| Need to Know |
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| Coronavirus Deaths Mount in the UK |
The United Kingdom is on track to pass Italy as Europe's coronavirus epicenter, with 28,520 deaths reported as of this morning. Italy, which enters a reopening phase today, has reported 28,884 deaths. The unwelcome news comes despite the UK having a younger population than either Italy or Spain. The latter has reported 25,264 deaths, but the figure has reached a six-week low and the government allowed residents to leave their homes last week for the first time since March. The UK has not announced a date to begin restarting the economy but is expected to release a proposal this week.
India, which has seen more than 42,670 cases and 1,395 deaths, saw new cases jump by almost 7% Sunday. It is the largest single-day jump for the country and comes despite instituting the world's most restrictive lockdown six weeks ago. Prime Minister Narendra Modi today extended the orders through May 18, and will institute a red, green, and orange zoning designation to determine where restrictions will be lifted.
A global backlash is growing against China over charges the country's initial mishandling and downplaying of its outbreak fueled the virus's rapid spread around the world. Separately, US intelligence reports suggest China may have hidden the severity of the virus in order to hoard medical supplies.
In the US, more than 31 states have at least partially reopened their economies. In many of the states, businesses are allowed to operate with restrictions, such as implementing curbside service for retail or reduced capacity at restaurants. Some states will let counties with low levels of the coronavirus reopen ahead of other areas (Washington is one example). See a state-by-state guide of where restrictions have been lifted here.
The US has reported nearly 1.16 million cases, with 67,682 deaths, as of this morning (see stats).
What is "COVID toe"? Some health officials are saying the symptoms could be an indicator of an infection. We've posted a look at the condition on our coronavirus resource page. |
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| Kim Jong Un Resurfaces |
North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance in weeks at a ceremony for the completion of a fertilizer plant, state media reported over the weekend. Out of view for nearly three weeks, speculation about his health and whereabouts had run rampant after Kim missed an April 15 celebration honoring his grandfather. While not unusual for the country's leaders to recede from the public, the timing coincided with reports Kim had undergone some type of heart surgery. Officials in South Korea have also dismissed those rumors.
The narrative was fueled by the country's intense secrecy around the status of its leaders, while playing into ongoing concerns over Kim's health, namely a heavy smoking habit combined with reports of morbid obesity.
US officials have said they believe Kim is alive, but have not been able to confirm the authenticity of the photos. Troops on each side of the Demilitarized Zone also traded light gunfire yesterday. |
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| USWNT Lawsuit Dismissed |
A federal judge on Friday dismissed the majority of a lawsuit brought by players on the US women's national soccer team alleging wage discrimination by the US Soccer Federation. The summary judgment found the squad's collective bargaining agreement, negotiated separately from the men's, was responsible for compensation differences owed by the federation.
The suit was the latest in nearly two decades of tensions between the two groups. The decision highlighted that, while the men's team receives more in per-game bonuses, the women's 2017 agreement includes a guaranteed $100K salary for 20 contracted players. Players for the men's team have no guaranteed base salary.
Both sides have offered competing narratives detailing how much USWNT players earn. Confusing the matter is the pay structure of FIFA, the global soccer federation, which separately doles out bonuses to teams for World Cup wins. The French men's team split $38M for its 2018 title, while the US women's team took home just $4M last year. |
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| Time to excel at problem-solving. |
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| In the Know |
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| Sports, Entertainment, & Culture |
| > Matt Keough, ex-MLB All-Star and “Real Housewives of Orange County” figure, dies at 64 (More) | Sam Lloyd, actor best known for “Scrubs,” dies of cancer at 56 (More) |
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| > Michael Jordan series “The Last Dance” overtakes Netflix’s “Tiger King” as most in-demand documentary worldwide and most-watched ESPN documentary of all time (More) |
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| > “Parks and Recreation” reunion raises $2.8M for coronavirus relief efforts (More) | See a full list of upcoming livestreams and virtual concerts (More) |
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| Science & Technology |
| > Mapping more than 300 proteins needed for the coronavirus to hijack cells reveals several drug compounds that potentially block the virus; one ingredient in common cough syrup may encourage viral growth (More) |
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| > Room-temperature quantum computing is feasible, says new study; significant improvements in existing materials will be needed to build and test a device (More) | Quantum computing 101 (More) |
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| > Mars had a magnetic field that persisted from 4.5 billion to 3.7 billion years ago; new study extends the window that molten metal flowed within the planet's core by 500 million years (More) |
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| Business & Markets |
| > Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway sees record quarterly loss of $50B, has $138B in cash (More) | Berkshire’s annual meeting, informally known as the "Woodstock of Capitalism," held remotely for first time amid pandemic (More) |
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| > Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweets “stock price is too high imo,” with shares subsequently falling 10% and erasing $15B in market value (More) |
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| > House Judiciary Committee requests Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos testify regarding whether the company potentially misled Congress regarding its private label strategy (More) |
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| Politics & World Affairs |
| > Joe Biden denies 1993 sexual assault claim by former aide Tara Reade (More) | Federal officials having trouble locating potential written complaint made by Reade at the time (More) | Conflicting reports emerge on what was in complaint (More) |
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| > Venezuela says it foiled an attempted coup, killing eight mercenaries who landed north of the capital of Caracas (More) | Separately, reports detail how a former Green Beret was involved in a plot to lead an uprising in the country (More) |
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| > Twenty-two people arrested in Austin, Texas, after a strike against paying rent during the coronavirus shuts down Interstate 35; similar strikes held in cities across the country Friday (More) |
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| What do employers want? |
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