1.15.2019

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All your news in a single email. We scour 100+ sources so you don't have to. Culture, science, sports, politics, business, and more - all packaged in a 5-minute read below.
Need To Know.
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Teachers Strike in Los Angeles.
Over 31,000 Los Angeles public-school teachers went on strike yesterday, the district's first in over 31 years. The walkout in the nation's largest school district disrupted education for over 500,000 students across 900 buildings - the city left schools open, employing a skeleton crew of substitutes. In addition to higher pay, the union demands include smaller class sizes, more money for counselors and nurses, and less standardized testing. Despite being in one of the most expensive areas in the country, the district itself is overwhelmingly low income (see district stats), with over 80% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The strike follows a wave of similar protests in 2018, from Arizona to North Carolina. 
William Barr.
President Trump's nominee for attorney general is set to begin his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee today. The 78-year-old Barr was in private practice when tapped for the job, a position he previously held during the George HW Bush administration. Barr's confirmation gained more attention after reports that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein plans on stepping down in the near future. Barr would assume oversight of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into potential Russian meddling into the 2016 election - in prepared testimony, Barr said he fully supports Mueller completing the probe. 

Elsewhere in DC, GOP leaders stripped Rep. Steve King (IA-5) of his committee 
assignments over remarks he made about white supremacy in a recent interview. 
Man Charged in Closs Case.
Jake Thomas Patterson was charged yesterday in the abduction of Wisconsin teenager Jayme Closs and the killing of her parents last October. Police say the 21-year-old Patterson had never met the teen or her family, but targeted Closs after seeing her at a bus stop (read criminal complaint). The case gripped the country's attention after the teen disappeared without a trace, sparking a statewide search and a flood of supposed sightings from around the country. Closs was recovered just miles from her family home after escaping from Patterson's cabin following 88 days of captivity. Patterson is being held on $5M bail. 

According to FBI statistics, only about 10% of homicides are committed by attackers with no relationship to the victim. 
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In The Know.
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Sports, Entertainment & Culture.
> Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray declares for NFL draft; Murray, a first-round MLB draft pick, may still decide to play baseball (More)
> Mel Stottlemyre, longtime New York Yankees player and coach, dies at 77 (More)
> HBO announces Game of Thrones final season premiere date of April 14th (More) | Miss the first seven seasons? Here's a recap (More)
Science & Technology.
> New ransomware known as Ryuk has netted at least $4M since August by selectively infecting deep-pocketed targets (More)
> Cancers with a higher number of mutations are likely to respond to cutting-edge immunotherapies (More)
> Study finds that upper-ocean warming has increased the power of waves by 0.4% per year since 1948 (More)
Business & Markets.
> PG&E, the largest power utility provider in the US, prepares bankruptcy filing due to liabilities from role in California wildfires; shares plunge over 50% (More)
> Newmont Mining to acquire rival Goldcorp in $10B deal to create world's largest gold miner (More)
> Gannett, the owner of USA Today, Detroit Free Press & 100 other publications, receives hostile takeover bid from newspaper holding company MNG Enterprises (More)
Politics & World Affairs.
> In reversal of a 2016 ruling, China sentences Canadian man to death for drug smuggling; move raises diplomatic tensions, seen as retaliation for arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of Chinese telecom giant Huawei (More)
> UK Parliament looks set to vote down Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit package; UK is set to separate from the European Union on March 29th, with or without a deal in place (More)
> 2 dead, at least 40 detained as Chechnya launches crackdown on LGBTQ community (More)
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In Depth.
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Drew Brees Turns 40.
ESPN | Mike Triplett. It's no secret that New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is a competitive football player who thrives under pressure (he broke the NFL record this year for passing yards and completions). But even off the field - whether it be ping pong, tennis, golf, or even jumping rope - Brees can't shake his ultracompetitive nature. (Read)
Life, Death, and Insulin.
The Washington Post | Tiffany Stanley. In the past ten years, the price of US insulin has increased by 300%. As prices continue to rise, many diabetic patients are beginning to ration their supply - a roll of the dice with life or death consequences. (Read)
Etcetera.
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The greatest (lesser known) Martin Luther King Jr. speeches.
 
Introvert or extrovert, here are 5 tips to becoming a better conversationalist.
Americans are now more likely to die from an opioid overdose than a car crash
Kylie Jenner's response to being dethroned from Instagram by an egg

If You Like Us: Check out our partner Now I Know, a daily trivia e-mail newsletter with some of the most fascinating tidbits - like the story of the Italian bank that takes cheese as deposits.  
The government shutdown is causing long lines at the Atlanta airport (video clip via Reddit).  
Ignorance is Bliss: Orkin ranks the 50 worst cities for bed bugs.
The US Army used to have nuclear warheads that could be carried around in a backpack
College football champs Clemson Tigers chow down on fast food at the White House.
 
Clickbait: Woman incorrectly pronounced dead dies of hypothermia in the morgue
Historybook: Coca-Cola Co. is incorporated (1889); HBD Martin Luther King, Jr (1929); First Super Bowl is played (1967); Wikipedia is launched (2001); RIP Cranberries lead singer Dolores O’Riordan (2018).
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- Martin Luther King Jr. 
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