Federal Reserve, Syria, Alan Thicke: Your Wednesday Briefing
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Good morning.
Here’s what you need to know:
• Focus on the economy.
President-elect Donald J. Trump will meet today with leaders of the technology industry, including Timothy D. Cook of Apple, Elon Musk of Tesla and Sheryl Sandberg of Facebook. Creating jobs will be at the top of the agenda.
Also today, the Federal Reserve is expected to raise its benchmark interest rate. What remains unclear is how much it plans to increase the rate next year.
• Trump transition news.
Ryan Zinke, a freshman representative from Montana, is Mr. Trump’s choice to run the Interior Department, according to officials. On Tuesday, former Gov. Rick Perry of Texas was chosen to lead the Energy Department.
Separately, we examined the overseas dealings of the nominee for secretary of state, Rex W. Tillerson, during his time as chief executive of Exxon Mobil.
• Battle for Aleppo is over.
Evacuations in the Syrian city were set to begin early today, leaving it fully in the hands of government forces, but departures were delayed and there were reports of renewed shelling.
Russia, Turkey and rebel groups announced the deal as fears mounted because of reports that Syrian troops or allied Iraqi militiamen were shooting people in apartments and on the streets.
• Russian cyberespionage.
A Times investigation reveals how Moscow aimed the perfect weapon at the Democratic Party in an effort to influence the U.S. presidential race: cyberattacks honed before European elections.
Our inquiry also shows how a series of missed signals and slow responses by government agencies and the Obama administration made the breaches more potent. A handful of House candidates were also targets.
• Abortion bill approved in Ohio.
Gov. John R. Kasich has signed into law a ban on abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. He vetoed legislation, however, that would have banned abortions after a fetal heartbeat has been detected, as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.
Abortion opponents are weighing how to press for new laws during the Trump administration in light of the possibility that the president-elect will nominate Supreme Court justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade.
• Health roundup.
The Environmental Protection Agency has reversed course on fracking, now saying that the practice can contaminate drinking water.
Three studies published this week say that babies born to mothers infected with Zika still face brain damage risks, even if they do not display abnormalities like small heads.
Finally, we looked at the difficulties of losing weight. Researchers say that obesity and being overweight are not one disease, and that they should instead be viewed like cancer, which takes many forms.
Business
• Apeel Sciences, a start-up in California, says it can extend the shelf life of some produceby as much as five times, possibly reducing food waste.
The company makes an edible coating that can, for instance, be used on a bunch of bananas so that each ripens on a different day.
• India’s currency crisis has become a boon for the country’s leading electronic payments service, which is reporting half a million new customers a day.
The government’s recent ban on large-denomination bills has pushed millions of small and midsize businesses toward a cashless economy.
• The Japanese beer giant Asahi will pay $7.8 billion to Anheuser-Busch InBev for some of the most popular beers in Central and Eastern Europe, including the Pilsner Urquell group.
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Noteworthy
• “Stonehenge” in the jungle.
Our latest 360 video takes you to 1,000-year-old megaliths on a cattle ranch in Brazil. The site sheds new light on how indigenous people of the Amazon may have lived.
• Review: “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”
After watching one of the most anticipated films of the year, “you’re left wanting both more and less,” our critic writes. Here’s the rest of our spoiler-free review.
• In memoriam.
Alan Thicke, 69, famous for playing the beloved father on the long-running sitcom “Growing Pains.” The actor, whose son is the singer Robin Thicke, died of a heart attack.
• Recipe of the day.
For a dinner in under half an hour, try hot and sour seared tofu with sugar snap peas.
Back Story
We told you last week about a fight in Canada over a proposed official bird, the gray jay.
Canadians have also sparred over whether poutine (fries topped with cheese curds and gravy) should beat out maple syrup as their most representative food (it didn’t).
In some places, trademark foods are not so self-evident.
Many Britons consider chicken tikka masala, a colonial adaptation featuring a bright orange sauce, as their national dish — more so than fish and chips. The concoction, one official said, “is a perfect illustration of the way Britain absorbs and adapts external influences.”
In other places, there’s no question about the winner.
For example, New Mexico reveres the local chile. It’s nowhere near as hot as peppers in China, India or the Caribbean, but it is perhaps the most consistent ingredient in the state’s dishes.
Lawmakers in the late ’90s declared the state’s official question to be “Red or green?” As in: Which variety of chile sauce do you want?
One answer plays no favorites. Order “Christmas,” and you’ll get both.
Can’t handle the heat? Reach for a glass of milk, which neutralizes the capsaicin that makes your taste buds sting.
It’s also the official beverage of 21 states.
Anna Holland contributed reporting.
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P.C: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/14/briefing/us-briefing-federal-reserve-syria-alan-thicke.html
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