The Daily Dive

The recall election for CA Gov. Gavin Newsom is in its final days and so far we have seen a healthy turnout for Democrats, lots of money being spent on ads, and big national figures supporting Newsom. Next Tuesday is the last day to cast a ballot and recall proponents are hoping for a big in-person election day push. Melanie Mason, national political correspondent at the LA Times, joins us for more.

Next, despite being vaccinated, many people are still worried about breakthrough Covid infections and curious how to navigate this phase of the pandemic. It really depends on a lot of factors including your overall health and the concentration of infections where you live. Another thing that can help you in managing your risk is more home testing. Tara Parker-Pope, health columnist at the NY Times, joins us for what to know.

Finally, Congress has a very busy month filled with deadlines and not much time. The Senate comes back on Monday and the House the following week. Work needs to be done on Biden’s infrastructure bill, spending packages need to be approved to avoid a government shutdown, and then there are issues to address over Afghanistan and the Texas abortion law. Jordain Carney, Senate reporter at The Hill, joins us for the long to-do list for Congress.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ever since Pluto was lost as a planet back in 2006, astronomers have been in search for the elusive Plant 9. A recent study published last month is re-examining evidence for a possible 9th plant far beyond Neptune. The evidence lies in the clustering of icy asteroids and comet cores, something big with a lot of gravity is pulling on them. The next step is looking in the right place and the recent study also has a so-called “treasure map” that tells astronomers where to look. Mike Brown, Professor of Planetary Astronomy at Caltech and also part of the team that took Pluto’s classification away, joins us for the current hunt for Planet 9.

Next, the number of men that are enrolled at two and four-year colleges has fallen behind women by record levels and there seems to be no reversal in sight. Part of the problem is that that fewer men are applying, but there are also a host of other issues including the rising cost of education and the need to make money now. Some say the time and energy required is not worth the cost, others have a lack of guidance or feel lost on what to do next. Doug Belkin, higher education reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how more men are giving up on college.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

September 15 will mark another ambitious spaceflight from the private sector as we see the first all-civilian mission to orbit the Earth. SpaceX’s next crewed mission will be called Inspiration4 and the crewmembers will orbit the Earth for three days, conduct science experiments, and fly higher than the International Space Station. Miriam Kramer, space reporter at Axios, joins us for a preview of the next big space mission.

Next, an interesting story about evolution and cannibalism. The invasive species of the Australian cane toad has very few predators and with that lack of a competing species, they are turning on each other. With limited resources, cane toad tadpoles have been seen eating toad hatchlings when they are new and vulnerable. In response, the hatchlings are even developing faster so they are tougher to eat. John Timmer, science editor at Ars Technica, joins us for cannibal cane toads.

Finally, a feel good story of how a marriage certificate from 1870 was reunited with its distant family members. Hidden behind a picture frame in a thrift store in North Carolina, the weathered document had little info to go on, but a local genealogist was able to crack the clues and find the great-granddaughter of the woman from the marriage certificate. Sydney Page, reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for how this document from the 1870’s made its way home.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Texas now has the most restrictive abortion law in the country as the Supreme Court declined to block the law from being implemented. The law bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, about 6 weeks into pregnancy, before many women even realize they are pregnant. What’s more, the law lets individual citizens sue against abortion providers. Ginger Gibson, deputy Washington digital editor at NBC News, joins us for more on this law, how the U.S. plans to run diplomacy in Afghanistan and the Gavin Newsom recall is just over a week away.

Next, the recent flip flop from OnlyFans on whether they would ban sexually explicit content has led competitors to ramp up their efforts to steal content creators and subscribers. There is a huge financial opportunity to get in the game as users spent $2.3 billion in 2020 on the platform. OnlyFans might have changed the game for adult content forever and now other platforms are striking while they see weakness. Will Yakowicz, staff writer at Forbes, joins us for more.

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.

