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Takeaways From This Week’s Primaries, UFOs and Nanobots May 19, 2022

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Some were calling this week’s primaries “Midterm Super Tuesday” as Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Kentucky, Oregon, and Idaho cast primary votes. Former President Trump proved his endorsement is very much still coveted in Republican circles, but not all of his preferred candidates won. We also saw the complete fall of Rep. Madison Cawthorn and a mixed bag of news for Democrats. Aaron Blake, senior political reporter at The Washington post, joins us for top takeaways.

Next, the first public session in 50 years on UFOs took place in Congress this week. We learned that the Pentagon has gotten hundreds of additional UFO reports since last summer bringing their database to about 400. There was also a new video played that showed a spherical craft moving past a plane in broad daylight. Lawmakers continue to look at these sightings as national security issues and intelligence agencies are vowing to thoroughly investigate sightings. Bryan Bender, senior national correspondent at Politico, joins us for what we learned in the UFO hearings.

Finally, when we think of nanobots, our minds can begin to wander about incredible microscopic machines capable of repairing bone or healing an illness or even more nefarious things we see in sci-fi movies. While we aren’t there quite just yet, scientists have been able to get nanobots to swim around a wound, deliver antibiotics and help kill bacteria. Max Levy, contributor to Wired, joins us for how these nanobots work.

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New York’s Red Flag Law Failed to Keep Buffalo Shooter From Legally Purchasing Gun May 18, 2022

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New York has a red flag law on the books that should have prevented the shooter in Buffalo from buying the firearm he used in the assault. In 2021 when the gunman was still a minor, he was flagged for making comments about murder/suicide at school and taken for a mental health evaluation. Not deemed a risk at the time, he was let go and no continued effort was made to keep guns out of his hands. Melissa Chan, reporter at NBC News, joins us for what went wrong in this case.

Next, Sweden and Finland are formally trying to join NATO. Having remained neutral for many years, the war in Ukraine has changed many attitudes in strengthening defenses against Russia. Turkey has voiced skepticism in letting the two countries joins, but many think that are just holding out for other concessions. NATO requires unanimous agreement for new nations to join. Michael Birnbaum, reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for what to know.

Finally, we are seeing a mad dash for the ultrarich to hire on private butlers, maids and estate managers. Pre-pandemic, a salaried housekeeper in the Hamptons could earn up to $65,000, now many say the minimum is $85,000 or more. High-end nannies can earn $110,000 in some cases. Tracking along with some other pandemic working trends, these workers have a lot more power than they used to. Noah Kirsch, wealth and power reporter at The Daily Beast, joins us for more.

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Despite Being a ‘Lone-Wolf’ Shooter, the Buffalo Gunman Had an Online Pack May 17, 2022

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The mass shooting in Buffalo, NY has once again seemed to follow an all too familiar path of online radicalization and planning leading to violence. In this case the shooter acted as a lone wolf, but despite not have a direct collaborator, he had an online pack. The shooters ideology is shared by others, whether it be those who subscribe to the Great Replacement theory or creators of the memes that influenced him. Juliette Kayyem, former assistant secretary for homeland security, joins us for how despite acting solo, the shooter is not alone.

Next, when a tragedy like the one in Buffalo happens, questions arise of possible warning signs and why action wasn’t taken sooner. In this case, the shooter was reported to police for a possible threat of violence and had a mental health evaluation in 2021. There are also questions about writings and plans he had posted online and how one becomes radicalized. Aaron Gregg, reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for the troublesome trail that led to terror.

Finally, it is the dominant model of modern parenting, and it might be time to quit it. Intensive parenting, also known as helicopter parenting, is a model where parents try to overextend themselves in trying to maximize their child’s success, but research shows that it can lead to parental burnout and harm a child’s competence and mental health. Elliot Haspel, early-childhood policy expert and contributor to the Atlantic, joins us for how to get away from anxiety-driven intensive parenting.

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Police Say Buffalo Mass Shooting Was Racist Hate Crime May 16, 2022

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A mass shooting that took the lives of 10 people over the weekend in Buffalo, New York seems to be a racially motivated attack. An 18-year old gunman seemed to target Black shoppers at a Tops supermarket. A manifesto was posted online by the shooter where he talked about the ‘Great Replacement’ theory which says that white Americans are being replace with nonwhites through immigration, interracial marriage, and violence. Ginger Gibson, deputy Washington digital editor at NBC News, joins us for this latest tragedy, and new poll numbers that look bad for President Biden as debates about abortion and student loan forgiveness continue.

Next, there’s a new startup that wants to get into your ears and monitor your brain. NextSense wants to eventually have earbuds that can stream music, take phone calls, and pick up brain waves. The startup’s aim is to focus on brain health, improve sleep, and even help patients with epilepsy. The company also hopes to collect data from various users in order to learn more about what’s between our ears. Steven Levy, editor at large at Wired, joins us for the story of how it all got started at Google.

