Judge selects plaintiffs' map in Senate redistricting case

A judge on Wednesday approved new state Senate districts that will recast Florida's political landscape, giving millions of people new representation and bolstering Democratic chances in 2016. More from Florida Politics, the Tampa Bay Times, the Orlando Sentinel, and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

What economic forecasters got right, and wrong, in 2015

It’s clear what threw prognosticators and policy makers for the biggest loop with their economic forecasts for 2015: oil. Crude oil prices stayed unexpectedly low this year and those low prices didn’t prove as beneficial as many had hoped. [Source: Wall Street Journal]

Why 2016 will be a big year for student loans

The nation’s student loan debt has expanded tremendously over the last decade. With more individuals attending college than ever, the demand for student loans has skyrocketed. [Source: FOX Business]

Environmental Research
From a rare Florida tree, genes to regrow forest of ancient giants

An experiment in regrowing forests of the world's oldest trees led environmentalists this week to climb a nine­story tall, 2,000­year-old cypress in central Florida known as "Lady Liberty." Read the full story here.

How to Make Yourself Work When You Just Don’t Want To

Can you imagine how much less guilt, stress, and frustration you would feel if you could somehow just make yourself do the things you don’t want to do when you are actually supposed to do them? Not to mention how much happier and more effective you would be? [Source: Harvard Business Review]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› 2015 mullet season catch is down drastically [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
For the people who catch them, the businesses that sell them and for those planning to expand Southwest Florida's mullet fishery into a sustainable industry, the record-setting warm winter is a big problem.

› Environmental group says 2015 deadliest year for Florida panthers [FOX4]
The Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility said Wednesday that 41 Florida panthers died in the wild in 2015, exceeding last year's previous record of 31 panthers.

› Florida Businesses will see tax break in 2016 [WDBO]
Florida businesses will start paying lower reemployment taxes in January, due to the higher number of employed Floridians this year. The minimum tax rate will be cut more than 50 percent from the current rate of $16.80 per employee to $7.00 per employee in 2016.

› Disney has a money problem that even 'Star Wars' can't fix [Washington Post]
Even analysts impressed with perhaps the biggest franchise on earth say it's not enough to shield the Big Mouse from its greatest challenge.

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› How to spend $5 trillion: a record-breaking year in deals [AP]
Companies around the world spent a record $5.04 trillion on acquisitions in 2015, according to Dealogic, as slow worldwide economic growth and low interest rates pushed companies to combine forces.

› Fort Lauderdale business development team looks for ideas in Austin, Texas [South Florida Sun Sentinel]
Rapid growth has enlarged the Austin, Texas, metro area well beyond the famed city limits. Leaders of Fort Lauderdale, which experienced its growth spurt in the 1960s through 1990s, want to know how the self-proclaimed "music capital of the world" is managing its newfound cachet.

› Panuccio leaves mixed legacy at jobs agency [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
When Jesse Panuccio took the helm at Florida's jobs agency in December 2012, the department was in turmoil and the state was stuck in a sputtering economic recovery.

› Raul Castro prepares Cuba for tough year despite US opening [AP]
President Raul Castro warned Cubans on Tuesday to prepare for tough economic conditions in 2016 despite warmer relations with the United States.