since Election Day and currently trading at record highs. Analysts expect the incoming Trump administration to take a more hands-off and business-friendly approach to the crypto industry compared to current SEC chair Gary Gensler, under whom the agency filed lawsuits against FTX, Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, and Ripple.

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"Like any business, mistakes can and do happen in the toy business.”

A recent snafu by Mattel is putting double meaning into the phrase: “something Wicked this way comes.”

The toy company’s new line of Wicked dolls – made in collaboration with Universal Pictures to promote the upcoming film’s release – are being pulled from retailers' shelves by the thousands, after a mistake was discovered on the packaging that directs consumers to a porn site instead of the movie’s official website.

• The film’s website is wickedmovie.com. The URL on the box omits the word “movie.”
• Mattel apologized over the weekend for the error.

Clean up in aisle Wicked: Target, Walmart, and Amazon have already removed the line of Wicked dolls from their online storefronts, as have Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, and Macy’s.

🎎 However… Should you be so inclined, dozens of Mattel dolls in the misprinted packages are available for purchase on eBay, with list prices ranging between $40–$2,100. The dolls retailed for between $20–$40, depending on the character and outfit.

• ☝️ Cities and residents across the US celebrated Veterans Day yesterday with parades, memorial services, and acts of service.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

in partnership with Armoire

• 💰 US markets rose across the board yesterday (S&P: +0.1%; Dow: +0.7%; Nasdaq: +0.1%); the S&P and Dow closed at new record highs.
• 🌯 Chipotle announced Scott Boatwright will become its new CEO effective immediately; Boatwright had been serving as interim CEO since August, when Brian Niccol left for Starbucks.
• 🇭🇹✈️ Several US airlines have suspended flights to Haiti after a Spirit Airlines plane appeared to be hit by gunfire while attempting to land in the country.

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SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• ⚾ The Philadelphia Phillies raised $500 million in capital from three investors; the deal values the franchise at ~$3 billion.
• ⚽ Lionel Messi's Inter Miami was eliminated in the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs following a 3-2 loss to Atlanta United. See the full MLS playoff picture here. | ⚽ NWSL Playoffs: The Washington Spirit, NY/NJ Gotham FC, Orlando Pride, and Kansas City Current have advanced to the semifinals
• 🏆🎶 Beyoncé leads the pack in this year's Grammy nominations, with 11 nods for Cowboy Carter; Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar, Post Malone, and Charli XCX each received seven nods, followed by Taylor Swift with six. See the full list of nominations.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with Paleovalley

• 🏥 An estimated 16% of US adults are thought to have diabetes (including undiagnosed cases), up from 10% in 2000, according to new CDC data.
• 💻 TSMC, the Taiwanese semiconductor giant that makes 90+% of the world’s cutting-edge computer chips, is pausing delivery of some advanced chips to China; the move comes after a TSMC chip was discovered in Huawei tech despite US sanctions.
• 🪐 Much of scientists’ knowledge of Uranus comes from a brief Voyager 2 flyby in 1986 – but that flyby may have occurred during a freak event where an exceptional increase in solar activity caused Uranus’ magnetic field to shrink, per a new study. | 🐒 At least 25 of the 43 monkeys who escaped a South Carolina research facility last week have now been captured.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• 🇺🇸🗳️ 2024 Election: Republicans drew closer to maintaining their House majority this weekend and hold a 214-204 lead as of last night, per the AP (218 is a majority); in the Senate, Republicans currently hold a 53-46 lead with one seat in Arizona yet to be called, per the AP; President-elect Trump ended with 312 electoral votes to 226 for Harris after his clean sweep of all seven battleground states was finalized this weekend. | 🏛️ President-elect Trump appointed several senior cabinet members and advisers over the holiday weekend. | ⚖️ The DOJ charged three men in alleged Iran-linked murder-for-hire plots, including targeting President-elect Trump on the campaign trail.
• 🔥 Wildfires continued to burn yesterday on America’s East and West Coasts; the Northeast US is dealing with smaller wildfires that caused at least one death, while California continues to fight a larger fire northwest of LA that’s forced thousands of evacuations. | 🌀 FEMA fired a worker who told her team to avoid houses with pro-Trump yard signs while responding to a recent Florida hurricane.
• ⛪ The bells of Notre Dame cathedral rang out on Friday for the first time since a 2019 fire devastated the world heritage landmark. | 🌍 Arab and Muslim leaders are convening in Saudi Arabia for a summit this week; topics are expected to include Israeli fighting in Gaza and Lebanon, as well as the upcoming Trump presidency.

