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04.06.2022

Tiger Woods, Infamous Researcher Released, and the Triple Peak Day Everything you need to know for today in five minutes.

Good morning. It's Wednesday, April 6, and we're covering the likely return of Tiger Woods, the release of a Chinese researcher, and much more. Have feedback? Let us know at [email protected].

NEED TO KNOW
 

Zelenskyy Addresses UN Council

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is urging the UN Security Council to remove Russia as a member and hold it responsible for war crimes in front of a tribunal. Appearing via video yesterday, Zelenskyy recounted the atrocities in Ukraine and particularly in Bucha, saying civilians were raped, tortured, crushed to death by tanks, and more. Moscow has denied the accusations.

 

Zelenskyy also told the Security Council it should dissolve itself if it can't remove Russia. Removal of Russia from the council is unlikely. As a permanent member (see 101), it would require a recommendation for removal from the full assembly—a move which Russia itself can veto. 

 

Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court at The Hague opened an investigation into possible war crimes in Ukraine a month ago. But investigating a war crime, such as proving the targeting of civilians, can take time. See potential war crimes in Ukraine here.

 

Separately, Russian mercenaries and Malian troops allegedly executed about 300 people in central Mali. Officials claimed it was an operation against militant Islamist groups in the West African country. 

Tiger Woods Returns

Tiger Woods said yesterday he plans to play in—and win—the 2022 Masters Tournament, which begins Thursday at the Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia. His announcement comes about 13 months after a single-car accident that left his right leg badly injured and doctors considering amputation. 

 

The five-time Masters champion was recovering from his fifth back surgery when in February 2021, his SUV crashed over a median on a suburban coastal road in Los Angeles and rolled down a hill. Police estimated Woods was driving more than 80 mph on a 45-mph road. Doctors placed a rod in Woods’ right leg and used screws and pins to stabilize other injuries in his ankle and foot. Woods spent three months in the hospital. For the Masters, Woods will need to walk the hilly terrain at Augusta National.

 

See the Masters schedule here, and watch Woods provide comments here.

CRISPR Baby Researcher Released

Prominent genetics researcher He Jiankui has been released from a Chinese prison, according to reports, roughly three years after being jailed for overseeing a clandestine research program focused on modifying human embryos. 

 

He gained worldwide notoriety in 2018 after revealing he used CRISPR gene-editing to confer HIV-1 resistance to fertilized twin embryos that were artificially implanted into a surrogate. The technique is capable of making precise alterations at specific locations in DNA, but can also cause unpredictable changes to the DNA around where the edit occurs, which may not be realized until the subject grows older. In this case, researchers artificially mutated the CCR5 gene in a way that gave rise to natural HIV-1 resistance (how it works). 

 

Notably, He announced the results after the twins were born, though their current status has been kept under wraps.  

1440's CRISPR Resource Page
 

Dear readers—

 

Thousands of you have told us you want to learn more about fascinating topics like CRISPR but aren't sure where to begin. 1440 has been hard at work over the past few months, curating the best resources from across the internet on topics you want to learn about. 

 

From more on the CRISPR babies to visualizations of how CRISPR works at the DNA level, explore the rapidly evolving field—and what it means for the future—on our CRISPR resource page. 

 

This is a beta platform; please don't hesitate to leave feedback on-site or at [email protected].

 

As always, thanks for contributing your time and input to help make 1440 better for our 1.5 million readers.

 

Drew

Editor-in-chief

In partnership with Magic Mind

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IN THE KNOW
 

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

> WarnerMedia's Jason Kilar to step down as CEO once Discovery's acquisition of the company is completed next week (More)

 

> MLB will allow pitchers and catchers to use technology designed to thwart sign-stealing from opposing teams; baseball's opening day is tomorrow (More)

 

> Two-time Oscar-winning director Asghar Farhadi found guilty in an Iranian court of plagiarizing his former student's work for the 2021 film "A Hero" (More)

Science & Technology

> US environmental officials issue proposal to ban asbestos; the substance, used in some building materials and other applications, has been linked to 40,000 US deaths per year (More)

 

> Japan's Subaru Telescope captures the first images of early evolution of gas giant planets; newborn planet is located about 530 light-years away (More)

 

> MRI study links greater asymmetry in the shape of the left brain hemisphere to increased ability to process written words into sounds (More)

Business & Markets

In partnership with The Ascent

> US stock markets fall (S&P 500 -1.3%, Dow -0.8%, Nasdaq -2.3%) as Federal Reserve indicates it could take additional actions to curb inflation (More)

 

> Elon Musk ($219B), Jeff Bezos ($171B) top Forbes annual list of the world’s richest people; total of 2,668 billionaires down from last year (More) | Elon Musk to join Twitter’s board after disclosing 9% ownership stake Monday (More)

 

> GM and Honda partner to develop affordable lineup of electric vehicles to be priced under $30K by 2027 (More) | JetBlue makes $3.6B all-cash offer for Spirit Airlines, which previously announced a merger with fellow discount airline Frontier (More)

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Politics & World Affairs

> More than 26 million residents now under COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai; officials have recorded 73,000 infections but no deaths during the city's outbreak (More) | Average COVID-19 deaths in the US fall below 600 per day (More)

 

> Biden administration to extend pause on federal student loan repayment through August, affecting roughly 43 million borrowers (More) | See overview on student debt data (More)

 

> Oklahoma lawmakers pass near-total abortion ban; measure, prohibiting the procedure except to save the life of a mother, is likely to face legal challenges if signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) (More)

WHAT CAUSES PROCRASTINATION?
 

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ETCETERA
 

Get used to the triple peak day.

 

A detailed roadmap to creating an Oscar-worthy film.

 

How Americans feel about the future of tech.

 

The most (and least) healthy cities in the US.

 

Construction is completed on the world's skinniest skyscraper.

 

Stolen Darwin notebooks return home.

 

Fascinating photos of abandoned Italian churches.

 

Mildly terrifying robotic artist goes on a roadshow.

 

Clickbait: Scientists tell aliens we're here—what could go wrong?

 

Historybook: Renaissance artist Raphael born and died (1483, 1520); First modern Olympics opens in Athens (1896); Robert Peary claims to have become the first to reach the North Pole (1909); The US declares war on Germany in World War I (1917); RIP country singer Tammy Wynette (1998).
 

"The time to prepare for your next expedition is when you have just returned from a successful trip."

- Robert Peary

Why 1440? The printing press was invented in the year 1440, spreading knowledge to the masses and changing the course of history. Guess what else? There are 1,440 minutes in a day and every one is precious. That’s why we scour hundreds of sources every day to provide a concise, comprehensive, and objective view of what's happening in the world. Reader feedback is a gift—shoot us a note at [email protected].

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