Good morning. Welp—looks like we were wrong about the prospect of snow accumulation in NYC yesterday (was mostly miserable rain). Probably best to retire as meteorologists and stick to something we're much better at: running courses that help you get better at your career. Speaking of, the Business Essentials Accelerator, our eight-week online course on business fundamentals, is kicking off Feb. 6. Think of it as a streamlined Biz 101 course that's both enjoyable and informative—kind of like this newsletter. Learn more here. —Jamie Wilde, Max Knoblauch, Matty Merritt, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman | | | |  | Nasdaq | 11,313.36 | | | | | S&P | 4,016.22 | | |  | Dow | 33,743.84 | | | | | 10-Year | 3.448% | | | | | Bitcoin | $23,022.00 | | | | | IBM | $140.76 | | | | *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 4:00am ET. Here's what these numbers mean. | - Markets: Stocks finished out the day mixed yesterday as investors continued to process that the corporate earnings season so far has also been…mixed. IBM's stock, for example, dipped even though the company reported its biggest annual sales increase in a decade (but also joined its fellow tech companies in announcing layoffs).
| | | | Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images If it feels like recent US mass attacks have startlingly similar details, it's because many of them do. A new study from the Secret Service's National Threat Assessment Center examined 173 public attacks occurring between January 2016 and December 2020 and found patterns that repeated from Uvalde, TX, to the back-to-back shootings in California this past weekend. Some commonalities: Who: Almost all attackers acted alone and were men. Though attackers ranged in age from 14 to 87, the average age skewed younger at 34. What: Nearly 73% of attacks involved firearms, and most of those were fatal. The remaining attacks that didn't involve firearms were mostly nonfatal. Why: Nearly all attackers experienced a significant stressor, such as a loved one dying, in the five years prior to the attack, and 77% of them experienced one within a year. Half of the incidents were motivated by "perceived wrongs" in the workplace or at home. - The killing of seven people in Half Moon Bay, California, on Monday was described by officials as an act of "workplace violence."
Most attackers had similar red flags The study says that nearly half of attackers had a history of perpetuating misogyny and/or domestic violence—and that those behaviors "deserve increased attention" from law enforcement. Violent online posting and chatting can also signal an individual may commit an attack. For example, the shooter in the Uvalde massacre threatened women online and shared graphically misogynistic content. Nearly two-thirds of attackers said or did things so "objectively concerning," the report says, that they "should have been met with an immediate response." Many of these were even reported to law enforcement, employers, and others prior to the mass attack but not acted upon. The report's big takeaway? Recognizing shared patterns among past mass attacks early could help prevent future tragedies. Zoom out: Over 39 incidents of mass violence have already occurred in the US this year, and two incidents happened in California just this past week. Legislators are debating what laws they can pass to slow or stop the momentum.—JW | | David Hecker/Getty Images  Ukraine is getting new tanks. Both the US and Germany agreed yesterday to send tanks to Ukraine as it fends off Russia's invasion—something Ukraine has said it needs to win the war. The US will send 31 M1 Abrams tanks, while Germany will provide 14 Leopard 2 A6 models. Though Western allies have been arming Ukraine since the war began nearly a year ago, there was hesitation over whether sending tanks would be considered an escalation. And while President Biden stressed this move was "not an offensive threat to Russia," Russia has stated that sending tanks will make the possibility of peace talks less likely.
 Trump can shop on Facebook Marketplace again. Meta said yesterday former President Trump's accounts on Instagram and Facebook will be reinstated after the company suspended his accounts following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The social media company has decided that Trump's risk to public safety has "sufficiently receded" since then. Before being banned, Trump was the most followed person on Facebook. It's not the only social network to welcome him back: Trump's Twitter account was reinstated in November, though he has yet to post there. He's sticking to his own platform, Truth Social…for now.
 State abortion pill bans get challenged in court. Mifepristone manufacturer GenBioPro filed a federal lawsuit yesterday seeking to have West Virginia's ban on abortion pills deemed unconstitutional on the grounds that the FDA's approval of the drug should trump state restrictions. More than half of all US abortions are medication abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute, and questions concerning the legality of these abortions have proliferated since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. A separate suit also filed yesterday by a North Carolina doctor challenges that state's ban, but abortion opponents have their own suit pending in Texas to try to overturn the FDA's drug approval.
| | | Did you know you start losing skin elasticity (aka the ability to stretch and bounce back into place) as early as your 20s? Thanks to Revela, you can now help restore your skin's structure. Kicking off their new skincare line is Fibroquin Essence, a revolutionary new formula featuring Fibroquin™, their proprietary, AI-discovered molecule that tackles one of the most challenging skin issues for aging skin: the loss of volume, tightness, and elasticity. Fibroquin™ rejuvenates skin by supporting its collagen biopathway, enabling skin to remain lifted, toned, and supple without any irritation. In a clinical trial, 93% of participants showed a significant improvement in skin elasticity by week 8. Get 15% off your first purchase here. | | The Simpsons/20th Television Animation via Giphy A US-based short seller has set its sights on a Goliath-sized target. The firm, Hindenburg Research, released a 100-page report on Tuesday alleging that the Adani Group, led by the world's fourth richest person—Gautam Adani—was "pulling the largest con in corporate history." According to Hindenburg, Adani Group (a massive conglomerate in India that's seen as "too big to fail," given Indian taxpayers' exposure to it) has run a "brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme" for decades, using shell entities to siphon off taxpayer money. Adani Group companies lost $12 billion in market value after the report's release—something that, if you own a conglomerate, you don't want to happen. - Adani himself dropped down a rung on Bloomberg's Billionaire Index, falling below Jeff Bezos and just out of the top three.