CLICKBAIT

• 💼🤑 5 in-demand low-stress jobs – they all pay over $100,000 and help the environment.

🙏 Stat of the Day: Simon & Garfunkel haven’t been on tour in over a decade – but millions of people across Europe experienced the sound of silence for two minutes yesterday. The collective hush was to commemorate Armistice Day, or the end of World War I on November 11, 1918, with political leaders including UK King Charles, PM Keir Starmer, and French President Emmanuel Macron attending ceremonies to honor the fallen from WWI.

🤔 Did You Know? The famed Doomsday Clock, maintained by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists since its creation in 1947, was initially set at seven minutes to midnight for purely aesthetic purposes. All movements after that have been determined by Bulletin scientists.

📰 Worth a Read: Let the Games Begin: How gladiators in ancient Anatolia lived to entertain the masses → (Archaeology Magazine)

Here are five stats from this past week that made our team go “whoa.” Hopefully you will, too.

• 🇺🇸🏛️ A record-high 13 women will be US governors next year.
• 👻 Americans’ belief in ghosts has risen by ~400% since the late 1970s.
• 🌎🗳️ The incumbent political leaders in all 10 major countries tracked by the ParlGov research project lost their elections in 2024, the first such instance in records going back ~120 years.
• 🍔 California’s fast-food minimum wage increase hasn’t decreased overall employment, and resulted in average one-time price increases of ~3.7% (aka a 15-cent increase on a $4 burger), per a new study.
• 💰 The US imposes ~3x more sanctions than any other country or international body.

On Friday, we covered the factors that enabled President-elect Trump to cruise to victory over VP Harris in the 2024 presidential election, winning all seven key battleground states.

❓ Our question to you (long-form): What’s your take on how the 2024 presidential election played out?

• “The main issues definitely played a huge part in this election. But I also believe many people were swayed by blatant corruption of our government and media. Add the billions of dollars we spend to fund things Americans don't agree with, and you have a blow out. The appearance that Trump will try to fix those things led to a windfall for his campaign.”
• “Trump’s victory is a clear signal that a broad portion of my fellow citizens are fed up with the current state of affairs in DC and beyond. I believe many of his supporters view him as a political outsider, a change agent, and someone who is on their side. Like him or not, he is authentic and knows how to connect to everyday people. Many of his supporters believe our country needs a shakeup and he was hired to do just that.”
• “The main reason Harris lost is because she failed to distinguish herself from the hugely unpopular current administration. Noone voted for her to be the candidate. She provided no real policy or solutions. It’s a travesty she is who Dems put forward, and we can only hope they realize that constituents don’t want a neo-liberal career politician.”

Click here to read more of the most thoughtful longform responses.

+Note: Some responses may be slightly edited for length/clarity; Sample size: We received 286 long-form responses.

The UK's Woburn Safari Park has welcomed its first baby bongo calf in over ten years.

🍼 Talk about cuteness... The baby boy is a result of the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums' endangered species management program.

• The Eastern mountain bongo is one of the most critically endangered animals on the planet, with less than 100 remaining in the wild. 

Can you guess the definitions of the following Greek/Latin root words?

1. Bi
2. Cap
3. Cata
4. Em
5. Gram

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1. Bi = Two (e.g., binary, bicycle, binoculars)
2. Cap = Take (capture)
3. Cata = Down (catatonic)
4. Em = Buy (redeem)
5. Gram = Writing (grammar)