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A Russian Soyuz rocket is carried to the launching pad at Russia's Baikonur cosmodrome on the territory of the former Soviet Kazakhstan on December 18.
Hard Numbers: Russia shoots down space resolution, US economy sputters, Nigerian prisoners make slippery escape, Ecuador gets lifeline
13: A UN Security Council resolution reaffirming a long-standing prohibition on arms races in outer space got 13 votes in favor this week, but it was shot down by a single veto from UNSC permanent member Russia. Moscow says it wasn’t necessary to support a resolution that merely reaffirmed a 1967 treaty that Russia is already part of, but the US ambassador to the UN asked, “What could you possibly be hiding?” In recent months, the US has said it believes Russia is developing a new space-based, anti-satellite weapon.
1.6: The US economy expanded by just 1.6% in the first quarter of the year, lagging analyst forecasts by nearly a full percentage point, as consumer spending slowed. Normally that would create momentum for the Fed to cut interest rates to spur growth, but there’s no joy there either: Core inflation (which excludes food and energy) rose 3.7%, higher than economists expectations, limiting the scope for any near-term rate cuts.
118: Authorities in the Nigerian capital of Abuja are on high alert after a rainstorm destroyed a fence at a nearby penitentiary, allowing as many as 118 inmates to escape. A prison service spokesperson blamed “colonial era” facilities. Weak security and run-down buildings contribute to frequent prison-breaks in the West African nation.
4 billion: After months of talks, Ecuador and the IMF agreed to a $4 billion loan agreement meant to help stabilize the small Andean country’s finances as it grapples with a vicious cycle of economic hardship, rising poverty, and skyrocketing homicides. Just days earlier, Ecuadorians had voted yes in a referendum to boost the government’s ability to crack down on drug violence.Demis Hassabis, CEO of DeepMind Technologies and developer of AlphaGO, attends the AI Safety Summit in Bletchley Park, near Milton Keynes, Britain, November 2, 2023.
Hard Numbers: Google’s spending spree, Going corporate, Let’s see a movie, Court-ordered AI ban, Energy demands
100 billion: AI is a priority for many of Silicon Valley’s top companies — and it’s a costly one. Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis said that the tech giant plans to spend more than $100 billion developing artificial intelligence. That’s the same amount that rival Microsoft is expected to spend in building an AI-powered supercomputer, nicknamed Stargate.
72.5: The free market is dominating the AI game: Of the foundation models released between 2019 and 2023, 72.5% of them originated from private industry, according to a new Staford report. 108 models were released by companies, as opposed to 28 from academia, nine from an industry-academia collaboration, and four from government. None at all were released through a collaboration between government and industry.
5: The A24 film Civil War has garnered considerable controversy for its content, but its promotion is under scrutiny as well. Five posters for the film were created using artificial intelligence and depict scenes that never occur in the narrative. That’s kicked off a debate about the ethics of using AI in film marketing as well as questions of whether this is false advertising for the movie itself.
1,000: A sex offender in the UK who was found to have created 1,000 indecent images of children was banned from using any “AI creating tools” for five years by a British court. It’s not clear if he was actually using AI to create the illegal images in question, or if the order is peremptory, but it could serve as a model for future punishment in UK cases in the future. Meanwhile, on April 23, a group of AI companies including Google, Meta, and OpenAI, pledged to better prevent their tools from creating sexualized images of children and other exploitative material.
4.5: Salesforce is calling on AI companies to disclose the energy efficiency and carbon footprint of their models, and asking legislators to pass new laws aimed at demanding transparency and reducing the total energy consumption of AI. Salesforce’s best estimates put the total power generation demands of global data centers at 1.5% but warn that that figure could increase to 4.5% in the coming years absent intervention.Former President Donald Trump speaks to reporters with attorney Todd Blanche at the end of the day at Manhattan criminal court as jury selection continues in New York, U.S., April 18, 2024.
Hard Numbers: Trump jury formed, A 911 for 911, Croatia’s coalition crunch begins, New nets chop malaria in half, Netflix numbers soar
12: And then there were twelve. A dozen jurors, plus one alternate, have been selected in Donald Trump’s criminal “hush money” trial in New York. This comes after two jurors were dismissed on Thursday – one of them resigned over fears she had been targeted publicly by a FOX news host, while the other was sent home over prosecutors’ suspicions he had lied on his juror questionnaire. Five more alternates will be selected on Friday.
4: Who do you call when the emergency is that 911 itself is out? People in four US states had to wrestle with that conundrum on Wednesday night after their emergency call systems went down. No cause was given for the outages in Nevada, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Texas, but federal officials have warned that the move to digital systems in recent years has raised the risk of cyberattacks.
60: As expected, Croatia’s governing center-right HDZ party won the most votes in the election, securing 60 seats out of 151, but it will not be able to govern alone, heralding difficult coalition talks ahead. The vote followed a bitter campaign between the HDZ and a center-left coalition led by President Zoran Milanović.
