The Daily Dive

Latest Episodes:

WEEKEND EDITION- RSV Vaccines Hitting Hospitals, Twitter Plans to Charge for Verification, Great Resignation Cooling Nov 05, 2022

Show notes

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

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RSV Is Battering Hospitals With Sick Kids, but Vaccines Could Soon Be On Their Way to Help Nov 03, 2022

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Pediatric hospitals are currently packed with kids coming down with respiratory syncytial virus or RSV. Babies under a year old are being hospitalized at six times the rate from 2019 and overall rates for people of all ages are seven times higher. The good news is that help could be on the way. This week, Pfizer announced that a clinical trial of their maternal vaccine prevented 69% of severe cases in infants. While RSV is mainly thought of as affecting children, it does affect many older Americans and other vaccines are in the final stage of development there as well. Keren Landman, health and science reporter at Vox, joins us for what to know.

Next, commercial satellites could be the next targets in space. Private networks that provide aid during wartime efforts could be under the crosshairs as we are seeing with Ukraine and Russia. SpaceX’s Starlink, which is providing internet to Ukraine after their networks were taken down, is coming under Russian scrutiny. This is prompting the Pentagon and others to think about establishing rules and norms for behavior in space. Miriam Kramer, space reporter at Axios, joins us for this and news of a “planet killer” asteroid, but don’t worry they say it’s not a threat.

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It Could Soon Cost You Monthly to Get Verified on Twitter Nov 02, 2022

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For now, it seems like all the changes to Twitter are playing out in real-time on the platform itself. On Tuesday, Elon Musk tweeted that it would be changing the verification method for accounts and that it would be rolled up into its “Twitter Blue” service at a cost of $8 per month. When verification first started, it was an attempt to combat misinformation. Heather Kelly, tech reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for why it could soon cost you for the blue checkmark on your profile.

Next, as the holiday shopping season starts to heat up, be sure to check out retailers’ return policies. Over the pandemic, shoppers have become accustomed to very generous return and shipping policies, but that is changing. Major retailers are shortening their return windows and even adding restocking fees in some cases. Returns have increased in costs to these companies to the tune of $761 billion. Rachel Wolfe, consumer trends reporter at the WSJ, joins us for why it’s getting harder to return unwanted items.

Finally, as doctors continue to look for solutions to address the shortage of organs for transplant, they are increasingly looking to pigs as a possibility. To that end, we are learning more about David Bennett, who earlier this year received a heart transplant from a pig. While he only lasted three months with the pig heart, researchers found out that the heart took longer to generate a heartbeat than typical humans or pigs. Amy Dockser Marcus, health and science reporter at the WSJ, joins us for what to know.

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The Great Resignation May Be Over as Job Demand Slows Down Nov 01, 2022

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After an extremely hot employment market and people job-hopping their way to better paying positions, it seems like the Great Resignation is cooling off. While overall job listings are still higher than pre-pandemic levels, demand is falling in areas where remote work really took off such as HR, software development, marketing, and math-related roles. Emily Peck, markets correspondent at Axios, joins us for how more people are prioritizing job security over pay.

Next, as we approach the midterms and more people than ever are voting by mail, you can track your ballot in about half of states. The envelopes that carry your mail-in ballots have a number associated with them that corresponds to an individual voter, and that number is used by companies like BallotTrax and Ballot Scout to track the ballot. Geoffrey Fowler, tech columnist at The Washington Post, joins us for how you can now track your mail-in ballot’s every move.

Finally, there are about eight different types of difficult people that you can work with. They range anywhere from insecure bosses to office know-it-alls and political operators only looking out for themselves. But the worst type of people to work with are the passive-aggressive types because it is so common and the hardest to pin down. Amy Gallo, contributing editor to the Harvard Business Review and author of “Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone,” joins us for how to handle difficult people.

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Concerns Deepen Over a Rise in Political Violence and the Horror Movie Century Oct 31, 2022

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Last week, Paul Pelosi, the husband of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, was attacked at their home in San Francisco. We are now learning more about the attacker who left an extensive online trail of support for conspiracy theories and blog posts railing against Jewish and Black people, the media, and transgender people. When he entered the home, he kept asking “Where’s Nancy?” Julia Manchester, national political reporter at The Hill, joins us for what we know about this attack and the broader concern as we see an increase in political violence.

