The Daily Dive

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

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In a dramatic raid in Syria that President Biden approved, U.S. special operations forces conducted a nighttime mission to take out the Islamic State’s leader. After a shootout between an ISIS lieutenant and U.S. forces, the IS leader detonated what is believed to be an explosive vest killing himself and his own family. Gordon Lubold, WH and national security reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how the operation went down.

Next, we are learning more about the mysterious ‘Havana syndrome’ after a panel of experts determined that an external energy source could be behind the symptoms affecting U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers abroad. No device or country has been identified as being behind it, but the experts said the pulsed electromagnetic energy could come from a portable device. Shane Harris, national security reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for more.

Finally, as the Winter Olympics get under way a lot of focus will be on the venues and snow needed for some 66 medal events that require it. All of the snow for the Games will be completely man-made using special snow guns that use specific air and water ratios to make the perfect snow for each event. Bonnie Berkowitz, reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for how they make a bulletproof downhill course.

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What is the science behind the sharp rise in Omicron infections and then the rapid decline? It seems we might have hit a peak here in the U.S. and are already seeing new infections drop in places like the U.K. and South Africa. Umair Irfan, reporter at Vox, joins us for how more immunity could be building up in the population and the variant is running out of new people to infect.

Next, the IRS wants to scan your face. Starting this summer anyone that wants to access their records on the IRS website like tax transcripts, child tax credits or payment plans, they will need to record a video of their face and send it to private contractor ID.me to confirm their identity. Drew Harwell, tech reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for more.

Finally, many questions still remain about the Jan. 21st accident involving a truck transporting research monkeys that crashed in Pennsylvania. The latest update is that Kenya airways that flew the monkeys to the U.S. will not renew its contract to continue to their transport. There are also still questions about Michele Fallon’s health, the woman who fell ill after contact with them. Michael Levenson, reporter at the NY Times, joins us for what we know.

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One of the longest running mysteries of the pandemic has been long Covid and what causes it. Studies have found that 10-20 percent of people that have recovered from the coronavirus get long Covid which can appear up to 3 months after recovery and last for 6 months or more in some cases. Researchers are zeroing in on the causes and the two leading theories are that the virus turns the immune system against the body and despite recovering, the virus could be lingering in the body not in the blood, but in the body's’ tissues. Yasmin Tayag, contributor to Vox, joins us for what could be behind long Covid.

Next, Los Angeles is hoping to build a future where water won’t run out and comes from mostly local sources. Currently Southern California gets most of its water from the Colorado River and up north, but there have been billions of dollars in investment to double down on water recycling, reclamation, and storage. The goals are lofty to treat water locally, but it could set LA up to be water independent as droughts continue. Laura Bliss, reporter at Bloomberg CityLab, joins us for more.

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Police departments across the country are dealing with resignations and retirements from their officers and struggling to replace them. Some officers describe the job as more stressful and less rewarding than in the past amid increased scrutiny over police actions. Kris Maher, reporter at the WSJ, joins us how police departments are short-staffed and their efforts to recruit.

Next, the fight over Covid misinformation continues on Spotify as Joe Rogan and the company have both responded after Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and others demanded their music be taken off the platform for misinformation spread on Rogan’s podcast. Spotify said they will be more transparent with its rules for what is allowed on the platform as well as add content advisories to podcasts that talk about Covid. Travis Andrews, reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for more.

Finally, ransomware hackers are increasingly adding a new tactic to get paid, contacting you directly. After the Allen Independent School District in Dallas was hacked, parents started getting emails threatening to release the sensitive information of their children unless they were paid off. Kevin Collier, cyber security reporter at NBC News, joins us for the evolving practices of ransomware gangs.

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You are seeing them everywhere and oddly there still aren’t enough to get Americans all the stuff they want. Tractor trailers and delivery trucks have taken over the roads. While all these deliveries are solving one problem and getting us what we need, it is creating new problems such as damage to roads and even homes as they take up more space on residential streets. Atlanta in particular has been hit hard as it has two of the top five truck bottlenecks in the country. David Harrison, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how this trend will continue with infrastructure projects on their way and no slowing of online orders.

Next, Idaho is sitting on one of the most important elements on Earth… cobalt. Needed for the production of lithium-ion batteries for use in electric vehicles, mining companies are beginning to set up operations in what is known as the Idaho Cobalt Belt. It is an interesting development and look at how the clean-energy revolution is reshaping the landscape and posing some environmental risks. Most of the cobalt supply is mined in the Congo and sent to China, so it’s important that we are able to mine domestically. Michael Holtz, contributor to the Atlantic, joins us for more.

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This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The tension with Russia continues as fears mount that they could invade Ukraine. But what are all the motivations behind it? Putin wants guarantees that NATO will not expand further eastward. For the U.S., China seems to be a bigger threat, but we are bound to help because of our involvement with NATO. Jonathan Guyer, senior foreign policy writer at Vox, joins us for more.

Next, the crypto crash has erased more than $1 trillion in global value for cryptocurrencies and the drops have hit everyday investors pretty hard. Some are rethinking their investments, others are in it for the long term thinking it could be the financial platform of the future. Tory Newmyer, economic policy reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for more on all the crypto volatility.

Finally, the road to filming and producing all those excellent Super Bowl commercials that many love, has been very stressful this year. The average price for 30 seconds of ad time during the game is up to $6.5 million, an increase of a million from last year. However, because of Covid surges, delays and price hikes have affected commercial shoots. Suzanne Vranica, advertising editor at the WSJ, joins us for all the disruptions.

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Big Supreme Court news as we found out Wednesday that Justice Stephen Breyer will be retiring after 27 years, giving President Biden a chance to nominate a new judge. Conservative judges will still control the majority, but it could provide Democrats with some much needed enthusiasm before the midterms. Sam Baker, senior editor at Axios, joins us for some possible front-runners for the job.

Next, the SAT is going digital soon in an effort to make the test easier to take, administer, and be more relevant. The test will go from three hours down to two in part due to a process called “adaptive testing” that will tailor the difficulty of questions to what is appropriate for a student’s performance level. Nick Anderson, higher education reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for all the changes.

Finally, inflation remains at a 40 year high and many are having to adjust their buying habits more than just the simple, switching to generic brands at the grocery store. People are scaling back on other life events and picking up new skills to make due. You can’t make cuts on things like medication, so the savings need to come from other areas. Veronica Dagher, personal finance reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

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