Google is girding for a battle of wits in the field of artificial intelligence with “Bard,” a conversational service aimed at countering the popularity of the ChatGPT tool backed by Microsoft. Bard initially will be available exclusively to a group of “trusted testers” before being widely released later this year, according to a Monday blog … continue reading -> “Google Hopes ‘Bard’ Will Outsmart ChatGPT, Microsoft in AI”
As Russia’s targeted attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure continue, Ukraine is forced to rethink its energy future. While inventing ways to quickly restore and improve the resilience of its energy system, Ukraine is also looking for green energy solutions. Anna Chernikova has the story from Irpin, one of the hardest-hit areas of the Kyiv … continue reading -> “Ukraine’s Blackouts Force It to Embrace Greener Energy”
Black and Hispanic adults on dialysis experience more staph bloodstream infections than white patients receiving the treatment for kidney failure, U.S. health officials said Monday. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), citing 2017-2020 data, said adults on dialysis for end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) were 100 times more likely to have a Staphylococcus … continue reading -> “Blacks, Hispanics on Dialysis Get More Staph Infections Than Whites, CDC Says”
U.S. educators are debating the merits and risks of a new, free artificial intelligence tool called ChatGPT, which students are using to write passable high school essays. So far, there isn’t a reliable way to catch cheating. Matt Dibble has the story. …
The war in Ukraine has left thousands of wounded soldiers, many of whom require the latest technologies to heal and return to normal life. For VOA, Anna Chernikova visited a rehabilitation center near Kyiv, where cutting edge technology and holistic care are giving soldiers hope. (Myroslava Gongadze contributed to this report. Camera: Eugene Shynkar ) …
Cybersecurity agencies in Europe are warning of ransomware attacks exploiting a two-year-old computer bug as Italy experienced widespread internet outages. The Italian premier’s office said Sunday night the attacks affecting computer systems in the country involved “ransomware already in circulation” in a product made by cloud technology provider VMware. A Friday technical bulletin from a … continue reading -> “Ransomware Attacks in Europe Target Old VMware, Agencies Say”
South Africa has recorded two confirmed imported cases of cholera, the health department said Sunday, as it called for vigilance. The cases were of sisters who had in January traveled to Malawi, where a cholera outbreak since last year has claimed more than 1,000 lives as of January, the highest on record in the country. … continue reading -> “South Africa Records 2 Imported Cholera Cases”
The thermometer sinks below zero as a blizzard of fine snow descends on two houses freshly built inside a massive laboratory in northern England. Despite the icy conditions, the two energy-efficient homes remain cozy and warm due to their use of cutting-edge heating and insulation technology. Welcome to Energy House 2.0 — a science experiment … continue reading -> “UK Mega-Lab Generates Weather to Test Homes of Future”
Chatbots spouting falsehoods, face-swapping apps crafting porn videos, and cloned voices defrauding companies of millions — the scramble is on to rein in AI deepfakes that have become a misinformation super spreader. Artificial Intelligence is redefining the proverb “seeing is believing,” with a deluge of images created out of thin air and people shown mouthing … continue reading -> “Seeing Is Believing? Global Scramble to Tackle Deepfakes”
As it marks World Cancer Day, the World Health Organization is calling for action to tackle breast cancer, the most common and leading cause of cancer deaths among women. Every year, more than 2.3 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer, and nearly 700,000 die of the disease, which disproportionately affects women living in … continue reading -> “Breast Cancer Is Leading Cause of Cancer Deaths Among Women”
Editor’s note: Here is a fast take on what the international community has been up to this past week, as seen from the United Nations perch. Two years since Myanmar military coup The U.N. special rapporteur for Myanmar warned Tuesday that two years after its coup, Myanmar’s military will try to legitimize its hold on … continue reading -> “UN Weekly Roundup: Jan. 27-Feb. 3, 2023 ”
Logistics manager Nicholas Rehak was visiting his parent’s home in Baltimore County, Maryland, several years ago. He was standing on the back deck one night when he noticed a bluish white light. “It was shaped in a damn near perfect oval and it started to rise,” Rehak told VOA. “I’m talking straight up vertical, no … continue reading -> “Have We Been Visited by Aliens? Depends on Whom You Ask”
