Pablo Escobar allegedly once said, "Life is full of surprises, some good, some not so good." Well, on this day in 1993, life gave him one of the "not so good" ones. The Colombian drug lord, who at one point was making so much money he spent $2,500 on rubber bands in a month, was gunned down. His pet hippos, however, survived and have since populated the Colombian countryside.

On a slightly different note, we the Maxes want to share our 5 most-listened-to artists this year. You can let us know who won:Max T: 1) Taylor Swift 2) Kanye West 3) Hans Zimmer 4) Luke Bryan 5) Prague PhilharmonicMax F: 1) Fred Again 2) Rufus du Sol 3) Harry Styles 4) Drake 5) FKJ

In today's edition:

• Europe off airplane mode

• Beverly Hills GUAP 💸

• 20 Questions!

 🔑 Key Stories

EU: No More Airplane Mode

The EU will stop requiring airplane mode on flights

• The EU currently requires passengers to disconnect from cell service on flights, citing risk of interference with planes’ communication equipment

• The EU will now designate certain 5G frequencies that don’t interfere with any airline equipment to airlines. Passengers will be able to connect to the networks and use their phones normally; airlines will be able to charge for the service

• Service will only be available at low altitudes and in good weather. The US rejected a similar proposal in 2020, but its 5G network is structured differently

Musk: I'm Putting a Chip in My Brain

Elon Musk said Neuralink will start brain chip trials on humans in 6 months, and he will get one himself

• Musk founded Neuralink in 2016. It develops chips that are surgically implanted in patients’ brains to restore functions to those suffering from paralysis, blindness, and other neurological disorders. Musk says they will also enable “superhuman cognition”

• Neuralink has repeatedly fallen behind deadlines to test chips on humans, which requires government approval

• On Wednesday, Musk said Neuralink hopes to begin human trials in 6 months, pending approval. He also said that he will get a chip himself, but didn’t specify when

Dig Deeper

• Neuralink and other Musk companies frequently miss self-imposed deadlines. Also, Neuralink won't be the first company to install chips in humans: Synchron, a health technology startup, began human trials of its brain chips earlier this year

First Swimming Dinosaur?

For the first time, researchers have discovered a swimming dinosaur

• Until now, all known aquatic animals from the time of the dinosaurs were not technically dinosaurs

• While some dinosaurs were believed to have spent time in the water, one with adaptations for aquatic life had never been found 

• Researchers now claim that a newly-discovered Velociraptor relative, Natovenator polydontus, lived partially or fully in the water and dove for fish. It has skeletal similarities to crocodiles and penguins, which suggest it was a water-adapted dinosaur

Dig Deeper

• Researchers who reconstructed the new species' skeleton believe it was about the size of a duck, feathered, and had rows of small, sharp teeth. That would make the species smaller than Velociraptors, which were generally the size of modern-day turkeys

Lockdowns Affected Teens' Brains?

A Stanford study found that teenagers’ brains aged faster than normal during 2020’s Covid-19 lockdowns 

• Reports of anxiety and depression among US adults rose 25% in 2020, and some researchers believe that number was higher for teenagers

• The study compared MRI scans of 128 16-year-olds’ brains before and after 10 months of Covid-19 lockdowns. It found that tell-tale signs of brain aging — such as the growth of brain areas that regulate stress and emotion — aged the equivalent of 3 years in that time

• Premature brain aging increases later-life chances of depression, anxiety, and addiction, doctors claim

Dig Deeper

• Researchers see premature brain aging in children who suffer abuse, neglect, or trauma, but rarely across such a wide number of people, the study notes. The researchers aren't sure if the aging will have long-term effects or if the brains will age less over the coming years, allowing time to "catch up"

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 📊 Chart of the Day

"What's the Best News Source?"

“Amazon” was the US’ most-Googled term of 2022; “Facebook” was the world’s

• “What time is it?” was the most-searched question; “How to screenshot on Mac?” was the #1 “how-to”

• Rizz – which Urban Dictionary defines as "spitting game" or "when someone is smooth wit it" – didn't crack the top 100...yet

🍿 Popcorn

ICYMI

• King of the world: Bad Bunny topped Spotify's global list of most-streamed artists in 2022. Taylor Swift and Drake followed the Puerto Rican rapper

• Good morning, adultery? On Thursday, Good Morning America hosts TJ Holmes and Amy Robach hosted their show like normal, despite allegations of a months-long affair taking over tabloids

• RIP, Frank: The body that cops found in a Bronx dumpster was Green Book actor Frank Vallelonga, Jr. Police charged a man with concealing the body

Wildcard 

• Cop with the guap: A Beverly Hills cop topped the list of California's highest-paid municipal workers, with a $716,284 salary. 100 workers took home $439,000+

• Caught red-pawed: The escape of 5 lions from their enclosure at a Sydney zoo was caught on camera. Zookeepers have since managed to return them to their den

• City that never cheaps: New York and Singapore topped the survey of the world's most expensive cities. Tel Aviv, Hong Kong, and Los Angeles rounded out the top 5

👇🏻 What do you think?

Today's Question:

Just 20 Qs!

Head to this form and have a great weekend!

See yesterday's results below the Wrap! 

🌯 20 Questions

Every Friday, we ask the Roca readers 20 questions, then feature our favorite answers the following week. 

"Tití me preguntó...

Si tengo muchas novia"

-Bad Bunny in Tití Me Preguntó

For those of us who got C's in high school Spanish class, that translates to "auntie asked me if I have a lot of girlfriends."

That's not one of our 20 Questions today, but we felt like we had to shout out this year's most-streamed musician. So there it is, Mr. Bunny, the shoutout you've been waiting for. 

Today's 20 Questions are "This or That" edition, where we give you 2 options and you choose the one you prefer. Next Friday, we'll include the percentages that you all respond. The topics run the gamut: Some foods, some holiday activities, some drinks...you name it. 

Here's the link, and have a great weekend!

If you have thoughts, let us know at [email protected]!

 🌊 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday's Poll:

Better Christmas movie: Home Alone or Elf?Home Alone: 52.9%Elf: 47.1%

Yesterday's Question:

Do you get excited or creeped out thinking about the future of artificial intelligence?

Claudia from California: "I’m excited about artificial intelligence. Actual human intelligence is failing currently so sane artificial intelligence will be refreshing."

Josh from Los Angeles: "If the AI tries to take over similar to Johnny Depp’s character in ‘Transcendence (2014)’ then we will all have a problem. Especially as we all rely more and more on technology."

Jan from Ohio: "I like the idea of Artificial Intelligence. Could be creepy in the wrong hands, but I’m thinking the more help we can get to do work, farming, industrial etc., the more we can concentrate on our families."

🧠 Final Thoughts

Happy Friday! We have nothing to worry about this weekend, because the Bills already won last night. We hope that victory sends some ~good vibes~ to all of you.  

Fill out the 20 Qs, and see you on Monday!

Max and Max