An Ignoble Experiment: The 7: More signs that the economy is soaring; ‘Parasite’ actor found dead; Google’s top trends of 2023; and more

2023/12/27

Good morning. It's Wednesday, Dec. 27, and we're keeping the holiday spirit alive by playing this nutcracker search game. Now let's catch up.

Why? Gen. Valery Zaluzhny's remarks follow Ukraine's failed counteroffensive against Russia and were a rare acknowledgment of the country's heavy casualties in the war.
The bigger picture: More than 120,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed or wounded in nearly two years of fighting, according to U.S. estimates.
What else to know: Ukraine said yesterday that it had destroyed a large Russian landing ship docked in a Crimean port in an overnight attack.

What to know: Israel's war — already among the most destructive of the century — will persist or even intensify in its violence, Israeli officials have suggested in recent days.
On the ground: Israel has pounded central Gaza from the air this week, overwhelming the few hospitals that continue to function, aid officials say.

What we know: The actor was discovered in his car in Seoul today after an apparent suicide, local media reported. Police had been investigating him for illegal drug use.
How we'll remember him: As the wealthy businessman at the head of the elite Park family in the Oscar-winning movie. He starred in many South Korean films and TV series.

Where? From Colorado and Kansas up to North Dakota. Strong winds, blizzards and ice disrupted one of the busiest travel stretches of the year yesterday.
This morning: Conditions may remain dangerous in some spots, with high winds creating blizzard conditions even after the snow stops falling.

The numbers: U.S. retail sales between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24 rose 3.1% compared with the same period last year, according to new consumer spending data from Mastercard.
What it means: Consumer spending remained strong heading into the holidays, despite higher-than-usual inflation. It's the latest sign that people will keep spending in 2024.

What to know: An octopus species was able to move around a melted West Antarctic Ice Sheet 125,000 years ago, when Earth's temperatures matched today's heat, a study found.
Why that matters: It's evidence that another collapse of this ice sheet is possible. That could dramatically raise global sea levels, causing major flooding worldwide.

In the news: The lost Titan submersible, the Israel-Gaza war and the death of "Friends" star Matthew Perry were some of the top trending terms in the U.S., according to Google.
What else to know: People also searched for the "Barbie" movie, asked how often men think about the Roman Empire and wanted to know more about Taylor Swift's new romance.