Jurors on Friday cleared Elon Musk of liability for investors’ losses in a fraud trial over his 2018 tweets falsely claiming that he had funding in place to take Tesla private. The tweets sent the Tesla share price on a rollercoaster ride, and Musk was sued by shareholders who said the tycoon acted recklessly in … continue reading -> “Musk Found Not Liable in Tesla Tweet Trial”
More than 200 years after Napoleon met defeat at Waterloo, the bones of soldiers killed on that famous battlefield continue to intrigue Belgian researchers and experts, who use them to peer back to that moment in history. “So many bones — it’s really unique!” exclaimed one such historian, Bernard Wilkin, as he stood in front … continue reading -> “Two-Century-Old Mystery of Waterloo’s Skeletal Remains”
The Biden administration took a first step Friday toward ending federal protections for grizzly bears in the northern Rocky Mountains, which would open the door to future hunting in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said state officials provided “substantial” information that grizzlies have recovered from the threat of extinction in … continue reading -> “US May Lift Protections for Yellowstone, Glacier Grizzlies”
Australia’s drugs watchdog on Friday announced that psychedelic substances MDMA and psilocybin — more commonly known as ecstasy and magic mushrooms — will soon be used in the treatment of depression and post-traumatic stress. Psychiatrists will be able to prescribe the two substances from July, the Therapeutic Goods Administration said after finding “sufficient evidence for … continue reading -> “Australia to Legalize MDMA And Magic Mushrooms for Medical Use”
At a nuclear waste site in Normandy, robotic arms guided by technicians behind a protective shield maneuver a pipe that will turn radioactive chemicals into glass as France seeks to make safe the byproducts of its growing reliance on atomic power. The fuel-cooling pools in La Hague, on the country’s northwestern tip, could be full … continue reading -> “France Seeks Strategy as Nuclear Waste Site Risks Saturation Point”
U.S. health officials said Thursday a company is recalling its over-the-counter eye drops that have been linked to an outbreak of drug-resistant infections. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week sent a health alert to doctors, saying the outbreak included at least 55 people in 12 states. One died and at least five … continue reading -> “Eye Drops Recalled After US Drug-Resistant Bacteria Outbreak”
Excitement around ChatGPT — an easy to use AI chatbot that can deliver an essay or computer code upon request and within seconds — has sent schools into panic and turned Big Tech green with envy. The potential impact of ChatGPT on society remains complicated and unclear even as its creator Wednesday announced a paid … continue reading -> “ChatGPT: The Promises, Pitfalls and Panic”
A legendary U.S. groundhog, from the (east central U.S.) town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, was pulled from his burrow early Thursday, with local officials declaring he saw his shadow, indicating, according to legend, there will be at least six more weeks of winter. The annual observance of Groundhog Day on February 2 brings thousands of revelers … continue reading -> “Punxsutawney Phil Sees Shadow, Forecasts Six More Weeks of Winter”
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Personal possession of a small amount of hard drugs is now legal in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The controversial move is intended to reduce deaths from drug use. The personal possession of 2.5 grams of hard drugs, including cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine and morphine, has now been decriminalized. This temporary exemption … continue reading -> “Canadian Province Decriminalizes Small Amount of Hard Drugs”
For thousands of years, ancient Egyptians mummified their dead in the search for eternal life. Now, researchers have used chemistry and an unusual collection of jars to figure out how they did it. Their study, published Wednesday in the journal Nature, is based on a rare archaeological find: An embalming workshop with a trove of … continue reading -> “How to Make a Mummy: Ancient Egyptian Workshop Has New Clues”
Zimbabwe plans to build “Zim Cyber City,” a modern capital expected to cost up to $60 billion in raised funds and include new government buildings and a presidential palace. Critics are blasting the plan as wasteful when more than half the population lives in poverty and the government has let the current capital, Harare, fall … continue reading -> “Zimbabwe Plans to Build $60 Billion ‘Cyber City’ to Ease Harare Congestion”
Two mass shootings in California in one week have highlighted the complex mental health issues faced by older Asian Americans who may have been traumatized in their homelands and who — after building new lives in the United States — now find themselves facing additional challenges as they age. Some first-generation Asian immigrants, especially those … continue reading -> “Deadly California Shootings Spotlight Mental Health Issues Among Older Asian Immigrants”