Preview: The World this Week

The World this Week — Trump named TIME's Person of the Year, Notre Dame cathedral "resurrects", Syrian rebels capture country, and Musk's wealth surpasses $400bn

Welcome to a preview of "The World this Week" (not the latest version), where we don't just focus on negative news, but give at least as much attention to solutions and reasons for hope. To get an update like this every week, sign up here.

Top good news

🏆 President-elect Donald Trump was honored as TIME magazine's Person of the Year and rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, flanked by his new cabinet picks and executives from Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Verizon, and Target. Trump said, “I think we’re going to have a tremendous run. We have to straighten out some problems, some big problems in the world."

🔔 The Notre Dame cathedral had a "glorious resurrection", reopening in Paris five years after a devastating fire. The ceremony was attended by 1,500 dignitaries including Trump, Musk, Prince William, and European leaders. The reconstruction involved 2000 oak trees, 1000 cubic meters of limestone, 2000 master craftsmen and $1 billion in donations.

Trump announces "Day One" promises

Trump announces Day One executive orders he would sign on January 20 (AI illustrated)

Trump announced the executive orders he would sign on Day One on January 20, which include measures to:

End illegal immigration: On his first day, Trump would sign orders for an all-of-government effort to begin "the largest mass deportation of illegal immigrant criminals in history", while securing the border with Mexico.
"Drill Baby Drill": he will sign orders to speed up permits "for nuclear, fossil fuels, for an above-all energy approach that's going to bring down the cost of living in this country," and he will re-open the Keystone XL pipeline.
End woke theory in schools: Trump will immediately end federal funding for any schools that teach critical race theory (the idea that racism is baked into US institutions) or transgender ideology to children.
End the Ukraine war: Trump has promised to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine on Day One, likely by pressuring both Putin and Zelensky to come to the table and agreeing to a compromise. Negotiations have already begun.
"Drain the swamp": he will sign orders to make federal employment less secure, allowing for an easier dismissal of civil servants who deliberately refuse or slow-walk the President's agenda.
Pardon Jan 6 prisoners: Trump is likely to pardon all individuals connected with the riots at Congress on January 6, 2020 and who have been jailed for years as a result.

💡

Presidents usually sign executive orders such as these on Day One, typically for decisions that do not require approval from Congress.

What about the first 100 days?

Trump's top priorities will be applying tariffs on countries who are selling more to America than buying from it, including China, Mexico, Canada and the European Union. He will focus on ending illegal immigration and reviving the US economy to boost production and bring down prices.

In other news...

🪖 An Islamic rebel group declared victory in Syria after conquering the capital. It ended the dictator's policies of torture and absolute control, however the rebels' intentions and ideology are still unclear. Israel has used the fall of Syria's dictator to secure its territory in the Golan Heights and the neighboring plains.

🧑‍💻 Bitcoin surged above $100,000, in a recovery from a recent dip, spurred by good U.S. economic news and lower inflation. This rally was supported by expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and President-elect Donald Trump's pro-crypto policies.

⚖️ President Biden commuted (lessened) the sentences of about 1,500 people and pardoned 39 others, by far the highest number of clemencies given by a President. This action follows his earlier pardon of his son, Hunter, with President Biden suggesting more will come before he leaves office.

🚫 The United Kingdom permanently banned puberty blockers for minors experiencing gender dysphoria, following expert advice calling it an "unacceptable safety risk" for children and young people.

💸

Elon Musk became the first person to surpass $400 billion in net worth. This surge in his personal wealth is attributed to a deal that increased SpaceX's valuation to $350 billion, along Tesla's soaring stock performance.

Brighter horizons...

🕊️ In the first steps to a cease-fire deal, Hamas has agreed to allow Israeli troops to remain temporarily in Gaza and has provided a list of hostages for release. This shift follows Israel's victory against Hezbollah and Trump's comment that there would be "all hell to pay" if Hamas does not reach a deal.

🩺 New AI software now analyzes stroke victims' brain scans to more precisely determine when the stroke occurred and assist physicians in deciding if treatment could be effective. This technology has proven twice as accurate as traditional assessments and promises a new way to treat patients.

🌦️ Google's AI model "GenCast" has shown to more accurately predict the weather than traditional methods 97% of the time. While AI may not replace your weather station anytime soon, it does promise to offer enhancements particularly for predicting cyclone paths and extreme weather events up to 15 days in advance.

💰 Argentina ended its budget deficit for the first time in 123 years, a remarkable feat for one of the world's worst economies only several years ago. The success is attributed to President's Milei's significant cuts in spending. He has called on America to do the same through Trump and Musk's "DOGE" program.

🧬

Quantum computing took a huge leap forward with Google’s “Willow” chip, which can solve a problem in five minutes that would take traditional supercomputers 10 septillion years. However, commercial use is still years away due to the need for ultra-low temperatures and still high error rates.

What in the world...

🏛️ An 1375-year-old pyramid in Mexico has been discovered during a road construction, linked to the ancient Metzca kingdom. The initial findings have been sent to universities, but due to limited funds the pyramid has been reburied to "keep it protected" from future damage.

🌌 The James Webb Space Telescope has confirmed that the universe is expanding faster than expected, highlighting a significant puzzle in cosmology known as the Hubble tension. This discrepancy, which cannot be explained by measurement errors, suggests there are new physics or unknown factors at play in how we understand the universe's expansion.

🛸

Mysterious swarms of drones have been reported by residents in New Jersey and the mid-Atlantic, prompting concern from members of Congress. The White House, FBI, and Pentagon have stated there is no evidence that these drones pose a national security threat, but the swarms have not been publicly identified.

Dive deeper

President-elect Trump discussed plans for his first 100 days in a 1.5 hour video interview with hostile reporter Kristen Welker on "Meet the Press." 🎬
TIME's "Person of the Year" interview with Trump also gave glimpses of what a Trump Administration 2.0 would look like. 📰
The Wall Street Journal’s video explainer of the war in Syria shows how the rebels managed to topple one of the world’s most infamous dictators. 🎥
The Epoch Times does a backgrounder on David Sacks, who Trump appointed to be his “Crypto and AI Czar”. 🗞️

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