Pope vs Trump, Niger and Uganda elections, cyborg maze runners
Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today and over the weekend
Nepal and India try to work out their differences. Nepali prime minister K.P. Oli visits his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in an attempt to end a four month-long Indian economic blockade. Nepal has accused India of using the blockade to support ethnic minorities who oppose Nepal’s constitution.
Niger holds elections on Sunday. Voters hit the polls after months of drama in the lead-up to presidential and legislative elections. Fifteen candidates are running for president, including incumbent Mahamadou Issoufou and opposition leader Hama Amadou, who has been jailed on baby-trafficking charges.
US presidential candidates head to Nevada and South Carolina. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are closer than ever in the polls ahead of Nevada’s Democratic caucus on Saturday. Republicans will face off in South Carolina’s GOP primary, also on Saturday, where Donald Trump’s substantial lead may spell the end for Jeb Bush.
While you were sleeping
The Pope staked out new ground on Zika and Donald Trump. On his flight home from Mexico, Francis said artificial contraception could be acceptable to prevent the spread of the Zika virus. He also said Donald Trump “is not Christian” because of his harsh stance toward immigrants.
Walmart’s online sales growth flagged. Despite spending billions to compete with Amazon, the world’s biggest retailer said e-commerce growth was only 8% in the fourth quarter, well below the last two quarters. More broadly, the company squeezed out a small same-store sales gain; its shares fell by about 3%.
Crappy cable boxes are on their way out. The US communications regulator approved preliminary rules that would open set-top boxes to third-party competition, ending a stranglehold that has frustrated hundreds of millions of customers. A final vote is expected at the end of the year, but Apple and Google are already relishing the opportunity.
Uganda’s big election got off to a fractious start. As voters went to cast their ballots in the most competitive election in a decade, they found that access to social media was blocked, and the delivery of ballots to polling stations was delayed. The main challenger to president Yoweri Museveni, who has been in power for thirty years, was also briefly arrested.
Barack Obama is heading to Cuba. The White House said he plans to press for human rights reforms during the first visit by a sitting US president to the island in 88 years. Obama will meet with political dissidents in addition to president Raul Castro—but not with his brother, Fidel.
Quartz obsession interlude
Mike Murphy on how to keep the Feds out of your phone, even if Apple won’t. “Apple may have cooperated with the government and unlocked phones up to 70 times in the past… So if the Feds—or for that matter, criminals or other governments—can now or in the future crack iPhone passcodes, with or without Apple’s cooperation, how can you safeguard your data? The answer is pretty simple: just set a longer passcode.” Read more here.
Market haiku
Market not so great
Matters of debate
Performance bonuses are shams. Merit-based bonuses have morphed into an entitlement, rather than a reward.
There’s an awesome upside to crashing oil prices. It’s now cheaper to feed the world’s hungriest people.
Sabbaticals are the key to maintaining creativity. Dedicated chunks of time off—not the same as vacations—can refresh your perspective.
Surprising discoveries
Being bilingual rewires the fundamental structure of your brain. Switching between two languages ultimately makes the brain stronger.
Researchers have created a robotic arm that can play the drums. It attaches to a drummer’s shoulder and keeps perfect time.
A Los Angeles hospital paid a $17,000 ransom for its electronic records. Hackers demanded payment in bitcoin to decrypt crucial data.
Mice are to blame for the horrific traffic in Brussels. They ate the construction blueprints for a key tunnel in need of repairs.
A cyborg rat could be the world’s best maze runner. Its brain is connected to a computer that provides navigational tips.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, cyborg maze runners, and robot drummers to [email protected]. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.