While China is beginning to loosen its COVID-19 restrictions, medical practitioners there are preparing for a possible onslaught of COVID cases, which analysts predict could be just weeks away. China had one of the toughest anti-COVID policies in the world. Its zero-COVID campaign put anyone with COVID in a hospital or locked them up in … continue reading -> “China Braces for Another COVID Wave”
Australian scientists have discovered a deep-ocean sharks’ graveyard containing the fossilized teeth of the ancient ancestor of the megalodon shark. They have also found a new species of shark. The discoveries were made across two expeditions on the research vessel (RV) Investigator, which is operated by Australia’s national science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial … continue reading -> “Fossilized Teeth of Megalodon Ancestor Found in Indian Ocean”
As the global program for distributing COVID-19 vaccinations to low and middle-income countries is set to be phased out after next year, experts are warning of a messy transition to ensure countries with the lowest inoculation rates are protected against the coronavirus and new variants are prevented. The sunsetting of COVAX was agreed to earlier … continue reading -> “Prepare for Messy Transition on COVID Jabs as COVAX Ends”
Populations of a vulnerable species of marine mammal, numerous species of abalone and a type of Caribbean coral are now threatened with extinction, an international conservation organization said Friday. The International Union for Conservation of Nature announced the update during the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, or COP15, conference in Montreal. The union’s hundreds … continue reading -> “Manatee Relative, 700 New Species Now Facing Extinction”
Chinese boats are decimating West Africa’s fish stocks and fishing communities in the Gulf of Guinea, say environmental groups. The Institute for Security Studies, a South African think tank, said the communities could be losing more than $2 billion each year to illegal fishing, mainly from Chinese-owned boats. Beninese fisherman Geoffroy Gbedevi said it’s getting … continue reading -> “Gulf of Guinea Countries Agree to Stop Illegal Chinese Fishing”
A report released Friday by the World Health Organization indicates high levels — above 50% — of bacterial resistance to treatment around the world, based on data collected from 87 countries since 2020. The study, called the Global Antimicrobial Resistance and Use Surveillance System report, found levels of resistance above 50% were reported in bacteria … continue reading -> “WHO Study: Global Rise in Bacterial Resistance to Treatment”
The Wall Street Journal reports U.S. smartphone giant Apple Inc. is accelerating plans to move some China-based production lines to other southeastern Asian countries such as India and Vietnam. That, analysts said, would represent a significant shift in the so-called de-Sinification of global supply chains after manufacturers become aware of risks of concentrating production in … continue reading -> “Apple Plans to Move Production Outside of China”
COVAX, the global program for distributing COVID-19 vaccines to poorer countries, will soon be integrated into more routine vaccination programs, Gavi said Thursday. Gavi, the nonprofit vaccine alliance that provides an array of vaccines to developing countries, said its board agreed during a meeting in Geneva to phase out COVAX after 2023, stressing that the … continue reading -> “Gavi to Integrate COVID-19 Vaccines Into Core Vaccine Programs for Developing Nations”
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Aid workers in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo warned Thursday of a possible “health disaster” because of an alarming surge in cholera cases in makeshift camps for displaced people. Doctors Without Borders, known by its French acronym MSF, said that between November 26 and December 7, 256 patients had been admitted to its cholera … continue reading -> “Cholera Cases Rise ‘Alarmingly’ in Democratic Republic of Congo Camps, Aid Workers Say”
The World Health Organization reports COVID-19 cases are continuing their downward spiral in Africa but warns the pandemic is not over and nations must remain vigilant. Following a recent four-week resurgence of COVID-19, cases and deaths once again are dropping in Africa. Since this month-long spike ended on November 20, the World Health Organization has … continue reading -> “WHO Urges Vigilance as COVID-19 Pandemic Wanes in Africa”
The COVID-19 pandemic has set global malaria control efforts back, especially in Africa, the World Health Organization says. However, this year’s World Malaria Report says countries were able to lessen disruptions to prevention, testing and treatment. In 2019, before the pandemic struck, there were 568,000 malaria deaths. Despite the pandemic and other humanitarian emergencies, WHO … continue reading -> “WHO: COVID-19 Sets Back Global Malaria Efforts, Especially in Africa”
Taiwanese chip giant TSMC is building a second U.S. facility in the southwest state of Arizona, highlighting the Biden Administration’s push to bring more of the semiconductor supply chain to the United States. But are there enough trained workers there to meet the demand? Michelle Quinn has our story from Arizona, where they are ramping up training for workers and students at all levels. Videographer: Levi Stallings …