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WEEKEND EDITION- Protecting Recess for Kids, Bird Flu, Ads Coming to Streaming Platforms May 15, 2022

Show notes

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

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WEEKEND EDITION- Who Calculates Inflation, Baby Formula Shortage, Guns Stolen From Vehicles May 14, 2022

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

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What’s Behind the Baby Formula Shortage? May 13, 2022

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A baby formula shortage has caused parents to scramble to find alternatives to keep their kids fed with the appropriate nutrition. The FDA has shut down Abbot Nutrition’s factory in Michigan amid an investigation into bacterial infections which has been the biggest problem with supply as they are the largest producer in the country. Dr. Steven Abrams, Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Texas, joins us what to know about the shortage as the FDA will start allowing Abbot to releasing some formula.

Next, the bird flu is currently wreaking havoc on farms across the country wiping out 36 million chickens and turkeys. The virus itself is really bad for the birds and has a near 100% mortality rate, but it’s actually the culling that is claiming so many of them. If one bird gets infected, the whole flock must be taken out. Kenny Torella, staff writer at Vox, joins us for what to know as the bird flu has already spread to 32 states.

Finally, Happy the elephant will have her day in court next week. The 51-year-old elephant currently lives in the Bronx Zoo, but her lawyers are arguing that she be granted legal personhood. If she wins, her detention at the zoo would be considered unlawful and she would be sent to a sanctuary. She is part of a small but growing group of animals and natural entities like lakes and wild rice fighting for legal rights. Corinne Ramey, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

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Ads Could Be Coming Very Soon to Your Favorite Streaming Platform May 12, 2022

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Very soon you could be seeing ads on your favorite streaming platform. Netflix has long been a holdout when it came to placing ads during their content, but a huge loss of subscribers has them scrambling for how to make up the lost revenue. To that end, a cheaper pricing tier with ads could be coming by the end of the year. Peter Kafka, senior correspondent at Recode, joins us for why it makes sense and if viewers will stick around for it.

Next, the withholding of recess has long been a punishment tactic for teachers when kids misbehave or miss assignments. Now, there is growing momentum to pass laws that protect recess time and prohibit schools from taking it away to punish kids. Research has shown that unstructured free time is important for child development as it fosters good social, communication, and coping skills. Jackie Mader, early education reporter at The Hechinger Report, joins us for the fight for recess.

Finally, we all know that coworker who might not be the brightest or hardest worker, but still gets promoted anyway. Whether it’s schmoozing, brown-nosing, or riding coattails, some have mastered the art of ‘failing up.’ As more are going back to the office and after too many pandemic Zoom meetings, it is becoming more evident again. Callum Borchers, On the Clock columnist at the WSJ, joins us for how some are turning failure into success.

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Who Measures Inflation? It’s Calculated by 477 Government Workers May 11, 2022

Show notes

High inflation persists as President Biden points to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine as top causes for high prices. Each month we get updated numbers on the Consumer Price Index, but how is that number calculated? 477 government workers spend their days going to grocery stores and other businesses to track the costs of over 100,000 goods and services each month. Rachel Wolfe, consumer trends reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how we calculate inflation.

Next, what is the largest source of stolen guns in country? Stolen guns from cars. From 2019-2020, 180 cities saw a rise in gun thefts from vehicles. This new trend is very concerning and simply a crime of opportunity. Thieves are rolling through neighborhoods and pulling on door handles looking for open cars and laws vary from state to state on how guns should be secured in unattended vehicles. Melissa Chan, reporter at NBC News, joins us for this disturbing trend.

Finally, a new report confirms that most working parents are burned out. Research from Ohio State University says that 66% of working parents meet the criteria for parental burnout, meaning they feel they have nothing left to give. This study was conducted at the height of the pandemic, but researchers think high rates of burnout are here to stay. Catherine Pearson, reporter at the NY Times, joins us for more.

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Your Next Covid Booster Shot Could Be a Nasal Vaccine May 10, 2022

Show notes

Researchers are constantly working on new vaccine delivery methods for Covid and are hoping that nasal vaccines could be better at preventing transmission and infection. Several candidates are in the works and in early clinical trials but the hope is that it could work better by taking hold in mucus membranes where the virus enters the body. Karen Weintraub, health reporter at USA Today, joins us for how you next booster could be taken up the nose.

Next, many people took advantage of programs that paused federal student loan payments and interest and saved money or put it into other financial priorities. But there were also some that remained diligent and continued to make payments as they could. The result for them was being able to pay off completely or a huge chunk of their federal loans. For those that did pay them off, now it’s about building new savings since this debt is now gone. Julia Carpenter, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

Finally, less than six months ago, Netflix launched a website called Tudum that was supposed to build more fandom for their properties. Billed as place to offer news about shows, in-depth interviews, and exclusives, they site has had to lay off employees already. Current and former employees say that it suffered from lack of direction and strategy. Mia Sato, reporter at The Verge, joins us for what happened at Tudum.

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