U.S. President Joe Biden’s unexpected decision to name a staunch antitrust advocate to lead the Federal Trade Commission has thrilled supporters of stronger regulation of the tech industry and has prompted predictions of regulatory overreach from representatives of some of the country’s largest internet companies.Lina Khan, 32, a professor at …
your ad hereInternet Outages Briefly Disrupt Access to Websites, Apps
A wave of brief internet outages hit the websites and apps of dozens of financial institutions, airlines and other companies across the globe Thursday.The Hong Kong Stock Exchange said in a tweet Thursday afternoon Hong Kong time that its site was facing technical issues and that it was investigating. It …
your ad hereAstronauts Arrive at China’s New Permanent Space Station
The first manned crew of China’s new permanent space station docked with the outpost Thursday evening.The Shenzhou-12 spacecraft carrying veteran space travelers Nie Haisheng and Liu Boming and rookie Tang Hongbo rendezvoused with the Tianhe module six hours after blasting off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China.The …
your ad herePandemic Inspires Passion for Biking in LA
For some people, COVID has led to changes in lifestyle, or even a new job. That’s the case of a cyclist in Los Angeles, California, who ended up opening several bicycle shops to meet a growing demand by people wanting to get exercise while exploring their city. Mike O’Sullivan has …
your ad hereRocky Mountain Forest Fires More Frequent Than Ever, Study Finds
The current rate of forest fires burning through the Rocky Mountains in the United States is the highest it’s been in the past 2,000 years, University of Montana professor Philip Higuera, right, and his team collect lake sediment from Chickaree Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park, used to reconstruct fire …
your ad hereDid Soccer Superstar Ronaldo’s Coca-Cola Snub Cost Company $4 Billion?
Did a small gesture by soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo really cause Coca-Cola to lose $4 billion?It’s hard to say. In a Monday press conference ahead of Portugal’s Tuesday match with Hungary in the Euro 2020 tournament, the Portuguese striker sat down at the microphone and moved two bottles of Coca-Cola …
your ad hereNASA, ESA Astronauts Take Space Walk to Install Solar Panels on ISS
Astronauts from both the U.S. space agency, NASA, and the European Space Agency ((ESA)) left the International Space Station ((ISS)) Wednesday to begin a project to upgrade the floating laboratory’s solar panel power supply system. NASA flight engineer Shane Kimbrough and ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet worked for several hours …
your ad hereUS Buys Another 200 Million Moderna COVID Vaccines
The U.S.-based biotech firm Moderna said Wednesday the U.S. government has purchased another 200 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine, bringing the total number of Moderna doses it has committed to 500 million. In a release Wednesday, the Massachusetts-based company said the U.S. government orders include 110 million doses …
your ad hereNearly 25% of Patients in US Experience ‘Long COVID’ Symptoms, Study Finds
A new study in the United States reveals that nearly 25% of COVID-19 patients experienced new health problems well after their initial diagnosis.The non-profit group FAIR Health analyzed the health insurance claims of nearly two million people between February 2020 and February of this year. The study found the most …
your ad hereNew Zealand Researchers Aim to Recycle COVID-19 Masks, Gowns
Researchers in New Zealand are testing new techniques to find out whether masks and gowns used by health workers as protection against COVID-19 can be decontaminated and safely used again. Researchers want to reduce the “mountain” of personal protective equipment, or PPE, that is discarded around the world daily. According to …
your ad hereTurkey’s Marmara Sea in Battle Against ‘Sea Snot’
Turkey’s Sea of Marmara is battling an explosion of sea algae, dubbed sea snot, which is now threatening an ecological disaster. As Dorian Jones reports for VOA from Istanbul, the mucus-like substance is fast becoming politically toxic as well. …
your ad hereChina to Launch First Crew to New Permanent Space Station
China will launch the first crew of its new permanent space station into orbit on Thursday. An official with the China Manned Space Agency announced Wednesday that veteran astronauts Nie Haisheng and Liu Boming and rookie Tang Hongbo will blast off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China aboard …
your ad hereStudy: Half of US Cosmetics Contain Toxic Chemicals
More than half the cosmetics sold in the United States and Canada are awash with a toxic industrial compound associated with serious health conditions, including cancer and reduced birth weight, according to a new study. Researchers at the University of Notre Dame tested more than 230 commonly used cosmetics and …
