Table of contents for February 1, 2016 in TIME Magazine

Tsai Ing-wen became Taiwan's first female President on Jan. 16, winning 56% of the vote and a parliamentary majority for her Beijing-skeptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The party's victory, on a self-governing island that China still considers a rogue province, may complicate relations with Beijing: QUIET REFORMER The former law professor, who studied at Cornell and the London School of Economics as well as in Taiwan, is more technocrat than tub thumper and considers German Chancellor Angela Merkel a role model. An experienced negotiator in trade policy and diplomatic relations, Tsai courted young voters by promising new and more innovative jobs, backing same-sex marriage--and by showing off her two cats on the trail. CHINA TENSIONS Cross-strait relations may become strained under Tsai, given the DPP's long-term pledge to break away…

PURCHASED A stake in satirical news outlet the Onion, by Spanish-language broadcaster Univision, as it aims to grow its millennial audience ahead of the 2016 U.S. presidential elections. REACHED An agreement by Goldman Sachs to pay more than $5 billion--including about $1.8 billion in relief to consumers--to settle an ongoing government investigation into its dealings with mortgage-backed securities in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis. DIED René Angélil, 73, Celine Dion's husband and manager, a singer 26 years her senior who discovered her when she was 12. Two days after his death, the five-time Grammy winner's brother Daniel Dion, 59, also died. Both had cancer. • Dan Haggerty, 73, star of the 1974 movie The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, about a bearded mountaineer's adventures living with a…

The restaurant industry is the second largest employer in the U.S., providing jobs for nearly 11 million Americans. It's also one of the country's fastest-growing industries; revenues have risen every year since 2010. But the reality of being a restaurant worker isn't nearly as rosy. More than half--including waiters and bussers--are considered tipped employees, a designation that allows employers to pay them less than the minimum wage; in 43 states, their base wage can be as low as $2.13 per hour. And data suggests tips don't cover the difference. Tipped workers in full-service restaurants are twice as likely to receive government assistance as workers in other sectors of American industry, a financial burden that costs taxpayers some $9.5 billion each year. They're also mostly women and statistically more likely to…

A specter is haunting the Democratic Party--the specter of socialism. A question is being asked, mostly by Republicans, but also by MSNBC's Chris Matthews: What is the difference between a Democrat and a Socialist? Debbie Wasserman Schultz got it last July and, ever the robotic partisan, answered by saying the more important difference was between Democrats and Republicans. Senator Chuck Schumer said it depended on how you define the two, and then refused to define the two. And, most significantly, Hillary Clinton said, "Well, I can tell you what I am ... I'm a progressive Democrat." Now this is not a difficult question to answer. Webster's says socialism is "a social system or theory in which the government owns and controls the means of production." Democrats tend to believe in…

T.S. Hawkins was many things, but vain was not one of them. Some Recollections of a Busy Life, his account of an idyllic 19th century Missouri boyhood and eventual journey to a young California, was not meant for a wide audience. He published 300 copies in 1913, mostly for the enjoyment of his friends and family. Hawkins' story would likely have ended there, were his great-great-grandson not Dave Eggers (What Is the What, The Circle), who has reissued his forefather's book with a new introduction. Considering the ethos of McSweeney's, Eggers' slickly indie publishing operation, it's not surprising that the little volume is a pleasure to behold. What is surprising, considering Hawkins' modest goals, is that it's a pleasure to read. Hawkins' life was indeed a busy one. The farmer-frontiersman-banker-philanthropist…

'I told my kids that Daddy was coming home.' Naghmeh Abedini, wife of Iranian-American pastor Saeed Abedini, after Iran released him and three other detained Americans as part of a prisoner exchange; the swap coincided with the final implementation of last year's nuclear deal between Iran and Western powers SpaceX The company successfully launched into orbit a satellite to track rising ocean levels GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK SpaceX But its rocket exploded while attempting to land back on Earth 'It has me thinking about unconscious prejudice and what merits prestige in our culture.' Lupita Nyong'o, actor, on growing controversy surrounding the lack of minority nominees for this year's Oscars 26 Average age of first-time mothers in the U.S., a new high $21,500 Amount that at least one thief stole in…

Oil prices stand at the intersection of geopolitics and the global economy. When prices fall as far and as fast as they have over the past two years--dropping some $85 a barrel--shock waves are felt around the world. Vladimir Putin's outsize personality means that Russia could be highly vulnerable to low oil prices. But while the country's economy will certainly take a hit, the impact will be greater in the Middle East, especially in an anxious and isolated Saudi Arabia. In Russia, energy accounts for more than 50% of federal budget revenue and 18% of national GDP. In Saudi Arabia, the state relies on oil for about 80% of budget revenue, and it represents 45% of GDP. The Russian ruble floats freely, providing greater flexibility to manage shocks. The Saudi…

How do con artists trick even the savviest skeptics into falling for a scam? That's the question journalist Maria Konnikova explores in her new book, drawing on a mix of real-life fraud: a religious leader who passes a donation basket to fund his extravagant wardrobe; an art dealer selling fake Rothkos and Pollocks; a woman who lures her cyberbeau to Bolivia under the guise of romance, then sends him home with two kilos of cocaine. At the end of the day, Konnikova argues, these tricks work because humans are psychologically programmed to be gullible. "What a confidence artist sells is hope," she writes. "Hope that you'll be happier, healthier, richer," that you "will emerge on the other side" and somehow be superior. And with technology making it more likely than…