In response, Adani Group dismissed the allegations and accused Hindenburg of bad faith and timing the report's release to undermine an upcoming stock sale. What's at stake for Hindenburg (besides just cash): This report makes Adani Group the largest target of Hindenburg Research to date, and it's a test of the firm's power. Hindenburg was relatively unknown until 2020, when its report on then-hot EV maker Nikola became a pillar in the government's fraud case against the company's founder.—MK | | Illustration: Francis Scialabba, Photo: Zillow A Tennessee mansion listed for sale for $1.5 million went viral this week…mostly because its Zillow listing used a photo of it literally on fire. And in case you were wondering if buying homes is still hard: It's already under contract. The hopeful buyer, Mike Thakur, plans to vlog his restoration process, riding the property's wave of internet virality and milking that charred house for as much content as possible. The burnt home…sits on almost five acres of land in Franklin, TN, and includes a bunch of grand staircases, an outdoor kitchen, and a detached guesthouse—where Thakur and his family will live while they fix up the main manor. The house had a fire in September that caused significant damage, but in 2020 (pre-fire) it sold for $10 million, according to Thakur. We don't know how much the self-described content creator/serial entrepreneur is paying for the house, but it was only listed last Tuesday and had a lot of interest from potential buyers, according to the realtors. Big picture: There's also growing interest in non-burned-down homes. Redfin data found that pending house sales in the US rose 3% last month, the first increase since October 2021. After a tumultuous year, housing demand seems to be rising slowly from the ashes.—MM | | | Make smart decisions. Life should be a balance of adventure and relaxation, not finances. Enter: working with a financial advisor. But choosing the wrong advisor could potentially wreak havoc on your retirement. Avoid these 7 common mistakes when hiring one so you can get back to the balance that matters most. | | Parks and Recreation/NBC via Giphy Stat: Corporate America may not be fully on board with pay transparency just yet (or maybe there are just a ton of jobs available right now where the salary could be anywhere from $90,000 to $900,000), but the newest entrants to the workforce aren't keen to put on real pants for multiple rounds of interviews only to discover the job pays less than their teenage babysitting gig. According to Adobe's Future Workforce Study, 85% of the 1,000 recent and soon-to-be college grads surveyed said they were less likely to apply for a job if the salary range wasn't in the job posting. Quote: "Being homosexual isn't a crime." Pope Francis called laws criminalizing homosexuality unjust during a wide-ranging interview with the Associated Press, and said Catholic bishops who support them need to undergo "a process of conversion." The pope, who despite previous statements hinting at a greater acceptance of LGBTQ rights has not moved to change church doctrine on the issue, maintained that homosexuality is "a sin," but noted: "It's also a sin to lack charity with one another." Read: How to be 18 years old again for only $2 million a year: one tech millionaire's quest to "reboot" his body. (Businessweek) | | - Tesla reported record profits yesterday and said it would work to try to speed up its car production.
- Chevron will buy back $75 billion of its stock after scoring mega profits last year.
- Microsoft suffered a global cloud outage that briefly locked users out of several Microsoft 365 services, including Teams and Outlook, yesterday morning.
- The glitch that wreaked havoc on New York stock trading on Tuesday morning was caused by a "manual error" involving a disaster recovery system that wasn't reset at the start of the day, the NYSE said.
- The SEC is finally making moves to ban conflicts of interest by entities that create asset-backed securities, a practice that helped cause the 2008 financial crisis.
| | Going ape: Scientists designed this quiz to test your ability to understand great apes' body language. Earn college credits: Hank and John Green, the venerable geeks of the internet, launched a new site that allows you to take courses from Arizona State University and earn actual college credits. Take the easy way out. Puzzles for "people who don't have time for the hard ones." All-star status: The experts reviewed the stats, and these credit cards stand out from the lineup thanks to their strong sign-up bonuses. Check out the 5 winners.* *This is sponsored advertising content. | | Brew Mini: Today's puzzle was a bit more challenging—Neal solved it in 1:53. Can you beat that? Try here. Three headlines and a lie Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than your to-do list the week before a vacation. Can you spot the odd one out? - Rare "watermelon" comet is expected to pass by Earth this summer, but the colorblind population won't be able to see it
- Swedish government moves to get rid of permits needed for dancing
- Stolen hot dog statue returned to West Virginia restaurant owner
- The lights have been on at a Massachusetts school for over a year because no one can turn them off
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| | | We made up the one about the watermelon comet. | | |
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