Good morning, Quartz readers! What to watch for today Tech's heavy-hitters report their earnings. Apple, Alphabet, and Amazon are all expected to post a rise in earnings, although Wall Street historically tends to overestimate the latter's fourth-quarter results. Alibaba's results will indicate if the company's overseas expansions (paywall) have paid off. India unveils its 2018 budget. Finance minister Arun Jaitley is presenting Narendra Modi's last full budget ahead of the 2019 general elections. It's expected to reflect the nation's efforts to reduce its deficit, while taxpayers are looking for relief by way of a lower tax burden. Mohamed Saeed Assar heads to Beijing. Egypt's minister of state for military production will meet with several Chinese firms in an effort to boost ties, particularly ahead of Cairo's first defense exhibition later this year. While you were sleeping Facebook earnings crushed expectations. The tech giant beat fourth-quarter earnings and revenue, making more money than expected from each user. Despite the news, shares fell as much as 4.5% after the company said it had made changes to reduce the amount of time users spent on the platform. The CDC's director resigned over a tobacco stock scandal. Brenda Fitzgerald bought between $1,000 and $15,000 worth of shares in Japan Tobacco, the world's third-largest cigarette company, while leading the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's anti-smoking campaigns. A train carrying lawmakers hit a truck. Republican lawmakers were headed to Virginia for a legislative retreat when a garbage truck collided with them. One of the truck's passengers has been reported dead and at least five others are injured. The FBI clashed with the White House over a controversial memo. FBI director Christopher Wray issued a public warning that a Republican memo about the organization's surveillance practices could be inaccurate. Donald Trump told a GOP lawmaker he'd release the memo after yesterday's State of the Union speech (paywall). A British lord resigned from the House of Lords for being late. Lord Michael Bates, who worked for the department of international development, quit after being absent when he was asked a question. He said he was "thoroughly ashamed of not being in my place and therefore I shall be offering my resignation to the prime minister with immediate effect," before leaving, to a chorus of protests from fellow members. Quartz obsession interlude Noah Berlatsky on how dictatorships and democracies can feel remarkably similar: "Authoritarianism doesn't necessarily slam down all at once. It often is a slow erosion of norms—a law enforcement agency corrupted here, the self-censorship of media (paywall) there. It can sneak up on you. And that's especially true because authoritarianism is not egalitarian. It doesn't affect everyone in the same way." Read more here. Matters of debate A country's GDP is a deceptive gauge of progress. Measuring wealth reflects a population's wellbeing by accounting for income distribution and extractive effects like pollution. America's system is so broken, it's turning to billionaires for help. The super-wealthy like Jeff Bezos are now in a better position to provide social services than the government. Mauritania still has a slavery problem. The world's last country to abolish slavery is failing to persecute those who still practice it. Surprising discoveries Russia's 2018 World Cup fields are under threat from locusts. Agricultural official Pyotr Chekmarev called it a potential "global scandal." Jay-Z got a shout-out in the Oxford English Dictionary. It's his fifth lifetime citation, this time for the word "swag." California says Tinder can't raise prices based on age. An appellate court "swiped left" (its words) on a previous ruling that had said the premium service could cost more for users over 30. Good drones could go after bad drones at the Olympics. Organizers in Pyeongchang are worried that unmanned aerial vehicles could disrupt the event and are planning accordingly. An "emotional support" peacock wasn't allowed to board a flight. United Airlines refused to allow performance artist Ventiko's peacock on the plane, despite the bird having its own ticket. Correction: Yesterday we said the coincidence of a super moon, blue moon, and lunar eclipse had not occurred for more than 150 years. In fact, it has not been seen over the Western Hemisphere in that timespan. Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, good drones, and emotional support peacocks to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android. | 
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