Plus: The power of the blank sheet of paper Was this newsletter forwarded to you? [Sign up here]( [Quartz]( November 29, 2022 [View in browser]( Sponsored By Good morning, Quartz readers! Hereâs what you need to know Elon Musk picked a fight with Apple. The spat was originally about ad spending, but Musk then raised the [prospect of a bigger battle]( over Twitterâs availability on the Apple App Store. BlockFi filed for bankruptcy. The crypto lender is the latest in [a string of platforms]( in the digital assets market that have crumbled following FTXâs collapse. The White House called on Congress to avert a rail strike. President Joe Biden, who once touted himself as pro-union, now wants to force rail workers and operators [to accept a tentative contract]( negotiated in September. A woman accused billionaire investor Leon Black of rape in a new lawsuit. Black, who left Apollo Global Management, the company he co-founded, over ties to Jeffrey Epstein, is now accused of [assaulting the woman]( at Epsteinâs home in 2002. Literary agents showed support for HarperCollins workersâ strike. More than 150 agents [vowed to suspend submissions]( to the publisher until it accepts its staffâs demands for better pay and working conditions. Chinese universities sent students home. The move seeks to [prevent mass demonstrations](, as anti-government protests [spread abroad]( (see more below). The WHO recommended monkeypox be called âmpox.â The agency [cited concerns]( over racism and stigmatization as reasons for renaming. Sponsor content by BOFA Securities Regional & global economies under the lens. Get a week-to-week snapshot on global and regional economies, policies and markets from Ethan Harris, BofAâs Head of Global Economics. [Advertisement] [Catch up now.]( What to watch for The US football team needs to beat Iran today to qualify for the knockout stage of Qatarâs FIFA World Cup. For Iran, a draw under the right circumstances (i.e. England soundly defeating Wales) would be enough, but whether the team proceeds in the tournament or not, their presence at the global sporting bonanza has already successfully [raised international awareness]( of the anti-government protests that have rocked the country since September. Captain Ehsan Hajsafi openly expressed support for protesters, and the team refused to meet the countryâs president Ebrahim Raisi before the tournament, as well as abstained from singing the national anthem in their opening match against England. The governmentâs crackdown on protests, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police detention, has resulted in the death of more than 380 people and the imprisonment of thousands more. Tehran reportedly released about 700 prisoners on Friday (Nov. 25) after Iranâs win against Wales. If you â»ï¸, you â»ï¸ Elsewhere, protestors from Beijing to Shanghai are demonstrating against Chinaâs covid restrictions by holding aloft [sheets of blank, white paper](. The now-dubbed âWhite Paper Revolutionââ (ç½çº¸é©å½) was sparked by an apartment block fire in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, which killed 10 people on Nov. 24. The incident sparked protests in the region, and eventually spread nationwide following a vigil in Shanghai this weekend. The white square has now become a ubiquitous symbol of dissent across China. In stark contrast to todayâs protests, throughout the 20th century, words played a big role in Chinese political movements, typically in the form of a âbig character posterâ (大åæ¥). But now, amid a highly censored environment both online and off, Chinese citizens have ditched words altogether, saying ânothingâ to both play by the authoritiesâ rules while also reshaping that blankness into a tool of resistance. The origin of âgaslightingâ Merriam-Webster has its word of the year, and itâs clear a lot of people are feeling manipulated. The winner, âgaslighting,â has âemerged as a word for our time,â the US publishing agency said. A single event didnât spark interest in the term, such as two of Merriam-Websterâs other contenders for word of the year: oligarch and omicron. Rather, the proliferation of ââfake news,â conspiracy theories, Twitter trolls, and deepfakesâ has sustained a curiosity for the term. Maybe even more curious is how the metaphorical interpretation of the word, which literally means to [light street lamps](, came to be. As Quartz reporter Ananya Bhattacharya explains, [itâs quite theatrical](. ⦠Weâre not pulling a fast oneâeven though itâs Tuesday, itâs not too late to take advantage of our Cyber Monday sale. Sign up for a Quartz membership today, and youâll get [60% off]( our usual price. Message from Our Partner Gaze far beyond the reaches of Silicon Valley. Rest of Worldâs weekly newsletter brings you the latest global tech news, on-the-ground reporting, and unforgettable deep dives into the places where the future is being made. Subscribe for stories you wonât find anywhere else. [SIGN UP]( Quartzâs most popular ð [Apple hobbled a crucial tool of dissent in China weeks before widespread protests broke out]( ð£ [A $900 million port project of the Adani group has sparked violence in India]( ð° [Amazonâs $5 billion discount: See all its tax cuts and other US subsidies]( ð¬ [Flutterwaveâs CEO is under scrutiny over allegations of financial misconduct]( ð [The first Ugandan Grammy nominee makes music videos of poverty, not glamor]( ð [Effective altruism solved all the problems of capitalismâ âuntil it didnât]( Sponsor content by BOFA Securities Regional & global economies under the lens. Get a week-to-week snapshot on global and regional economies, policies and markets from Ethan Harris, BofAâs Head of Global Economics. [Advertisement] [Catch up now.]( Surprising discoveries The âquietest place on Earthââ may not be as disquieting as you think. According to one account, itâs like a [trip to the spa](, only more pricey and less comfy. Weâre one step closer to making R2D2-style holograms. A new modulator device can [manipulate light](, but thankfully not in a Darth Vader way. Band-Aids have gotten a hi-tech upgrade. â[Smart wireless bandages](â monitor wounds and apply electrical stimulation to speed-up healing. Coffee could make a splash in your next bath⦠A Japanese company makes [single-use coffee sachets]( to brew up your soaking time.  ⦠And at last someoneâs invented a splash-free urinal. The âNauti-looâ [takes inspiration from](nautilus shells. Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, espresso bath bombs, and hologram messages to hi@qz.com. Reader support makes Quartz available to allâ[become a member](. Todayâs Daily Brief was brought to you by Ananya Bhattacharya, Susan Howson, Sofia Lotto Persio, Julia Malleck, and Morgan Haefner. 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