Hard numbers: Eight British Politicians and an Eight Ball of…

0: The UK will cut its net carbon emissions to zero by 2050 under a new plan announced this week by outgoing Prime Minster Theresa May. The UK is the world's first major economy to propose such a target, which will involve dramatic — and potentially politically challenging — changes to the way the country produces and consumes energy. Some critics say the pledge is less impressive than it looks.

2: Two people infected with Ebola died in Uganda this week as an outbreak that has killed over 1400 people spread beyond the Democratic of Congo (DRC) for the first time. Uganda's government has tightened border controls and has urged regions bordering DRC to ban weddings, church services, and other large gatherings to try to contain the spread of the disease.

4: Oil prices jumped 4 percent after explosions rocked a pair of tankers in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday. A study conducted during a previous period of tensions with Iran in 2012 estimated that a major conflict in the region that cut off shipments of oil from the Persian Gulf to global markets could push crude prices up 50 percent in a matter of days.

8: UK environment secretary and contender for Tory party leadership Michael Gove recently admitted that he'd tried cocaine "on several occasions" before entering politics, prompting other Tory candidates to come clean about the same. All told, eight of them copped to dabbling in drugs at some point. Alex's super hot take: "Politician or not, I honestly wouldn't trust anyone who is under 55 and has never ever done drugs of any kind."