09.05.2017

North Korea.
Conducted an underground nuclear test on Sunday, the sixth such test in the country's history and the fourth since Kim Jong Un became leader. North Korea again claimed it was a hydrogen bomb - which combines the fission of normal atomic weapons with the fusion of hydrogen (fission vs fusion) to produce blasts 1,000x more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. That said, experts are doubtful the North tested an H-bomb - though earthquake labs in the US measured a magnitude 6.3 quake, which is 4 to 16 times more powerful than anything the regime has tested before (see the USGS maps). Global leaders condemned the test but still have few good options in dealing with Pyongyang. One bright spot is that scientists think the mountain test site may be about to collapse in on itself. 

Wildfires.
Los Angeles is in the midst of the largest brush fire in the city's history, with more than a thousand firefighters called in from around the state to help contain the blaze. The fire started in La Tuna Canyon - ten miles north of downtown and three miles east of North Hollywood (see real-time map) - and had burned over 7,000 acres, forcing 1,400 residents into temporary shelters. As of Sunday evening the largest fires had turned away from the heavily populated areas of Glendale and officials lifted a mandatory evacuation order - estimating the fire is 30% contained, but with incoming cooler weather giving firefighters the upper hand. LA is not alone - northern CA is experiencing brush fires that have burned through over 4,000 acres as well. 

Rohingya.
Over 125,000 villagers have been forced to flee their homes amid state-led violence in the southeast Asian country of Myanmar. The exodus follows a military campaign against the ethnic Muslim minority - known as the Rohingya - following an attack by Rohingya insurgents against government forces. Human rights groups estimate over 400 have been killed in the ensuing millitary response, which triggered the flood of refugees into neighboring Bangladesh and India. World leaders have increasingly taken notice, including Nobel prize laureate Malala Yousafzai publicly calling out Myanmar president Aung San Suu Kyi over her silence. The Rohingya, which represent the largest ethnic minority in the majority-Buddhist country with 1.1 million people, have a fraught history in SE Asia that extends back decades. 
 

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The Guardian | Rana Dasgupta. In May of last year, a french teenager logged onto the social media platform Periscope, and - as hundreds of viewers turned into thousands  - walked her followers to the local station before jumping in front of a train. In the year since, she has gained a cult following, a sign of the widespread disaffection among French youth. 
 

Longreads/Beacon Press | Christopher Finan. Settlers in the New World brought physical violence and illness to Native American communities, but they also brought a third scourge - distilled spirits at levels of European potency. This excerpt from Drunks: An American History recounts the story of Handsome Lake,  a member of the Seneca Nation, who began to preach against the 'evil drink' after experiencing visions from severe delirium tremens - or withdrawals. 

Good Luck: Read the letter Obama left Trump on Inauguration Day.

The Great Esquire Sex Study: Mag surveys over 1,000 readers to find out what's really "normal".

See the Top 10 "how to" Google searches from around the world. 

Photos: From Burning Man 2017. 

Uber makes data on four major cities public. 

Photos: The best shots from America's 45,000 caves. 

Michelle Obama dresses up like Beyonce for the singer's birthday. 

Swag: NASA releases awesome free posters for 40th anniversary of Voyager missions. 

Get outside: A surprisingly cool  fall foliage prediction map for 2017. 

Historybook: First session of Continental Congress convenes (1774); Sam Houston elected as President of Texas (1836); The First Opium War Begins in China (1839); Jesse James born (1847); HBD Freddie Mercury (1946); Terrorists take Israeli Hostages at the Olympics (1972); Ford assassination attempt thwarted (1975); RIP Mother Teresa (1997); Katie Couric makes network anchor debut (2005)

"I WON'T BE A ROCK STAR. I WILL BE A LEGEND."
-Freddie Mercury

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