Good morning. It's Thursday, Jan. 21, and we're covering a new presidency, coronavirus vaccines and variants, and much more. Have feedback? Let us know at [email protected].

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NEED TO KNOW

Biden Swears In

Joe Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States yesterday, with Kamala Harris becoming the first woman, person of color, and person of South Asian descent to be inaugurated as vice president. Despite numerous threats entering the day, the ceremony was free of incidents, with a heavy National Guard presence around the US Capitol and the National Mall closed to the public. Watch Biden's inaugural address here.

Eugene Goodman, a Capitol Police officer that single-handedly diverted crowds from occupied Senate chambers during the Jan. 6 Capitol assault, escorted Harris. Biden and Harris followed the swearing in with a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. See photos of the day here.

Former Vice President Mike Pence attended the event in the stead of former President Trump, who held a send-off ceremony (watch here) at Joint Base Andrews before heading to Florida. Trump left Biden a letter—continuing a tradition started by Ronald Reagan—though the contents have not been divulged. 

National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman, 22, became the youngest person to deliver a poem during an inauguration with her "The Hill We Climb." Watch the recitation and read the transcript here.

Biden is just the second Catholic to become US president, after John F. Kennedy—he took his oath of office on a massive family bible. 

Vaccines Versus Variants

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech published results yesterday demonstrating their COVID-19 vaccine is equally effective against a highly transmissible variant of the coronavirus that first emerged in the United Kingdom in December. Experts have suggested the variant may become the dominant strain in the US by March. 

Scientists have observed thousands of mutations as the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread around the world (see visualization), with most strains emerging and quickly fading. There is no evidence the UK strain—or others that have recently emerged in Brazil, South Africa, or elsewhere—is more deadly than current variants.

Researchers have identified eight key mutations on the spike protein of the UK strain that likely help the virus attach more efficiently to cells, increasing the chances of infection. See a visualization and overview here. In related news, Dr. Anthony Fauci announced Biden administration plans to rejoin the World Health Organization. 

The US has reported 406,147 total COVID-19 deaths as of this morning, with 4,377 deaths yesterday. In positive news, average daily new cases in the US have fallen for nine straight days (see data). The US has distributed almost 36 million vaccine doses, while administering roughly 16.5 million doses.

Markets (Continue To) Roar 

US stock markets hit all-time highs across the board yesterday, jumping on strong quarterly reports from key companies and the prospects of additional economic stimulus. 

The Nasdaq rose 2% to a record 13,457, followed by the S&P 500, which climbed 1.4% to a new high of 3,852. The Dow broke its record set two weeks ago, rising 0.8% to 31,188. Netflix led top performers, gaining 17% after beating global new subscriber estimates by more than 2 million—while passing 200 million total subscribers worldwide—and said it expected to breakeven on a cash flow basis by the end of the year. 

The performance continues an upward surge that comes despite an economy struggling with the effects of the pandemic. The Dow ended 2020 at an all-time high, having risen 7.3% on the year, followed by the S&P 500 gaining 16% in the same period. Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq—fueled by Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Alphabet (Google), and Facebook—jumped a whopping 44%. 

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LEARN SOMETHING NEW

These cold isolated days, we're inside our homes most of the time. So why not commit to learning a cool thing or two? Carpe diem, or rather, carpe stre-am.

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IN THE KNOW

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

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> Amanda Gorman’s books "Change Sings" and "The Hill We Climb" hit No. 1 and No. 2 spots on Amazon bestseller list just hours after delivering the inaugural poem yesterday (More)

> Sir Elton John, Ed Sheeran among more than 100 creatives critical of Brexit deal, saying the agreement would restrict performers' travel within European Union (More)

> Philip Rivers, eight-time NFL Pro Bowl quarterback, retires after 17-year career (More) | Sarah Thomas to become the first woman in NFL history to officiate a Super Bowl (More)

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Science & Technology

> Mystery of why cats love catnip solved; nepetalactol, a chemical in the plant and related species triggers the feline opioid reward system while also protecting against mosquitoes (More)

> Evidence grows that many severe and long-lasting symptoms of COVID-19 are driven by autoimmunity, a condition where the immune system turns against the body (More) | How do autoimmune diseases work? (More)

> Australian lungfish sets record for the longest animal genome ever sequenced, at 43 million base pairs, or 14 times longer than the human genome (More)

Business & Markets

> United Airlines reports $1.9B loss in Q4; expects Q1 revenues to decrease 65%-70% over last year (More) | Consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble quarterly revenues rise 8% on higher consumption of cleaning and household products (More)

> Amazon sends letter to President Biden offering to assist with COVID-19 vaccination efforts (More)

> Anthony Levandowski, former Google engineer who received 18-month jail sentence for stealing trade secrets, receives pardon from President Trump (More)

Politics & World Affairs

> President Biden signs 15 executive orders on first day, including rejoining the Paris Climate Accord (More) | Senate reaches 50-50 split, with effective Democratic majority, as three new Senators sworn in (More) | Senate leaders yet to agree on rules (More) | Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines becomes first Biden nominee approved (More)

> China sanctions 28 US officials following US determination China is committing genocide against its minority Uighur Muslim population; list includes former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other top Trump administration officials (More)

> Video investigation of Russian President Vladimir Putin's alleged Black Sea palace released by jailed dissident Alexei Navalny; reaches 20 million views within 24 hours of release (More) | See clips here (More)

IN-DEPTH

Hunting One of the World's Most Wanted Fugitives

GQ | Joshua Hammer. Charged for his role in the Rwandan genocide—in particular, importing hundreds of thousands of machetes for use in attacks on ethnic Tutsis—businessman Félicien Kabuga vanished for 26 years. Investigators finally caught Kabuga last year in a Paris suburb. (Read)

The Datafied Generation

MIT Press Reader | Veronica Barassi. In the era of big data, artificial intelligence, and wearable technologies, children born these days will effectively have their data tracked from cradle to grave. (Read)

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ETCETERA

A history of the White House's first dogs.

Visualizing the world's leaders over the past five decades.

Trust in traditional media hits a new low.

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Missing teen snowmobiler builds an ice cave for survival.

Budapest's House of Music is nearing completion. 

An origami samurai made from a single sheet of paper.

Toronto woman wins $47M with lotto numbers from a dream.

"It's one banana, what could it cost? $10?"

Clickbait: ... and cocaine bananas end up at grocery store after cartel mix-up.

Historybook: Louis XVI of France is executed by guillotine (1793); Fashion designer Christian Dior born (1905); HBD golf great Jack Nicklaus (1940); Founding father of American cinema Cecil B. DeMille dies (1959); First Women’s March sees large-scale protests in more than 160 countries (2017).

"Focus on remedies, not faults."

- Jack Nicklaus

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