U.S. regulators on Monday revoked emergency authorization for malaria drugs promoted by President Donald Trump for treating COVID-19 amid growing evidence they don’t work and could cause deadly side effects. The Food and Drug Administration said the drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine are unlikely to be effective in treating the coronavirus. Citing reports of heart complications, … continue reading -> “US Revokes Emergency Use of Malaria Drugs Vs. Coronavirus”
Near the southern Vietnam beaches filled with kite surfers and mud baths, there sits a hydropower plant called Da Mi. It is no longer just generating power from dams and falling water, however. Crews added solar panels to the reservoir last year, creating what the Asian Development Bank called the first large floating solar project … continue reading -> “Solar Rules Weaken Vietnam’s Love-Hate Relationship to Coal”
How accurate are the coronavirus tests used in the U.S.? Months into the outbreak, no one really knows how well many of the screening tests work, and experts at top medical centers say it is time to do the studies to find out. When the new virus began spreading, the Food and Drug Administration used its emergency … continue reading -> “Accuracy Still Unknown for Many Coronavirus Tests Rushed Out “
The World Health Organization says lessons learned from previous outbreaks of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and effective therapeutics will allow it to more quickly contain a new outbreak of the deadly disease in Equateur Province.U.N. health officials report there is no link between the Ebola outbreak declared June 1 in Mbandaka, Equateur … continue reading -> “WHO Expects to Quickly Tackle DR Congo’s New Ebola Outbreak”
A new study based on fossilized footprints suggests a prehistoric relative of modern crocodiles walked on two hind legs. The study, published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports, describes how ancient fossilized footprints discovered in South Korea had originally been thought to belong to a pterosaur — a flying dinosaur — that had been walking on two legs. But further analysis of the prints suggests that they actually belonged to a bipedal crocodile, a creature that walked on two … continue reading -> “Ancient Crocodile Ancestor Walked on Two Legs, New Study Says “
The Trump administration Friday finalized a regulation that overturns Obama-era protections for transgender people against sex discrimination in health care. The policy shift, long sought by the president’s religious and socially conservative supporters, defines gender as a person’s biological sex. The Obama regulation defined gender as a person’s internal sense of being male, female, neither or … continue reading -> “Trump Administration Revokes Transgender Health Protection”
Turkey criticized Twitter on Friday for suspending more than 7,000 accounts the social media company said were promoting narratives favorable to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and the AK Parti (AKP). The suspended 7,340 accounts were detected earlier this year “employing coordinated inauthentic activity,” Twitter said in a blog post uploaded on Friday. Republic of Turkey communications director Fahrettin Altun said the social media … continue reading -> “Turkey Communications Director Blasts Twitter for Removing 7,340 Accounts “
Survivors of COVID-19 are donating their blood plasma in droves in hopes it helps other patients recover from the coronavirus. And while the jury’s still out, now scientists are testing if the donations might also prevent infection in the first place. Thousands of coronavirus patients in hospitals around the world have been treated with … continue reading -> “Researchers Ask If Survivor Plasma Could Prevent Coronavirus”
The U.S National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reports global temperatures for the month of May 2020 are tied with May 2016 as the warmest on record.In its monthly Global Climate Report released this week, NOAA said the 10 warmest Mays – in terms of land and ocean surface temperatures – in the 141 years … continue reading -> “US Climate Agency Reports May 2020 Global Temps Tied for Warmest Ever”
Twitter has removed a vast network of accounts that it says is linked to the Chinese government and were pushing false information favorable to the country’s communist rulers. Beijing denied involvement Friday and said the company should instead take down accounts smearing China. The U.S. social media company suspended 23,750 accounts that were posting pro-Beijing … continue reading -> “Twitter Removes China-linked Accounts Spreading False News”
The ongoing separatist conflict in Cameroon’s western regions has created a growing humanitarian emergency that has affected close to two million people. Humanitarian experts say those displaced by the fighting need help resettling, but also psychological support. A clinic in Cameroon’s capital provides rare trauma therapy for those affected, as Moki Edwin Kindzeka narrates in … continue reading -> “Cameroon Clinic Helps Victims Traumatized by Separatist Conflict”
India reported nearly 11,000 new cases of COVID-19 in a 24-hour period Friday. The surge of 10,956 new coronavirus infections puts the massive South Asian nation in fourth place, surpassed only by the U.S., Brazil and Russia in the number of cases. India’s has 297,535 of the world’s total 7.5 million COVID-19 cases, according to Johns Hopkins … continue reading -> “India Reports Nearly 11,000 COVID-19 Cases in 24-Hours”
