A review of the status of a vanishing species of whale found that the mammal’s population is in worse shape than previously thought, federal ocean regulators said Monday. The North Atlantic right whale numbers less than 350, and it has been declining in population for several years. The federal government declared the whale’s decline an … continue reading -> “Vanishing Whale’s Decline Worse Than Previously Thought”
Norway’s data protection agency said Monday it would ban Facebook and Instagram owner Meta from using the personal information of users for targeted advertising, threatening a $100,000 daily fine if the company continues. The business practices of big U.S. tech firms are under close scrutiny across Europe over concerns about privacy, with huge fines handed … continue reading -> “Norway Threatens $100,000 Daily Fine on Meta Over Data”
In the predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines, a debate is raging over whether to teach teenagers about contraceptives. Comprehensive sex education is required in public schools but not all schools are following through. Dave Grunebaum has the story. …
Britain’s financial watchdog on Monday proposed toughening up safeguards against the illegal marketing of financial products on social media by applying a stringent “consumer duty” that is being rolled out to banks, funds and insurers on July 31. The Financial Conduct Authority has said its new duty will be a step change in protecting retail … continue reading -> “UK Watchdog Proposes Applying ‘Consumer Duty’ to Social Media”
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency posted air quality alerts Sunday for several states stretching from Montana to Ohio because of smoke blowing in from Canadian wildfires. “Air Quality alerts are in place for much of the Great Lakes, Midwest, and northern High Plains,” the National Weather Service said. “This is due to the lingering thick … continue reading -> “Canadian Wildfires’ Smoke Creates Unhealthy Conditions in Large Swath of US”
As much of the world swelters in record temperatures, spare a thought for Issam Genedi, who ekes out a living washing cars in one of the planet’s hottest regions, the Gulf. Pausing from his work at an outdoor carpark in Dubai, the Egyptian migrant says the United Arab Emirates’ furnace-like summer feels even hotter this … continue reading -> “‘We Cannot Work’ — Why Gulf Summer Feels Even Hotter Than Usual”
Elon Musk says Twitter is still losing cash because advertising has dropped by half. In a reply to a tweet offering business advice, Musk tweeted Saturday, “We’re still negative cash flow, due to (about a) 50% drop in advertising revenue plus heavy debt load.” “Need to reach positive cash flow before we have the luxury … continue reading -> “Musk Says Twitter Is Losing Cash Because Advertising Is Down and the Company Is Carrying Heavy Debt”
The U.K.’s oldest medical union Saturday hit out at government plans to increase the amount migrant workers pay to use the state health care service, to cover public-sector wage increases. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government this week approved recommendations to boost wages of teachers, doctors and police by between 5.0 to 7.0 percent. Sunak ruled … continue reading -> “UK Immigration Health Fee Hikes Face Criticism”
United Nations agencies said Friday that millions of Sudanese cannot obtain treatment for emergency and chronic health conditions because fighting has brought the country’s fragile health system to near total collapse. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement violence and “shortages of supplies, damage or occupation of facilities and … continue reading -> “UN: Sudan Health Care Near Collapse Due to Conflict”
Visitors to Las Vegas on Friday stepped out momentarily to snap photos and were hit by blast-furnace air. But most will spend their vacations in a vastly different climate — at casinos where the chilly air conditioning might require a light sweater. Meanwhile, emergency room doctors were witnessing another world, as dehydrated construction workers, passed-out … continue reading -> “Vegas Could Break Heat Record as Tens of Millions Across US Endure Scorching Temperatures”
The chief executives of Intel Corp and Qualcomm Inc are planning to visit Washington next week to discuss China policy, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The executives plan to hold meetings with U.S. officials to talk about market conditions, export controls and other matters affecting their businesses, one of the sources said. … continue reading -> “Sources: US Chip CEOs Plan Washington Trip to Talk China Policy”
Microsoft says hackers used a flaw in its code to steal emails from government agencies and other clients. In a blog post published Friday, the company said that Chinese hackers were able to take advantage of “a validation error in Microsoft code” to carry out their cyberespionage campaign. The blog provided the most thorough explanation … continue reading -> “Microsoft: Chinese Hackers Exploited Code Flaw to Steal US Agencies’ Emails “
