Vaccine mandates at the Supreme Court; show up for yourself, your dog might be bilingual

Plus, what we know about omicron's symptoms and severity [View this email online]( [NPR]( by Suzanne Nuyen First up J. Scott Applewhite/AP Here's what we're following today: Federal vaccine regulations are under scrutiny in the Supreme Court today. The justices are meeting for a special session to [hear arguments for two cases challenging Biden's regulations](. One mandates vaccines for health care workers and the other mandates vaccines or testing for all companies with more than 100 employees. The Supreme Court session is happening amid another massive COVID-19 surge in the U.S., led by the omicron variant. Fortunately, we're beginning to [know more about the new variant]( its severity and its symptoms. ➡️ Symptoms come more quickly once infected with omicron. Loss of taste and smell isn't as common anymore, but nausea, night sweats and lower back pain is. ➡️ The risk of ending up in the hospital after being infected with omicron appears lower than with the delta variant. ➡️ For those that do end up on the hospital, omicron appears to be easier on the lungs than previous variants.Some of the key facts of the Jan. 6 insurrection are indisputable: supporters of Donald Trump stormed the Capitol to stop the procedural certification of a presidential election that Joe Biden won and Trump lost. So [why do millions on the right dispute]( these facts? ➡️ Consumers don't trust a fractured media landscape and confirmation bias is rampant. ➡️ Elected Republican officials enabled Trump's lies and have not challenged him. Novak Djokovic — the top-ranked men's tennis player in the world and a noted vaccine skeptic — remains in immigration detention after Australia canceled his visa due to its strict vaccination requirements. [NPR has a timeline]( of how he got here. --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- Today's listen Samuel Corum/Getty Images Far right groups have largely been banned from platforms like Twitter and Facebook for spreading lies about the 2020 U.S. presidential election, stoking conspiracy theories and calling for violence. 🎧 Listen to how these [groups have found alternative platforms]( or [read the story.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Picture show [Eric Balken, executive director of the Glen Canyon Institute, walks through part of the canyon.]( Claire Harbage/NPR A megadrought in the West is revealing America's 'lost national park' — a famed desert landscape that re-emerged as water levels in Lake Powell reservoir fell to record lows. Novelist Edward Abbey once described [the spectacular red-rock labyrinth]( as "a portion of earth's original paradise." --------------------------------------------------------------- Today’s tip [2022 photo]( Clare Marie Schneider/NPR NPR's Life Kit is here to make 2022 a better year, and today's tip will teach you how to form deeper, more meaningful relationships with your loved ones. It all starts with looking inward and [showing up for yourself.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Before you go Raúl Hernández - Your dog might be better at foreign languages than you think. A new study reveals dogs might be able to [tell languages apart](. - A Virginia man was charged $600 for an Uber he took that got stranded for hours on snowy I-95. Don't worry, [he's since been refunded](. - The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have officially released wide receiver Antonio Brown after [he walked out mid-game](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. [Find a Station]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can [sign up here](. Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Music, Politics, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Daily News emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]