Ripped from the Headlines: September 2020: This Week In Culture: Current Events Vocab for September 19–25, 2020

As bacteria become increasingly resistant to antibiotics, researchers are developing ways to reconfigure existing medicines to defeat bacterial resistance. Using molecules like building blocks, scientists hope to produce new versions of old compounds that fool the bacteria's defenses long enough to kill them. If successful, this would reduce the serious pressure to invent new drugs faster than bacteria can evolve resistance to them.

33-year-old Brazilian Maya Gabeira surfed a 78-foot wave off the coast of Portugal in February. The ride was certified by Guinness as not just the biggest wave ever surfed by a woman, but the biggest wave surfed in the 2019-20 winter season by anyone. Her tow partner, Sebastian Steudtner, drove the jet ski that pulled her into position. Gargantuan comes from a giant named Gargantua who is a protagonist in five satirical novels written by François Rabelais in the mid-sixteenth century.

After Watchmen won eleven Emmy awards, creator Damon Lindelof gave an interview in which he talked about the 1921 Tulsa massacre that begins the show, the President's proposed 1776 Commission, and his reverence for the graphic novel that the show is based on. HBO won a total of 30 Emmys, the most of any network. Schitt's Creek won seven, including awards for all four of the main actors — the first time that has ever happened.

Microsoft is buying ZeniMax Media, which owns a number of hugely successful game studios. Arkane, id Studios, Tango Gameworks, and Bethesda Game Studios will all be part of the deal, and between them they've created some of the top names in gaming history like Doom, Quake, Prey, and The Elder Scrolls among others. Microsoft is paying $7.5 billion for ZeniMax.

Facebook is under the most scrutiny it has ever felt for the huge role it plays in society, and whether it is using that power responsibly. A recent leak of recordings contains conversations between Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and a number of employees trying to respond to the criticism and discussing ways to satisfy its many critics on both the right and the left.

Aaron Sorkin's film The Trial of the Chicago Seven drops on Netflix next month. The film tells the story of seven activists who were tried for conspiracy after protests during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, and it resonates with much of what's happening today, especially police brutality and the role of protest in shaping society. The word quandary is of unknown origin.

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state will ban the sale of gasoline-powered cars by 2035. This year's wildfires have shown how devastating climate change can be, and California is uniquely positioned to make a difference in this arena. Since it's the world's fifth-largest economy all by itself, the standards it implements are followed by companies manufacturing cars for the whole American market. Trucks and other vehicles would have another ten years to comply.

If the recent discovery of phosphine gas in Venus's atmosphere is an indication of microbial life, a number of upcoming missions could confirm that definitively. The word tantalus is rooted in Greek mythology. Tantalus revealed divine secrets to his fellow mortals and was punished by being forced to stand in a lake where the water receded every time he tried to drink it. The lake was surrounded with ripe fruit hanging on branches that were just out of reach.

Leticia Bufoni, a 27-year-old Brazilian, is training for the postponed Tokyo Olympics, the first at which skateboarding will be an event. In this interview she discusses her training routine, how quarantine has changed it, and how excited she is to represent her sport and her country. Unilateral means "one-sided" in Latin.

Volkswagen introduced a small electric SUV for the American market that will begin deliveries early next year. Called the ID4, the vehicle is expected to cost under $40,000, which would make it significantly cheaper than the Tesla Model Y. The company hopes that the competitive pricing and early arrival on the market will give it an advantage over Tesla and the other car companies that plan on releasing electric SUVs later in the year.