A popular podcasting platform, Pocket Casts, has been removed from Apple’s app store in China at Beijing’s request, according to the company’s Twitter thread. Pocket Casts confirmed Wednesday on Twitter that the request was made by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), Beijing’s top internet watchdog agency that controls which apps can be accessed on iOS … continue reading -> “Apple Removes Podcast Apps in China”
NASA continues marking milestones more than a week after the first manned launch from U.S. soil in nearly a decade. An astronaut made a historic visit to the depths of the ocean floor, while the space agency unveiled this year’s roster of Hall of Fame inductees. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us This Week in Space. … continue reading -> “Ocean Depths Figure Prominently in This Week’s Space News”
Microsoft has become the third big tech company this week to say it won’t sell its facial recognition software to police, following similar moves by Amazon and IBM.Microsoft’s president and chief counsel, Brad Smith, announced the decision and called on Congress to regulate the technology during a Washington Post video event on Thursday.”We’ve decided we … continue reading -> “Microsoft Joins Amazon, IBM in Pausing Face Scans for Police”
The U.S. space agency, NASA, has announced it has awarded a $199 million contract to a city of Pittsburgh company to launch its robot lunar rover to the moon in 2023. The agency made the announcement in an online release Thursday.In a statement posted on its website, Astrobotic Technology, a space robotics company, says it … continue reading -> “NASA Awards Contract to Deliver Robot Rover to Moon”
Videoconferencing company Zoom temporarily shut down the account of a U.S.-based activist group days after it held an event commemorating the 31st anniversary of China’s Tiananmen Square protests. Humanitarian China, an organization focused on providing relief for political prisoners and activists, held the Zoom conference on May 31. A week later June 7, the account used … continue reading -> “Zoom Temporarily Suspends Account After Hosting Tiananmen Square Anniversary Event “
The United States has officially gone over the 2 million mark in total cases of novel coronavirus infections.According to figures published Thursday on the website of Johns Hopkins University’s coronavirus resource center, the U.S. now has 2,000,464 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 112,924 deaths, maintaining its position as the leading country with the total number … continue reading -> “US Officially Tops 2 Million Total Coronavirus Cases”
Neil Sullivan was angry, frustrated and crushed with guilt. His brother Joe had been rushed by ambulance from his home for the developmentally disabled to the emergency room with a possible case of the coronavirus. Neil had known the people at the Elisabeth Ludeman Developmental Center near Chicago were at risk. Regulators had flagged the … continue reading -> “Thousands Sick from COVID-19 in Homes for Disabled”
Amazon on Wednesday banned police use of its face-recognition technology for a year, making it the latest tech giant to step back from law-enforcement use of systems that have faced criticism for incorrectly identifying people with darker skin. The Seattle-based company did not say why it took action now. Ongoing protests following the death of George Floyd have … continue reading -> “Amazon Bans Police Use of its Face Recognition for a Year”
Four Republican U.S. senators on Tuesday urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to review whether to revise liability protections for internet companies after President Donald Trump urged action.Trump said last month he wants to “remove or change” a provision of a law that shields social media companies from liability for content posted by their users … continue reading -> “Republican Senators Push FCC to Act on Trump Social Media Order”
As tension grows between China and the United States, there is worry in Beijing that the conflict could end up further restricting Chinese access to American technology.Of foremost concern is that despite decades of effort, China has yet to build a homegrown operating system good enough to replace Microsoft Windows. “Our operating system market is … continue reading -> “China’s Computers Run on Microsoft Windows: Are They Vulnerable to US Pressure?”
IBM is getting out of the facial recognition business, saying it’s concerned about how the technology can be used for mass surveillance and racial profiling. Ongoing protests responding to the death of George Floyd have sparked a broader reckoning over racial injustice and a closer look at the use of police technology to track demonstrators and … continue reading -> “IBM Quits Facial Recognition, Joins Call for Police Reforms “
Deepfakes, which use artificial intelligence and machine learning to generate highly realistic but phony videos, have been exploited for both entertainment and unethical purposes. Now one startup is showing how the face-swapping technology can be a practical tool for improving mental health and therapy practices. VOA’s Tina Trinh explains.Camera: Tina Trinh …
A South Korean Court has rejected an arrest warrant for the heir to the legendary Samsung Group conglomerate in connection with a controversial merger. Prosecutors have accused Lee Jae-yong, the vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, of stock manipulation and illegal trading involving the 2015 merger of two Samsung affiliates, Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, of which … continue reading -> “Heir to South Korea’s Samsung Empire Avoids Jail”