After more than half a century, the last Boeing 747 rolled out of a Washington state factory on Tuesday. The 747 jumbo jet has taken on numerous roles — a cargo plane, a commercial aircraft capable of carrying nearly 500 passengers, and the Air Force One presidential aircraft — since it debuted in 1969. It … continue reading -> “Boeing’s Final 747 Rolls Out of Washington State Factory”
Britain’s Conservative government on Wednesday approved the United Kingdom’s first new coal mine in three decades, a decision condemned by environmentalists as a leap backwards in the fight against climate change. Hours earlier, the government reversed a ban on building new onshore windfarms in Britain. Opponents called that announcement a cynical attempt to offset criticism … continue reading -> “UK Approves First New Coal Mine in Decades, Sparking Anger”
Scientists discovered the oldest known DNA and used it to reveal what life was like 2 million years ago in the northern tip of Greenland. Today, it’s a barren Arctic desert, but back then it was a lush landscape of trees and vegetation with an array of animals, even the now extinct mastodon. “The study … continue reading -> “Oldest Known DNA Reveals Life in Greenland 2 Million Years Ago”
A law allowing limited euthanasia in Canada is set to expand to make the procedure available to people with mental illness. As Craig McCulloch reports, this is causing a variety of reactions. Canada’s law permitting euthanasia, or Medical Assistance in Dying, became personal for Vancouver-area resident Marcia McNaughton in November. Suffering from metastasized stomach cancer, … continue reading -> “Canada Soon to Allow Euthanasia for the Mentally Ill”
U.S. President Joe Biden was in Arizona Tuesday promoting investments in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing. He was joined by officials from the Taiwanese semiconductor giant TSMC, which says it is tripling its Arizona investment. VOA correspondent Michelle Quinn has our story. …
Negotiators are meeting in Geneva this week to thrash out a pandemic treaty aimed at ensuring the flaws that turned COVID-19 into a global crisis could never happen again. As the third anniversary of the emergence of the virus rolls around, negotiators are raking over an early concept draft of what might eventually make it … continue reading -> “Pandemic Treaty Plans Being Worked On at WHO”
Price increases among seven out of 10 drugs in 2021 are behind an $805 million increase in U.S. spending from the year before and were not supported by clinical evidence, an influential U.S. pricing research firm said on Tuesday. The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) said the spending increase in 2021 was less … continue reading -> “Unsubstantiated Price Hikes Upped US Drug Spending $805 Million in 2021”
Aid groups say measles and cholera outbreaks at Kenya’s congested Dadaab refugee camp have killed at least five people and sickened more than 400. The outbreaks come as thousands of Somalis have been arriving at the camp this year to escape record drought back home, stretching camp resources. Juma Majanga reports from Dadaab refugee camp … continue reading -> “Kenya Concerned by Cholera, Measles Outbreaks at Congested Refugee Camp”
U.S. President Joe Biden is traveling to Arizona on Tuesday to visit a computer chip facility, underscoring the Grand Canyon state’s position in the emerging U.S. semiconductor ecosystem. Biden will visit a Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) plant in north Phoenix. He will tour the plant and deliver remarks celebrating his economic plan and the … continue reading -> “Biden to Visit Arizona Computer Chip Facility”
NASA’s Orion spaceship made a close pass by the moon and used a gravity assist to whip itself back toward Earth on Monday, marking the start of the return journey for the Artemis-1 mission. At its nearest point, the uncrewed capsule flew less than 130 kilometers from the moon’s surface, testing maneuvers that will be … continue reading -> “NASA’s Orion Spaceship Slingshots Around Moon, Heads for Home”
Beijing is taking its first steps toward recovering from years of setbacks to its scientific, land-based projects in the Arctic, sending personnel to two outposts that have been vital to its policy of establishing China as a “near-Arctic” state. China’s Arctic policy document, published in 2018, said scientific research to “explore and understand” the Arctic … continue reading -> “China Begins to Revive Arctic Scientific Ground Projects After Setbacks”
“Today, there are more children in need of humanitarian assistance than at any other time in recent history,” according to UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. Monday, UNICEF, the United Nations children’s agency, launched an emergency appeal for $10.3 billion, designed to help 173 million people, including 110 million children, that the agency says have been … continue reading -> “UNICEF Seeks $10.3 Billion for Children Affected by Climate, Humanitarian Crises “