BACK TO NORMAL: The dip in global emissions from the early days of Covid-19 lockdowns has decidedly un-dipped and some are higher than ever, according to a new report by the World Meteorological Organization. Meanwhile, the U.N. is reporting that current pledges on climate change will not just fail to decrease emissions by the 43% needed to limit global warming — they will increase them by 10%. The next U.N. climate change summit is in November.

EV SCHOOL BUSES: Vice President Harris announced that schools around the country will soon be able to buy new electric school buses with $1 billion rebates funded by the federal government, part of a $5 billion Clean Bus Program that aims to replace the current fleet of 500,000 school buses in America, 95% of which run on diesel.

This Breast Cancer Awareness month, we're sharing stories about people fighting the disease and what they've learned on their journey of diagnosis, treatment and hope. When the founders of The Home Edit, Joanna Teplin and Clea Shearer, joined Cheddar News anchor Hena Doba to talk about how to stay organized this cold and flu season, Clea opened up about her diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer and shared her advice for others facing the disease.

The man who drove an SUV into a Christmas Parade outside Milwaukee last year has been convicted of killing six people in the attack, which also injured dozens of people. Darrell Brooks, who represented himself in the three-week trial, claimed he was a “sovereign citizen” not subject to U.S. laws and argued with the judge, who removed him from the courtroom several times to participate remotely. The 40-year-old will receive a mandatory life sentence for each of his six convictions of first-degree intentional homicide.

KIDNAPPING PLOT: Three men were convicted of providing support for a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ahead of the 2020 presidential election. The three Wolverine Watchmen militia members helped train one of the foiled plot's leaders — who was convicted of kidnapping conspiracy — before he could abduct Whitmer at her vacation home. The militia was angered by public health restrictions Whitmer instituted to slow the spread of Covid-19.

GEORGIA: Mark Meadows, former President Trump's former chief of staff, has been ordered to testify in an investigation into whether they and Republican allies tried to overturn the results of Georgia's popular vote in the 2020 presidential election. The Fulton County special grand jury has also ordered others to testify, including Rudy Giuliani and Sen. Lindsey Graham. Graham's order was temporarily blocked this week by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

There have been enough high-profile recalls this week that Cheddar News reporter Alex Vuocolo had to write a story about them. If you have an old bottle of dry shampoo lying around, a bottle of Pine-Sol under the sink, or drive a 2008 or 2009 Kia Sportage, please check out his article for details about what to do.

Don't forget to schedule your Covid-19 … mist? Shanghai has begun offering an inhalable booster dose of a vaccine already developed by CanSino Biologics. To take the vaccine you simply inhale the mist from a cup and hold your breath for five seconds. The CanSino mist, as well as a nasal mist that has been approved in India, could help vaccinate more people in countries without robust healthcare systems as well as people who are afraid of needles.

This is a true story: There are hordes of zombies lurching across the globe. Only instead of "BRAIIINNNS," the undead are actually groaning "DEBBBTTT." So-called zombie companies have so little money that they can't even keep up with the interest payments on their debt for three years or longer. More companies have become zombies since 2021, Alex Vuocolo reports, and the last defense some companies have — low borrowing costs — is on its way out thanks to the Federal Reserve's rate increases. A new report says that in this new world, the ranks of the undead could grow by nearly 40%.

BOLD STRATEGY: Canopy Growth, a Canadian cannabis producer, is using a complicated legal structure to acquire U.S. companies that position it for growth when the market here is decriminalized. But as Cheddar News' Chloe Aiello reports, Canopy's strategy could get it booted off Nasdaq.

DAS WEED: Move over, Holland: Germany could be the first large European country to legalize recreational cannabis. Its governing parties announced their agreement on a plan that would allow people to possess small amounts of weed and grow up to three plants per adult at home. The EU has to sign off on a draft plan before German legislators vote on the final bill.

MATCHUP: Are you ready for some football (ratings controversies)? Cheddar News' Lawrence Banton reports on the matchup between two data analysis juggernauts. On one side you have Nielsen, the surveyor that's synonymous with TV ratings, which says that Thursday Night Football has drawn an average of 10.3 million viewers. Facing off against it is Amazon, the new host of TNF, which says Nielsen's estimate is nearly 2 million viewers short. Who will prevail?

TRENDING: Here are some of the other entertainment headlines we've been following: Spotify is dominating even more than it used to, the X Games gets a new owner, and the redeveloped Green Lantern will focus on one of DC Comics' first Black superheroes.

In a universe with so many rocky, uninviting planets, it's nice to learn about one that's literally as fluffy as a marshmallow. Astronomers at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona discovered the gas giant, which they call TOI-3757 b, about 580 light-years from Earth, near a red dwarf star. The scientists are excited because with a density one-fourth that of water — about the same as a marshmallow — TOI-3757 b is the least-dense planet ever discovered near that kind of star. We, on the other hand, are excited because the scientists said that if you could find a large enough bathtub, TOI-3757 b would float in the water.

Michael R. Jackson's musical A Strange Loop won the Tony for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. His next musical, White Girl in Danger, is opening in March, but we couldn't wait until then. Jackson joined anchor Shannon LaNier to talk about his career, the success of A Strange Loop, and what audiences can expect from the new show.