Good Morning! Today’s edition is 1,156 words, a 4-minute read.

What’s on tap: 

• Equal representation in research

• Bitcoin hits $99K

• A $6.2M banana

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Big Story

DOJ Takes on Google

The US Department of Justice has proposed splitting up Google to address its monopoly in search.

• Regulators suggest Google should sell its Chrome browser and implement limits on Android devices to stop the company from favoring its own search engine. They also want to ban multibillion-dollar deals that make Google’s search engine the default on devices like Apple’s iPhone.

• Critics, including Google’s Chief Legal Officer Kent Walker, argue the penalties are too broad and could harm innovation, privacy, and the US’s leadership in artificial intelligence.

• The DOJ’s case, led by Biden-appointed Jonathan Kanter, may face changes with the upcoming Trump administration, which could take a softer stance. Trump and his nominee for Attorney General, Matt Gaetz, have voiced mixed opinions about breaking up Big Tech.

Big Story

ICC Issues Warrants for Israeli & Hamas Leaders

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defense chief Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri.

• Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of crimes like starvation and persecution in Gaza, while Al-Masri faces charges related to mass killings, rape, and hostage-taking during the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel. Despite claims of Al-Masri's death, the ICC prosecution plans to keep investigating.

• Israel rejected the ICC's jurisdiction and denies war crimes in Gaza. Former Israeli leaders, including Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, criticized the warrants as unfair and harmful, accusing the court of rewarding terrorism. Hamas has also denied allegations of war crimes.

• The ICC relies on its member states to enforce arrests since it has no police force. The member states include many countries in Europe, the Middle East, Australia, Japan, and Canada. However, because Israel and Hamas dismissed the allegations, enforcing them will be difficult.

Big Story

Equal Representation in Research

A study from the University of Colorado Boulder found that female mice sleep less, wake more often, and get less restorative sleep than males.

• Using 267 mice, scientists observed that males slept an hour longer each day, especially in the restorative NREM stage, while females experienced more fragmented sleep.

• This matches sleep patterns seen in humans, where women report less and lighter sleep. The findings suggest biological factors, such as hormones like cortisol and progesterone, may play a bigger role than previously thought.

• Since many biomedical studies rely on male-dominated samples, trials may miss sex-specific results or side effects. Without equal representation, medications that are effective for females might appear ineffective or their risks could go unnoticed.

• While progress has been made, such as NIH guidelines requiring scientists to consider sex differences in research, biases persist. The study shows the importance of including both sexes equally in studies and analyzing data separately for males and females

Quick Stories

U.S. News

• A bomb cyclone hit Northern California on Thursday, bringing heavy snow and record rain. It caused flooding, killed two people, and knocked out power for hundreds of thousands in the Pacific Northwest. Meanwhile, on the East Coast, rain in New York and New Jersey helped reduce wildfire risks. (More)

• Cristian Fernando Gutierrez-Ochoa, a top Mexican cartel leader who faked his death to live in luxury in California, was arrested on Tuesday in Riverside. Gutierrez-Ochoa is the son-in-law of "El Mencho," the leader of the violent Jalisco New Generation cartel, known for large-scale drug trafficking. (More)

• President-elect Donald Trump plans to nominate former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to lead the Justice Department. She replaces Matt Gaetz, who withdrew his name amid sex trafficking allegations. Bondi served as one of Trump’s lawyers during his first impeachment trial. (More)

World

• Brazil’s federal police have indicted former President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 others for allegedly trying to stage a coup after his 2022 election loss. The case has been sent to the Supreme Court, which will decide if Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet will formally charge Bolsonaro or dismiss the investigation. (More)

• British lawyer Simone White is the fifth person to die from suspected methanol poisoning in Laos. Several others were hospitalized. Authorities believe the toxic substance was put in alcoholic drinks and have sent samples off for verification. (More)

• A volcano near Iceland's capital erupted for the seventh time this year, sending lava and smoke into the air. The eruption began suddenly, creating a fissure nearly two miles long. Authorities reported that the activity is smaller than the August eruption. (More)

Business & Economy

• US stock markets closed higher on Thursday (S&P +0.53%, Nasdaq +0.03%, Dow +1.06%). The Dow saw the biggest jump yesterday as traders cycled out of tech stocks and into banking and retail positions. (More)

• Bitcoin surged to $99,000 on Thursday, marking a 46% jump since Donald Trump won the 2024 US presidential election. Bitcoin-related stocks also saw record activity on Wednesday, with over $50 billion in assets traded. (More)

• Existing home sales rose 3.4% in October, reaching an annual rate of 3.96 million. Sales were 2.9% higher than October last year, marking the first year-over-year rise in over three years. The median sales price increased 4.0% to $407,200, continuing 16 months of price gains. (More)

Sports & Entertainment

• Five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood, the top prospect in the 2025 ESPN recruiting rankings, switched his college commitment from LSU to Michigan. Underwood is now Michigan's highest-rated offensive commit ever. (More)

• Shohei Ohtani won his third MVP award and first in the National League, earning a unanimous vote from the Baseball Writers’ Association. Aaron Judge of the Yankees also won unanimously, claiming his second American League MVP title. (More)

• The Illinois Supreme Court overturned actor Jussie Smollett's conviction for lying about a 2019 hate crime. Smollett's lawyers argued that the state attorney’s office violated his Fifth Amendment rights when it reopened the case after he satisfied a 2019 deal. (More)

Science, Health, & Tech

• Researchers at NASA found that astronauts complete tasks involving memory, attention, and processing speed more slowly in space but with the same accuracy as on Earth. These effects didn’t persist after returning to Earth, and no signs of major brain damage were found. (More)

• A study in Nutrition & Diabetes found that eating more than 45% of daily calories after 5 p.m. raises glucose levels, which can lead to type II diabetes and cardiovascular issues, regardless of a person's weight or body fat. (More)

• Apple is reportedly working on a major AI upgrade for Siri to compete with ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini Live. Dubbed “LLM Siri,” the assistant will use Apple’s AI models to allow for more conversational interactions. (More)

Extra Credit

📈 See America’s fastest-growing jobs.

🏥 California man arrested for getting stuck in a hospital ceiling.

💰️ Your old digital camera could be worth a lot.

🍌 A banana duct-taped to a wall sells for $6.2M.