50: New insecticides applied to mosquito nets cut malaria transmissions by up to 50% in trials. Mosquito nets treated with insecticides are the most effective way to stop the spread of malaria, which infects hundreds of millions around the globe and kills some 600,000 people annually. But as mosquitos develop immunity to long-used insecticides, it becomes necessary to develop new ones.
9.3 million: Netflix’s recent un-chill crackdown on password-sharing appears to have worked, as the global streaming behemoth added 9.3 million subscribers worldwide in the first quarter of 2024, and saw its operating income soar by 54%. The company says it still plans to stop reporting subscriber numbers altogether next year, as it focuses more on “engagement” than account numbers.
File photo - Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi at National League at the Democracy (NLD) headquarters, address journalists and supporters in Yangon, Myanmar on April 2, 2012.
Hard numbers: Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi moved to house arrest, Hugh Grant settles Sun case, Russian death toll in Ukraine, Boeing whistleblowers testify
3,000: Myanmar’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, 78, has been moved from prison to house arrest in a bid to protect her health amid severely hot weather. The junta also granted amnesty for more than3,000 prisoners to mark this week’s traditional Thingyan New Year holiday.
66 million:Hugh Grant says he has settled a high court claim against the publisher of TheSun newspaper, News Group Newspapers, for“an enormous sum of money.” Grant accused the paper of phone hacking, unlawful information-gathering, landline tapping, bugging his phone, and burgling his flat and office. His case was meant to go to trial alongside Prince Harry and other high-profile individuals next year. NGN, which has rejected any wrongdoing, said of the settlement with Grant that it was "in both parties' financial interests not to progress to a costly trial.” Last year, The Sun paid £66 million to victims of its illegal information-gathering.
50,000: Over50,000 Russian soldiers have died in the Ukraine conflict, with the death toll in the second year of fighting nearly 25% higher than the first, according to the BBC. BBC Russian, Mediazona, and volunteers focused on open-source information and new graves to conduct the count, and the total is eight times higher than Russia's official figures.
98.7: Multiple whistleblowers testified before a US Senate panel on Wednesday, alleging widespread manufacturing and safety issues within Boeing, as Congress and regulators try to hold Boeing accountable following a mid-air blowout on a 737 MAX 9 jet in January that reignited safety concerns. The whistleblowers alleged that the company failed 98.7% of the time to fill tiny gaps between components in the aircraft's fuselages, which could eventually cause fatigue failure. Boeing said that while it has taken “important steps to foster a safety culture that empowers and encourages all employees to raise their voice,” it knows there is “more work to do.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and New South Wales Premier Chris Minns join other politicians as they lay flowers at the scene of Saturday's mass stabbing at Bondi Junction, Sydney, Australia April 14, 2024.
Hard numbers: Sydney stabbing, Pricey Pakistan, US Steel deal, Costco gold rush
6: Australia is reeling from one of the country’s deadliest mass killings after six shoppers were stabbed to death at a mall in Sydney on Saturday. The attack left several others injured, including a baby who is in intensive care. The assailant, who was shot dead by police, was known to authorities and had been diagnosed with a mental illness as a teenager.
25: Pakistan has the highest cost of living in Asia, according to a report from the Asian Development Bank, and it’s only set to grow with a crushing 25% inflation rate. Authorities have hiked interest rates to 22% to try to alleviate the problem, but Pakistan’s economy will likely require further support from the International Monetary Fund.
14.9 billion: Shareholders in US Steel overwhelmingly voted to approve an offer from Nippon Steel to acquire the company at about $55 a share — but don’t expect the deal to close anytime soon. US President Joe Biden has expressed opposition to the deal, which could cost him crucial support from steelworkers in upper Midwestern swing states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
200 million: Wholesaler Costco is estimated to be selling over $200 million worth in one-ounce gold barsevery month, according to an analysis by Wells Fargo. Those who made their purchases in the fall, when Costco was selling the bars for around $2,000 each have earned a nice bit of profit, as gold has surged to over $2,300 an ounce since March.President of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, dressed in the national costume, dances as part of The Day Of Chechen Language celebrations in Grozny April 25, 2010. The Day Of The Chechen Language holiday was established by Kadyrov in 2007 to promote the national language.
Hard Numbers: Chechnya bans beats, Poland’s right stays strong, Biden cancels student debt (again), Argentina battles dengue, “Hardest Geezer” runs Africa
116: Can you feel the beat? If you’re in Chechnya, from now on you are only rocking between 80 and 116 beats per minute. That’s because a new law bans any music faster or slower than that range. The Goldilocks move, taken by the quasi-Islamist dictatorship of Ramzan Kadyrov, aims to shield the North Caucasus republic – which is part of Russia – from insidious Western influences. But don’t worry – as GZERO design captain Ari Winkleman points out, you can still listen to Radiohead’s “Creep” (92 bpm) on repeat in the streets of Grozny.
