Tropical Storm Sally slowed down Sunday as it churned northward toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, increasing the risk of heavy rain and dangerous storm surge before an expected strike as a Category 2 hurricane in southern Louisiana. “I know for a lot of people this storm seemed to come out of nowhere,” said Louisiana Gov. John … continue reading -> “Sally Set to Become Hurricane and Threaten US Gulf Coast”
ByteDance, the Chinese company behind the wildly popular video sharing app TikTok, has rejected Microsoft’s bid to buy the app and appears to be leaning toward a deal with investors led by Oracle. The Trump administration has given ByteDance until September 20 to make a deal or stop operating inside the U.S. On Sunday, the … continue reading -> “Report: TikTok Deal Moves Forward with Oracle”
Wearing a face mask during the COVID-19 pandemic could be a more important part of the arsenal against the virus than previously thought.An article in The New England Journal of Medicine suggests that universal face mask wearing “might help reduce the severity of disease and ensure that a greater proportion of new infections are asymptomatic.”If … continue reading -> “Medical Journal: Masks an Important Tool to Fight COVID-19”
Coronavirus infections in the Dakotas are growing faster than anywhere else in the nation, fueling impassioned debates over masks and personal freedom after months in which the two states avoided the worst of the pandemic.The argument over masks raged this week in Brookings, South Dakota, as the city council considered requiring face coverings in businesses. … continue reading -> “Dakotas Lead US in Virus Growth as Both Reject Mask Rules”
The World Health Organization is raising the prospect that the deadly Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Equateur province could spread across borders.The latest figures put the number of cases in the province at 113, including 48 deaths. The disease has spread into 12 of the province’s 17 health zones.Bomongo, the latest … continue reading -> “DRC, Congo Face Risk of Ebola Spreading Across Border”
Cameroon says it urgently needs more than 2,000 pints of blood to save the lives of about 300 people, including hemodialysis patients, in the central African state’s troubled English-speaking town of Bamenda.Health workers say the fear of COVID-19, coupled with increasing attacks by separatist fighters, has scared away most blood donors. People wounded in the … continue reading -> “Cameroon Says Patients at Risk as COVID Scares Away Blood Donors”
The number of daily U.S. deaths from the coronavirus is declining again after peaking in early August, but scientists warn that a new bout with the disease this fall could claim more lives.The arrival of cooler weather and the likelihood of more indoor gatherings will add to the importance of everyday safety precautions, experts say.”We … continue reading -> “Daily US Virus Deaths Decline, But Trend May Reverse in Fall”
This September 11 is different. Every year, Americans have remembered the largest terrorist attack on American soil by coming together – to read names, to pray, to hold hands. But this year, one of the most trusted remedies for grief – togetherness – is not available because of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. In New York … continue reading -> “Terrorism, Pandemic Trigger Two Kinds of Stress”
Cases of COVID-19 are “increasingly rapidly among young adults in the U.S.,” according to a research letter from Harvard, published at the online site of the JAMA medical journal.The study included 3,222 young adults between the ages of 18 and 34.The investigation found that the young adults “experienced substantial rates of adverse outcomes: 21% required … continue reading -> “COVID ‘Increasing Rapidly’ Among American Youth”
NASA on Thursday launched an effort to pay companies to mine resources on the moon, announcing it would buy from them rocks, dirt and other lunar materials as the U.S. space agency seeks to spur private extraction of coveted off-world resources for its use. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine wrote in a blog post accompanying the announcement … continue reading -> “NASA Sets Out to Buy Moon Resources Mined by Private Companies”
The same Russian military intelligence outfit that hacked the Democrats in 2016 has renewed vigorous U.S. election-related targeting, trying to breach computers at more than 200 organizations including political campaigns and their consultants, Microsoft said Thursday.The intrusion attempts reflect a stepped-up effort to infiltrate the U.S. political establishment, the company said.”What we’ve seen is consistent … continue reading -> “Russian Hackers Targeting US Campaigns, Microsoft Says”
More dengue, less malaria. That may be the future in parts of Africa on a warming planet, depending on where you live. FILE – A doctor tests a child for malaria at the Ithani-Asheri Hospital in Arusha, Tanzania, May 11, 2016.Using mosquito optimal temperature data and population density, the researchers predicted the risk of malaria and … continue reading -> “Climate Change May Shift Risks of Mosquito-borne Diseases”
A report released Thursday by the nonprofit conservation group World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said the world’s wildlife populations have plunged by an average of 68% in just four decades, with human consumption behind the decline.FILE – In this Nov. 23, 2019 photo, a burned area of the Amazon rainforest is seen in Prainha, Para state, … continue reading -> “Report: World’s Wildlife Population Has Plummeted Because of Human Activity”