your ad hereRita Moreno Discusses Finding Self-Worth and Never Giving Up
Rita Moreno emigrated with her mother from Puerto Rico at age five. By six, she was dancing at Greenwich Village nightclubs. By 16, she was working full time. By 20, she was performing in “Singin’ in the Rain.””I can’t think of anyone I’ve ever met in the business who lived …
your ad herePeople Hurt by Parachuting Protester at Euro 2020 Game
Several spectators were treated in the hospital for injuries caused by a protester who parachuted into the stadium before France played Germany at the European Championship, UEFA said Tuesday.Debris fell on the field and main grandstand, narrowly missing France coach Didier Deschamps, when the parachutist struck wires for an overhead …
your ad hereBiden, Putin Brace for Possible Fight Over Ransomware
As President Joe Biden prepares for his first meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Wednesday in Geneva, the White House says the threat of ransomware will be a “significant topic” of conversation between the two leaders.Until just a couple of years ago, ransomware was viewed largely as a financial crime, …
your ad hereMacKenzie Scott Donates $2.7 Billion to ‘Underfunded and Overlooked’ Causes
Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced Tuesday that she has donated $2.7 billion to communities “that have been historically underfunded and overlooked.” “Because community-centered service is such a powerful catalyst and multiplier, we spent the first quarter of 2021 identifying and evaluating equity-oriented nonprofit teams working in areas that have been neglected,” …
your ad hereUS Surpasses 600,000 Deaths from COVID, Leading the World
The United States has surpassed 600,000 dead from COVID-19, the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reported Tuesday. The count spans from the beginning of the pandemic 15 months ago. While the numbers of new COVID-19 cases and daily deaths in the United States have fallen steadily in recent weeks, the milestone …
your ad hereFake AI People Created by Companies Could Trick You
Digital images of fake people–that look real–are being sold online—by the thousands. Deana Mitchell explores the issue.Producer: Deana Mitchell …
your ad hereTree to Table: Cicadas Make for Culinary Adventure at DC Restaurant
Parts of the United States are being invaded by a mass brood of cicadas that emerges from the ground once every 17 years. For most people the noisy insects are a nuisance, but for others, they’re a meal. VOA’s Alam Burnahan has details in this story narrated by Irfan Ihsan. …
your ad hereSyrian Refugees in Somalia Enrich Culture, Contribute to Economy
Since the war in Syria broke out a decade ago, refugees have fled to countries in the Middle East and Europe as well as to countries in Africa that face instability, like Somalia. And, as Mohamed Sheikh Nor reports from Mogadishu, Somali officials say Syrian refugees are enriching the host …
your ad hereNew Study Suggests Coronavirus Was Present in US Earlier than First Believed
The novel coronavirus was present in the U.S. in December 2019, weeks before health officials first identified infections, according to a new government study. Conducted by a team that included researchers from the U.S. National Institutes of Health, the study analyzed 24,000 blood samples. The findings suggest that some …
your ad hereMexico Receives 1.35 Million COVID Vaccines from US
Mexico has received 1.35 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson, single-dose COVID-19 vaccine donated by the United States.The doses will be given to those over 18 in four border towns, Tijuana, Mexicali, Ciudad Juárez and Reynosa. The goal is to end essential travel restrictions on the border.The first vaccinations …
your ad hereIndian Government in Standoff with Twitter Over Online Speech
The government of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in a battle with U.S. tech firms over a new set of online speech rules that it has enacted for the nation of nearly 1.4 billion. The rules require companies to restrict a range of topics on their services, comply with government takedown orders and identify the original source of information shared. If the companies fail to comply, tech firm employees can be held criminally liable. The escalation …
your ad hereNew Robot ‘Mayflower’ Ship Begins Voyage Recreating Original Route
A fully autonomous ship named for the Mayflower, the ship that sailed to what is now the eastern U.S. state of Massachusetts, left Plymouth Harbor in southwestern Britain Tuesday to retrace the original’s 5,000-kilometer voyage.If successful, the 15-meter Mayflower 400 would be the largest autonomous vessel to cross the Atlantic. …
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