52.5: Polish PM Donald Tusk’s centrist governing coalition won just 52.5% of the vote in Sunday’s municipal elections, a narrow victory that underscored the persistent strength of the far-right Law and Justice Party, which took close to 34%, the largest share of any single party. Tusk’s coalition ousted Law and Justice from national power in bitterly fought general elections last fall but has continued to clash with the party over rule-of-law issues and appointments ever since.
25 million: The Biden administration on Monday announced a sweeping new program of student debt forgiveness that it said would give relief to some 25 million borrowers, including those who are either facing economic hardship, owe more now than they did at the start of their payback periods, or who have had debt for more than 20 years. The new plan replaces an earlier one that was struck down by the Supreme Court but is expected to face some legal challenges of its own.
232,996: Argentina is facing its biggest-ever outbreak of dengue fever, with some 232,996 cases of the virus already registered this season, nearly double last year’s figure. Experts say that warmer temperatures, potentially linked to global warming, are extending the breeding season for the mosquitos that carry the disease. Dengue is sometimes fatal and never fun – high fevers, severe body aches, vomiting, and it can be more lethal the second time you get it.
9,940: If you think your little 20-minute morning run is something special, consider the feat achieved by the UK’s Russ Cook, otherwise known as “The Hardest Geezer.” Cook just finished running from South Africa to Tunisia – ie, the entire continent of Africa. The 9,940-mile journey, which he ran for charity, took him almost a year to complete. To celebrate, the 27-year-old endurance athlete knocked back a strawberry daiquiri.Banknotes of the new national currency Zimbabwe Gold, ZiG for short, are presented at a press conference of the Central Bank of Zimbabwe. Due to high inflation, Zimbabwe's central bank has introduced a new currency that is primarily linked to gold, but also to a number of other precious metals and foreign currencies.
Hard numbers: Zimbabwe’s new bills, Ecuador in hot water, Russian dam failure, Ukraine’s air defense, Island-sized lottery.
70: Zimbabwe is rolling out the ZiG, a new currency pegged to gold and foreign cash. The government hopes to curb the freefall of its erstwhile dollar, whose value has declined by over 70% since January. People have three weeks to exchange the old notes for the new currency.
2: Two countries, Mexico and Nicaragua, have cut ties with Ecuador following a police raid Friday on Mexico’s Quito embassy that resulted in the arrest of Ecuador’s former vice president, Jorge Glas. Glas had been staying in the embassy seeking asylum since December, when a warrant was issued for his arrest. President Lopez Obrador responded angrily, calling the raid a “flagrant violation of international law,” and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega followed suit, referring to it as “reprehensible."
11,000: The failure of a dam in Orsk, Russia, has forced the evacuation of 11,000 residents and left over 4,000 buildings teetering on the brink. Several regional provinces in the area, near the Kazakhstan border, have suffered from flooding in recent days.
25: In a television interview that aired on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked allies for 25 US Patriot systems, saying they are vital to repelling Russian ballistic and hypersonic missiles that can hit targets within minutes. As Russia’s relentless bombing continues, the Ukrainian president warns that his country is running out of air-defense missiles.
1.3 billion: An Oregon lottery player snagged a Powerball prize north of $1.3 billion after no other player hit the jackpot for three months. For context, that’s roughly the equivalent of Grenada’s GDP, minus the taxman's cut, of course.Lots of foreign traveler are seen at Fushimi Inari-taisha Shrine in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture on April 20, 2023. The number of tourists coming to Japan is increasing as the pandemic of new coronavirus COVID-19 has calmed down.
Hard Numbers: Foreign travel to Japan surges, Ethiopian diplomat expelled, Safari turns deadly, ABBA’s winning ‘Waterloo’
89: Japan’s weak yen is leading to a tourism surge, with foreign visitors jumping a whopping 89% in February — to 2.78 million people — compared to a year ago. Hotels, in turn, are fuller, and the day rates for stays are up roughly 25% since last year.
72: Ethiopia's ambassador has 72 hours to leave Somalia amid a spat over Ethiopian plans to build a naval base in the de facto autonomous region of Somaliland. Mogadishu is also closing two Ethiopian consulates and pulling its ambassador from Addis Ababa. Tensions between the two countries boiled over when Ethiopia offered possible recognition of Somaliland as part of the port deal, which Somalia sees as a move to annex part of Somalia to Ethiopia.
1: An 80-year-old American woman died while on a safari in Zambia this past weekend after a bull elephant charged at the vehicle she was in, flipping it. The tour company says the truck was blocked by the terrain and couldn’t get away from the agitated pachyderm. Last month, a similar attack took place in South Africa when a bull elephant lifted a 22-seat safari truck several times before letting it drop. There were no deaths reported in that incident.
50: It’s been 50 years to the day since ABBA won their first Eurovision song contest with “Waterloo.” Semifinal rounds for this year’s contest kick off next month, and, despite the competition's goal of staying apolitical, controversy over Israel's participation is already front and center.