Next, Halloween means it’s time for spooky movies! Horror movies in general have had quite the evolution in the last 100 years. Some of the best horror movies have acted as a mirror reflecting our own fears of the time back at us and built upon each other to get us where we are today in the genre. From the early days with the classic movie monsters, to the slashers and serial killer flicks, all the way to modern horror movies, they have all been commentaries of what is going on in the world at the time. Aja Romano, culture writer at Vox, joins us for the horror century of movies.

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WEEKEND EDITION- John Fetterman and Dr. Oz Debate and Why the U.S. Never Banned Asbestos Oct 30, 2022

Show notes

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

WEEKEND EDITION- Tripledemic, Math and Reading Scores Drop, the Allure of Disgust Oct 29, 2022

Show notes

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

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why It’s a Problem That the World Is Running Low on Helium Oct 28, 2022

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The world is running out of helium, but the concern is not that we won’t be able to blow up balloons, the shortage could impact the usage of MRI machines. Helium is a non-renewable element that comes form the Earth’s crust and in its liquid form, it’s used to cool the magnets that make the MRI work. Caroline Hopkins, freelance reporter for NBC News, joins us for why it is so scarce and how manufacturers are developing newer machines that use less liquid helium.

Next, U.S. mortgage rates have shot up over 7%, the highest it has been in 20 years. A year ago, the rate was just over 3% but this week, the rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage averaged 7.08%. The housing market continues to cool as some sellers refuse to lower prices and buyers are ever-more constrained by their budgets. Ben Eisen, banking and finance reporter at the WSJ, joins us for what to know.

Finally, just in time for Halloween, why do so many people take delight in disgusting things? Disgust itself is an emotion of avoidance originally concerned with possibly harmful foods but has evolved to include other things such as violations of morals or cultural rules. But why do disgusting things hold our attention so much? It could be because of something call “benign masochism.” Bradley Irish, associate professor of English at ASU, joins us for the allure of disgust.

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John Fetterman Struggled in the Pennsylvania Senate Debate Against Mehmet Oz Oct 27, 2022

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The debate to watch this week was between John Fetterman and Mehmet Oz. It was Pennsylvania’s first and only Senate debate and could be the thing that tips the scales. John Fetterman’s recovery from a stroke he suffered some months ago was on full display. The Democrats’ speech was delayed, and he struggled to answer coherently at times. Dr. Oz, on the other hand, was very polished and comfortable on camera staying on message with attacks on crime and inflation but had a stumble on the abortion issue. Julia Manchester, national political reporter at The Hill, was there and gives us the top takeaways for this consequential debate.

Next, long before social networks became the place for celebrities and influencers to flex their clout, their likeability was ruled by the Q Score. Advertising agencies, TV studios and marketing execs used the Q Score as a guide to put the most liked people, athletes and even brands in front of audiences. While it doesn’t hold the same importance as it once did, the Q Score is still measured to this day, and this list of most and least liked people are probably exactly what you might think. Travis Andrews, features writer at The Washington Post joins us for what happened to the almighty Q Score and how celebrity has changed.

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Parties Are Shifting Strategies as Midterms Approach and a Look at Why the U.S. Never Banned Asbestos Oct 26, 2022

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The midterm elections are now less than two weeks away and both parties are making strategic shifts in messaging and reallocating financial resources. Republicans are moving money away from races they see as a lock and attacking Democrats by doubling down on crime and inflation issues. Democrats are sending resources to areas that were once solidly blue as they have been put on the defensive and changing their messaging away from abortion to the economy and health care. Alayna Treene, congressional reporter at Axios, joins us for what to know.

Next, we’ve known for a long time that asbestos is bad for your health and while the U.S. did regulate safety standards around it, they never banned it. To this day, hundreds of tons of asbestos are shipped to the U.S. for use by chemical companies that produce chlorine. Part of the reason why it was never banned is that protocols are so stringent, these companies made the case that the threat of exposure to workers is very little. However, interviews with employees at one OxyChem plant near Niagara Falls tells a different story. Kathleen McGrory, reporter at ProPublica, joins us for how some workers fear for their health after years of working at these chemical plants.

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