Countries at this year’s U.N. climate summit must face up to how far behind they are on climate change targets and agree to a plan to get on track, the United Arab Emirates’ incoming president of the event said on Thursday. In a speech laying out the country’s plan for the COP28 summit, to be … continue reading -> “UAE’s COP28 President Lays Out Plan for ‘Brutally Honest’ Climate Summit”
Health care providers in Zimbabwe are leaving the country in droves for better work abroad. The government is scrambling to fill the gaps by better equipping hospitals, as Columbus Mavhunga reports from Harare, Zimbabwe. …
An Indian rocket hurtled into space Friday to land a robotic rover on an unexplored area of the moon – a challenging feat India was unable to accomplish on a mission four years ago. Only three countries, the U.S., China and Russia, have made what is called a “soft” or “controlled” landing on the … continue reading -> “India Launches Second Moon Landing Attempt”
Leading global health agencies report consumers who limit their intake of aspartame and other artificial sweeteners are at little risk of getting cancer. “The occasional level of exposure, which is far from the acceptable daily intake, is safe and is not producing appreciable health risk,” said Francesco Branca, World Health Organization director, department of nutrition … continue reading -> “WHO: Occasional Artificial Sweetener Intake Poses Low Risk of Cancer”
India is set to launch a spacecraft to the moon Friday. If successful, it would make India only the fourth country to do so, after the U.S., the Soviet Union, and China. It will take the $75 million Chandrayaan-3 over a month to reach the moon’s south pole in August. The south pole is a … continue reading -> “India to Launch Moonshot Friday”
HIV/AIDS can end as a public health threat by 2030 if nations can muster the political will and critical financial support to completely defeat it, a new report published Thursday says. The deadly disease has killed 40.4 million people since the start of the epidemic in 1981. “The data in this report show that the … continue reading -> “Report: Ending AIDS Is Political, Financial Choice”
The World Health Organization’s cancer agency has deemed the sweetener aspartame — found in diet soda and countless other foods — as a possible cause of cancer, while a separate expert group looking at the same evidence said it still considers the sugar substitute safe in limited quantities. The differing results of the coordinated reviews … continue reading -> “Sweetener Aspartame Listed as Possible Cancer Cause but Still Considered Safe “
U.S. officials have approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill, which will let American women and girls buy contraceptive medication from the same aisle as aspirin and eyedrops. The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it cleared Perrigo’s once-a-day Opill to be sold without a prescription, making it the first such medication to be moved … continue reading -> “First Over-the-counter Birth Control Pill Gets FDA Approval”
It is possible to end AIDS by 2030 if countries demonstrate the political will to invest in prevention and treatment and adopt non-discriminatory laws, the United Nations said on Thursday. In 2022, an estimated 39 million people around the world were living with HIV, according to UNAIDS, the United Nations AIDS program. HIV can progress … continue reading -> “UN: AIDS Can Be Ended by 2030 with Investments in Prevention, Treatment”
Warmer, drier weather because of an earlier-than-usual El Nino is expected to hamper rice production across Asia, hitting global food security in a world still reeling from the impacts of the war in Ukraine. An El Nino is a natural, temporary and occasional warming of part of the Pacific that shifts global weather patterns, and … continue reading -> “El Nino Threatens Rice Crops Across Asia”
Hackers, possibly linked to China’s intelligence agencies, are being blamed for a monthlong campaign that breached some unclassified U.S. email systems, allowing them to access to a small number of accounts at the U.S. State Department and a handful of other organizations. Microsoft first announced the intrusion Tuesday, attributing the attack on its Outlook email … continue reading -> “Targeting of State Department, Others in Microsoft Hack ‘Intentional’ “
BEIJING — Employers across much of China were ordered Monday to limit outdoor work due to scorching temperatures, while the east and southwest were warned to prepare for torrential rain as the country struggled with heat, flooding and drought. Temperatures as high as 40 C (104 F) were reported in cities including Shijiazhuang, southwest of … continue reading -> “As China Struggles With Heat, Flooding and Drought, Employers Ordered to Limit Outdoor Work”
The Webb Space Telescope is marking one year of cosmic photographs with one of its best yet: the dramatic close-up of dozens of stars at the moment of birth. NASA unveiled the latest snapshot Wednesday, revealing 50 baby stars in a cloud complex 390 light-years away. The region is relatively small and quiet yet full … continue reading -> “Webb Space Telescope Reveals Moment of Stellar Birth”