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The demand for deworming drug ivermectin has been surging to more than 80,000 prescriptions per week. Pharmacists have been reporting shortages of the drug which is used in small doses in humans to treat lice, scabies, and other parasites, but most commonly used in animals. The big concern is people trying to get the drug from livestock stores. Emma Goldberg, reporter at the NY Times, joins us for the surging demand despite studies showing it does little to treat Covid.

Next, are you traveling this Labor Day weekend? Make sure to check all the Covid mandates of your destination. The CDC has said if you are unvaccinated you should not be traveling, but some estimates say that as many as 1 in 5 Americans will be traveling over the weekend. The main thing to prepare ahead of time is to have digital proof of you vaccination records. Allison Pohle, travel reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

Finally, retailers are very worried about the holiday shopping season as pandemic related delays continue. Factory shutdowns, computer chip shortages, and clogged ports are gearing up to leave stores with emptier shelves and consumers with higher prices and longer waits for shipping. Abha Bhattarai, national retail reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for how September is the new December when it comes to holiday shopping. If there is something you want, get it now.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Gavin Newsom recall election is just under two weeks away. September 14 marks the day, but many have already voted by mail and the current snapshot is about 4.7 million Californians who have cast their ballots. Twice as many Democrats have voted as Republicans and so far have they been older and white. Seema Mehta, political reporter at the LA Times, joins us for who the campaigns are targeting in the final days… younger voters and Latinos.

Next, we have seen the demand for Covid-19 monoclonal antibody treatments skyrocket in the last few weeks. Some states have set up infusion centers where patients can get the treatment and are also passing rules where you can get it without a doctor’s prescription. Karen Weintraub, health reporter at USA Today, joins us for how this underutilized treatment is gaining traction.

Finally, we have been seeing an increase in overdose deaths where fentanyl is being laced into other illicit drugs. In mid-August, one town in Suffolk County, NY, suffered eight overdoses with six of them dying over the course of three days. All of them were tied to cocaine laced with the synthetic opioid. Police are seeing this trend all over the country including places like San Francisco and Nebraska. Sarah Maslin Nir, staff reporter at the NY Times, joins us for more.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The next big phase of our withdrawal from Afghanistan will be the resettlement of thousands of Afghans into communities across the country. Refugee organizations that deal with the State Department are ramping up their operations and have been told to expect some that have special immigrant visas and as many as 50,000 Afghans without visas. Depending on their status, it can complicate the process and changes the services that can be provided to them. While it will be a huge undertaking for these organizations, Americans are already stepping up and offering their help and support. Michelle Hackman, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for what’s next for Afghan refugees.

Next, President Biden officially marked the end of the war in Afghanistan on Tuesday and continued to stand by his decision saying he would not extend the forever war and disagreed with the criticism that evacuations could have started earlier. On the political front, the administration is trying to turn the page and focus on other priorities, but Republicans want to continue to hammer him for the botched withdrawal. Some Republicans are pressuring Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to press Biden harder on the issue and are refining their messages hoping to act quickly. Olivia Beavers, congressional reporter at Politico, joins us for more.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The last evacuation planes and troops have left Afghanistan ending the longest war America has been involved in. There are still some Americans and Afghans that remain there, but their evacuation will no longer be a Pentagon mission, it is now a diplomatic mission. In the end, after 20 years, the U.S. failed to defeat the Taliban, establish a functioning democracy, and stop ISIS extremists. What happens next is still unclear as we need to resettle thousands of Afghans and see what kind of government is formed by the Taliban. Ishaan Tharoor, foreign affairs columnist at The Washington Post, joins us for the end of America’s presence in Afghanistan.

Next, a look inside Pfizer’s Pearl River research center, where the vaccine was created with their partner BioNTech. The team there is in a never-ending effort to stay ahead of the pandemic. The lab has “variant hunters” that continue to track the effectiveness of the vaccine on new variants, a “virus farmer” that grows the latest variants for testing, and scientists developing the next formulation of the vaccine if needed. Olivia Goldhill, investigative reporter at STAT News, joins us for a look inside Pfizer’s labs.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.