Our ideas of love are often shaped more by what's outside us than within. Maybe that's why we melt when we see devoted older couples--even if we know nothing about them, we think, Somehow they've done it right. In Andrew Haigh's delicately shaded 45 Years, Charlotte Rampling--in a superb, Oscar-nominated performance--and Tom Courtenay play such a couple. Nearing their 45th anniversary, Courtenay's Geoff learns that the body of a woman he once loved, long missing, has been found. He's shaken, yet the news affects Rampling's Kate more deeply. Her vulnerability, fueled by jealousy, becomes a thing of lacerating power. Kate is surrounded by people, yet her sense of isolation is so resplendent that we're torn between basking in it and turning away. The truth of 45 Years is that even…

How did you decide to approach Rebecca's mental illness? There were no boundaries. There was an early version of the show where she was cutting herself. Rebecca moving to another state to pursue someone is messed up. It would have felt false to romanticize love as an escape like rom-coms so often do. In reality, she would be a pill-popping, depressed lawyer with insomnia. Rebecca sings "The Sexy Getting-Ready Song," about the things women do to look good. Why was that important to skewer? That song is about our collective madness. You think Rebecca is crazy to pluck and wax and wear Spanx for love, but is she? Her problems are symptomatic of the contradictory messages women receive every day. We're told to be both successful and beautiful. The fairy…

Exit Right by Daniel Oppenheimer traces the path of six influential men, including Ronald Reagan and Christopher Hitchens, who moved from the left to the right, in ideological shifts that changed "the contours of American politics." Why Liberals Win the Culture Wars (Even When They Lose Elections) by Stephen Prothero finds a pattern in centuries' worth of American culture wars, instigated--and, according to the author, predictably lost--by the right. Why the Right Went Wrong by E.J. Dionne Jr. starts at the Goldwater movement to follow widening divisions within the Republican Party--and to make a case that both parties have a lot of work to do.…

INDIA Facebook's Free Basics initiative would provide free, limited Internet access to some of the 1 billion unconnected Indians, but India suspended it amid concerns about Net neutrality. CHINA Alibaba founder Jack Ma aims to close the digital divide in China, where over 700 million lack access, through "rural e-commerce" centers that help villagers learn how to browse, sell and buy online. INDONESIA Google's Project Loon will use hundreds of giant helium balloons floating in the stratosphere in a bid to connect the 200 million Indonesians, many on remote islands, who lack Internet access.…

Glenn Frey could tell a story by just digging into his guitar. I first met him through John David Souther--they had a duo called Longbranch Pennywhistle. I hired Glenn for my tour to replace Bernie Leadon, along with Don Henley, who I'd also seen play at the Troubadour nightclub in West Hollywood. We weren't making enough money to afford hotel rooms for everybody, so we had to double up, and he and Don were roommates. They wanted to form a band, and we told them they could play backup for me until they got a record deal. I suggested Bernie for their band, and my manager suggested Randy Meisner. We introduced the Eagles to one another. Glenn was kind of shy and insecure, and it took a lot of courage…

On Feb. 28, the 88th Academy Awards will be hosted by a black comedian, Chris Rock, and co-produced by a black man, Reginald Hudlin. When the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences takes the stage at the Dolby Theatre, the audience will hear from a black woman, Cheryl Boone Isaacs. Yet when it's time to dole out little gold statues to the best actors of 2015, there will be no nonwhite performers giving an acceptance speech. For the second consecutive year, of the 20 nominations available to actors, not a single one went to a person of color. It's the first time since 1980 that the Oscars have gone without any nonwhite acting nominees for two years running. Before that, you'd have to go back to…

Classic operas concern themselves not with the verisimilitude of human emotions but with spectacle, intrigue and fate. In his new novel about a fin de siècle soprano who calls herself Lilliet Berne, Alexander Chee employs that formula to stage an opera of the page, complete with seduction, hidden identity, betrayal and plenty of costume changes. It's 1882 in Paris, and Lilliet is a diva at the top of her game. She's played the best characters in opera houses around Europe, and all that remains to cement her reputation is to create a role of her own. But when a writer approaches her offering her the chance to originate a part in his new opera, she is alarmed by the plot: it seems to be based on her own secret past,…

LOVE IT Taylor Swift and Calvin Harris let a young fan crash their dinner date--and post about it on Instagram. Leonardo DiCaprio said he would be open to playing Vladimir Putin in a movie. Internet sleuths uncovered a cat that bears a striking resemblance to Star Wars actor Adam Driver. Burger chain Shake Shack officially added a chicken sandwich to its menu. Adele rapped Nicki Minaj's verse from "Monster" during an episode of CBS's Late Late Show without missing a beat. With help from Jimmy Kimmel, hip-hop star DJ Khaled made a pep-talk video for Jeb Bush, including lines like: 'Jeb Bush, I appreciate you. You a leader. You a Bush.' Time's weekly take on what popped in culture LEAVE IT A Texas man fell into a 7-ft. hole on…