The 7: Why the election may not be close; Quincy Jones’s legacy; scanning Egyptian mummies; and more

By Jamie Ross and Hannah Jewell  Email

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Good morning. It’s Monday, Nov. 4, and apparently your TikTok feed could look very different ahead of the election depending on your gender. Now let’s get to the news.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump offered contrasting final pitches this weekend.

• Trump’s familiar tune: He continued his chaotic campaign strategy. He said he wouldn’t mind if someone shot journalists at his rally, and he escalated false claims of election fraud.
• Harris’s weekend: She underscored her message of unity and made a surprise appearance on SNL. Meanwhile, Harris’s supporters have been sticking notes in bathroom stalls.

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Polls remain tight ahead of tomorrow’s presidential election.

• The latest: Polls have moved slightly in Trump’s direction in recent weeks — find our tracker here. But, this weekend, Iowa delivered a polling surprise.
• Could the polls be wrong? They don’t tell the whole story, and the election might not be close.
• What do the candidates need to win? They must get 270 electoral college votes, but they have different paths to that number. We mapped Harris’s path here and Trump’s here.

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Officials are taking extraordinary measures to protect election-related sites.

• Like what? Plans include panic buttons for election workers, and the National Guard has been activated in at least two states. In D.C., new fencing surrounds several key locations.
• Why? Precautions have been added following Trump’s attempts to overturn his defeat in 2020. Trump, and an army of election deniers, have already laid the groundwork for a repeat.

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Israel used civilians as human shields, Palestinians and an Israel soldier said.

• What that means: Palestinian detainees in Gaza were used to shield Israeli forces from attack, The Post found. The use of civilians as cover for the military is a war crime under Israeli and international law.
• In northern Gaza: At least 50 children were killed in Israeli strikes Friday and Saturday, and the entire population is “at imminent risk of dying,” a U.N. official said.

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Quincy Jones, the legendary music producer and innovator, has died.

Jones catapulted the careers of Aretha Franklin and Will Smith and smashed barriers for other African Americans. (Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

• How we’ll remember him: For his incalculable impact on U.S. music, from bebop to hip-hop. He elevated the voices of dozens of entertainers, most famously Michael Jackson.
• What we know: Jones died yesterday at his home in Los Angeles, his publicist announced. He was 91.

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A new kind of battery could be better for the environment.

• The problem: Much of the world relies on lithium-ion batteries. But mining, processing and disposing of them can harm workers, communities and the environment.
• One solution: Sodium-ion batteries are made from cheaper and more abundant materials and last longer. But they’re also larger and need more development.

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A Chicago museum scanned dozens of mummies to unlock their secrets.

The mummies were placed in a mobile CT scanner that produced 3D images of the contents of their wrappings. (Morgan Clark/The Field Museum)

• What to know: Researchers at the Field Museum recently scanned 26 mummies, offering a view of the remains without physically disturbing the mummified individuals.
• Mystery solved: One mummy was buried in a sealed box with no entry point, confusing experts. Scans revealed the box was molded around her body as she was held upright.

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Before you go … it’s hoops season: The college basketball tips off; there are games to watch all day. Plus: Concerned about privacy? This service fixes 223 settings for you.

One more good read: As immigration tensions deepen, one family risked it all to reach the U.S.

And finally … test your news knowledge with The Post’s daily quiz, On the Record. Click here to play. Or try our word game, Keyword.

You’re all caught up. See you tomorrow.

(Illustration by Katty Huertas/The Washington Post)

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