After one errant forehand in the first set of the U.S. Open final, Naomi Osaka looked at her coach in the mostly empty Arthur Ashe Stadium stands with palms up, as if to say, “What the heck is happening?” Surprisingly off-kilter in the early going Saturday, Osaka kept missing shots …
your ad hereChloe Zhao’s ‘Nomadland’ Wins Top Prize at Venice Film Fest
Chloe Zhao’s “Nomadland,” a recession-era road trip drama starring Frances McDormand, won the Golden Lion for best film Saturday at a slimmed-down Venice Film Festival, which was held against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.Zhao and McDormand appeared by video from the United States to accept the award, given virus-related …
your ad hereDakotas Lead US in Virus Growth as Both Reject Mask Rules
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 …
your ad hereDRC, Congo Face Risk of Ebola Spreading Across Border
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 …
your ad hereCameroon Says Patients at Risk as COVID Scares Away Blood Donors
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 …
your ad hereHollywood and The Tricky Business of Catering To China
For years, U.S. businesses have been trying to get a piece of the Chinese market, and that’s also true for Hollywood. However, as Disney is currently experiencing, doing business with China’s authoritarian government can be tricky, especially in light of current political tensions between the U.S. and China. VOA’s Elizabeth …
your ad hereDaily US Virus Deaths Decline, But Trend May Reverse in Fall
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 …
your ad hereCOVID ‘Increasing Rapidly’ Among American Youth
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 …
your ad hereTerrorism, Pandemic Trigger Two Kinds of Stress, Study Finds
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 …
your ad hereRussian Hackers Targeting US Campaigns, Microsoft Says
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 …
your ad hereNASA Sets Out to Buy Moon Resources Mined by Private Companies
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 …
your ad hereReport: World’s Wildlife Population Has Plummeted Because of Human Activity
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 …
your ad here‘Avengers’ and ‘Game of Thrones’ Star Diana Rigg Dies at 82
Diana Rigg, a commanding British actress whose career stretched from iconic 1960s spy series “The Avengers” to fantasy juggernaut “Game of Thrones,” has died. She was 82. Rigg’s agent, Simon Beresford, said she died Thursday morning at home with her family. Daughter Rachael Stirling said she died of cancer that was …
your ad hereClimate Change May Shift Risks of Mosquito-borne Diseases
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 …
your ad hereNFL Season Kicks Off With Many Changes
American football, the most popular sport in the United States, kicks off its season tonight, but instead of the usual holiday-like atmosphere surrounding opening day, the event is clouded by concerns over the coronavirus and controversial protests for racial justice.The National Football League’s (NFL) opening matchup features the defending champion …
your ad hereStudy Suggest Best Way to Drive Away Seagulls; Eye Contact
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, …
your ad hereUN Chief Says $35 Billion Needed for WHO Coronavirus Program
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Thursday called for $35 billion in additional funding for the World Health Organization’s Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator program, designed to develop and equitably distribute COVID-19 vaccines and treatments worldwide. The funding includes $15 billion in the next three months. Guterres spoke …
your ad hereRonald Bell, Co-Founder of Legendary Music Group Kool and the Gang Dies
Ronald “Khalis” Bell, a co-founder of the legendary group Kool and the Gang, died Wednesday at his home in the U.S Virgin Islands. He was 68 years old.Bell’s publicist did not disclose his cause of death.Bell sang and composed songs for the Grammy-winning group, which blended jazz, funk, R&B and …
your ad hereMillennials Connect Via Social Media Challenges During COVID-19
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 …
your ad hereMexican Airport Site Emerges as Major Graveyard of Ice Age Mammoths
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, …
your ad hereBig Drop Reported in Vaping by US Teenagers
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 …
your ad hereUS Disease Expert Fauci Says Halt of Coronavirus Trial a ‘Safety Valve’ at Work
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 …
your ad hereCOVID-19 Vaccine Development Will Follow Scientific Process, US Experts Vow
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 …
your ad here‘Octopus Teacher’ Lets Filmmaker Into Secret World
South African nature filmmaker Craig Foster was burned out. He had lost his passion for working on documentaries such as “Blue Planet 2.” To re-energize, he started free diving without an oxygen tank or wet suit near in the chilly waters off the Western Cape, where he’d grown up.The dives …
your ad hereNigeria Math Teacher Offers Free Lessons on Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram
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. …
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