U.S. weather officials announced Thursday that a La Nina climate pattern has developed in the Pacific Ocean, possibly exacerbating an already busy hurricane season and setting up a colder, wetter winter for North America.U.S. Climate Prediction Center Deputy Director Mike Halpert said in a press release that La Nina can contribute to an increase in … continue reading -> “La Nina Climate Pattern Could Bring Snow, Storms to North America”
A new study suggests that if you find yourself annoyed by seagulls at the beach or, more increasingly, urban areas, the best way to discourage them is to make eye contact.Researchers at Britain’s University of Exeter observed 155 herring gulls – the most common variety of seagull, and a variety, they say, that is becoming … continue reading -> “Study Suggest Best Way to Drive Away Seagulls; Eye Contact”
Bingo is back, this time among millennials and Gen Zers. To stave off boredom caused by the coronavirus quarantine and connect with others, millions of global millennials and Gen Zers are issuing challenges to each other on social media. Challenges have gotten so popular that social media giant Instagram added a “challenge” story sticker to make it easier for users to create … continue reading -> “Millennials Connect Via Social Media Challenges During COVID-19”
Amid busy construction crews racing to build an airport in Mexico, scientists are unearthing more and more mammoth skeletons in what has quickly become one of the world’s biggest concentrations of the now-extinct relative of modern elephants.More than 100 mammoth skeletons have been identified spread across nearly 200 excavation sites, along with a mix of … continue reading -> “Mexican Airport Site Emerges as Major Graveyard of Ice Age Mammoths”
Vaping by U.S. teenagers fell dramatically this year, especially among middle schoolers, according to a federal report released Wednesday.Experts think last year’s outbreak of vaping-related illnesses and deaths may have scared off some kids, but they believe other factors contributed to the drop, including higher age limits and flavor bans.In a national survey, just under … continue reading -> “Big Drop Reported in Vaping by US Teenagers”
America’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said Wednesday that AstraZeneca’s suspension of final global trials of its COVID-19 experimental vaccine points to the effectiveness of the safeguards that have been incorporated into the trials.“It’s important to point out that that’s the reason why you have various phases of trials, to determine if, in … continue reading -> “US Disease Expert Fauci Says Halt of Coronavirus Trial a ‘Safety Valve’ at Work “
Development of a COVID-19 vaccine will not be compromised by outside political considerations, U.S. health experts told lawmakers Wednesday.The nation’s top health officials said the six vaccine candidates currently in large-scale U.S. trials are expected to deliver a result that can be distributed to the most vulnerable populations — including health care workers and first … continue reading -> “COVID-19 Vaccine Development Will Follow Scientific Process, US Experts Vow”
A teacher in Nigeria is offering free mathematics classes via Twitter, WhatsApp and Instagram to help struggling students affected by the coronavirus lockdown. After almost six months, more than 1,000 students are taking her online classes, across Nigeria and even internationally. VOA’s Mariama Diallo reports. …
British-Swedish pharmaceutical giant Astra-Zeneca has paused large-scale global trials of its COVID-19 vaccine because a volunteer participant became ill after receiving the experimental drug. The company issued a statement Tuesday saying the pause in testing is a “routine action, which has to happen whenever there is a potentially unexplained illness in one of the trials, … continue reading -> “Pharmaceutical Giant AstraZeneca Halts COVID-19 Vaccine Trial”
For the first time in Australia, teenagers have launched a class-action lawsuit on behalf of young people around the world to stop the extension of a coal mine in the state of New South Wales. Anxiety over global warming is driving this teenage campaign to stop the expansion of a coal mine near Gunnedah, 430 kilometers northwest of Sydney, in the state of New South … continue reading -> “Australian Teenagers Take on Mining Giant Over Expansion Plans”
A wedding reception in Maine led to nearlyMotorcycles are parked in the audience during The Reverend Horton Heat’s performance on the Wolfman Jack Stage at Buffalo Chip during the 80th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally on Aug. 15, 2020, in Sturgis, S.D.Nearly half a million bikers rolled into the South Dakota town in early August, packing … continue reading -> “How Superspreaders – People and Places – Drive COVID-19 Pandemic”
A group of migrants being held at a dockside camp on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria chanted “freedom” on Tuesday as they tried to force open a police fence and the coast guard brought in more people rescued from boats on the Atlantic sea.Although sea-borne migration to Spain is down nearly 19% this year, … continue reading -> “Hundreds of Migrants Call for Freedom at Camp on Gran Canaria”