New research from Britain and South Africa suggests the fast-spreading omicron variant of the coronavirus is milder and results in fewer hospitalizations than other versions. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland unveiled a study Wednesday showing that people who had contracted omicron were at least 60% less likely …
your ad herePope Demands Humility in New Zinger-filled Christmas Speech
Pope Francis urged Vatican cardinals, bishops and bureaucrats Thursday to embrace humility this Christmas season, saying their pride, self-interest and the “glitter of our armor” was perverting their spiritual lives and corrupting the church’s mission. As he has in the past, Francis used his annual Christmas address to take Vatican …
your ad hereAustralia Considers Charging Unvaccinated Residents for COVID-19 Hospital Care
A suggestion by Australia’s most populous state to charge unvaccinated people for COVID-19 medical costs has received widespread criticism. The New South Wales proposal has angered doctors and some federal politicians, who argue that health care in Australia is free and universal. The New South Wales government has said that …
your ad here2021 on Track to Surpass 2020 as America’s Deadliest
U.S. health officials say 2021 is shaping up to be even deadlier than last year. It’s too early to say for sure, since all the death reports for November and December won’t be in for many weeks. But based on available information, it seems likely 2021 will surpass last year’s …
your ad hereApple Must Answer Shareholder Questions on Forced Labor, SEC Says
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has declined an effort by Apple Inc. to skip a shareholder proposal asking the iPhone maker to provide greater transparency in its efforts to keep forced labor out of its supply chain. A group of shareholders earlier this year asked Apple’s board to prepare …
your ad hereFDA Gives Emergency Authorization to Pfizer Covid Pill
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorized the emergency use of an antiviral COVID-19 pill, the pill’s maker Pfizer Inc. said Wednesday. The company says the pill, which is to be taken with another antiviral drug, ritonavir, is 90% effective in preventing hospitalization and death in high-risk people. “The efficacy is high, the side effects are …
your ad hereIndia Could Raise Marriage Age for Women from 18 to 21
In India, the government has proposed legislation to raise the minimum age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 years old, bringing it on par with men and saying it will empower women. But many women activists say the planned law would do little to address deep-seated societal problems …
your ad hereAustralian Research Identifies Kidney-Protecting Gene
Researchers in Australia have identified a gene that indicates the kidney has its own way of resisting damage. However, they have also identified a mutation of the gene that can in patients with, for example, diabetes, trigger the development of renal disease. A gene called VANGL1 has been found to help stop the immune …
your ad hereNHL Players Will Not Compete at Beijing Olympics: Reports
National Hockey League players will not compete in February’s Beijing Winter Olympics in the wake of 50 NHL games being postponed over COVID-19 issues, according to multiple reports Tuesday. ESPN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today and other newspapers cited unnamed sources in saying the league and …
your ad hereMormon Billionaire Leaves Faith, Rebukes LGBTQ Rights Stance
An advertising-technology billionaire has formally resigned his membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and rebuked the faith over social issues and LGBTQ rights in an unusual public move. Jeff T. Green has pledged to donate 90% of his estimated $5 billion advertising-technology wealth, starting with a …
your ad hereFewer Police, Medics, so Mardi Gras Parade Routes Shortened
New Orleans is shortening parade routes for the upcoming Mardi Gras season because there are fewer police officers, medics and other first responders to handle the crowds, officials said Tuesday. The city canceled Mardi Gras parades this past February because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and 2020 parade crowds are considered …
your ad hereOrganizers Say Africa Cup of Nations Will Take Place, But Workers Say Main Stadium Not Ready
The Africa Football Cup of Nations tournament is scheduled to begin January 9 at Olembe Stadium in Cameroon’s capital, Yaounde. On Monday, Confederation of African Football President Patrice Motsepe visited the 60,000-seat stadium, which is still under construction less than three weeks before the opening match. Motsepe says construction workers …
your ad hereAbove New York, a Giant Green Roof Tries to Reduce Carbon Footprint
New York’s largest convention center hosts about 175 events each year that draw hundreds of thousands of people to the city. To help offset the environmental impact, the owners have installed an urban farm and solar farm…on the building’s roof. Tina Trinh reports. …
your ad hereModerna: Extra Dose of its COVID-19 Vaccine Boosts Immunity Against Omicron
U.S.-based drugmaker Moderna says that initial laboratory tests show a third shot of its current COVID-19 vaccine is effective against the fast-spreading omicron variant of the coronavirus. In a statement released Monday, the company said a half dose of the vaccine given as a booster increased the antibodies levels 37 …
your ad hereMillions of Somalis Facing Conflict, Drought, Disease Need Lifesaving Assistance
The United Nations estimates 7.7 million people, half of Somalia’s population, will require humanitarian assistance and protection in 2022.It is appealing for $1.5 billion to assist 5.5 million of the most vulnerable among them. Decades of conflict, recurrent climatic shocks, disease outbreaks, and increasing poverty, including the socio-economic impact of …
your ad hereChinese Tennis Star Denies Social Media Post Accusing Ex-Official of Sexual Assault
Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai is denying that she wrote a social media post last month accusing a now-retired Communist Party official of sexually assaulting her. In a video posted Sunday on the website of the Singapore-based Chinese-language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, Peng told the interviewer she has “never said or written anything accusing anyone …
your ad hereCNN Closes US Offices to Most Workers as COVID-19 Cases Spike
CNN is closing its offices in the United States to all nonessential employees as COVID-19 cases increase, the network said on Saturday in an internal memo to staff seen by Reuters. CNN, part of AT&T Inc’s WarnerMedia division, will close its offices to all employees who do not have work …
your ad hereOmicron Variant Spurs New Lockdown in Netherlands
“The Netherlands is shutting down again,” Prime Minister Mark Rutte said Saturday in a televised address. The new measures, beginning Sunday, Rutte said, are because of a “fifth wave” of COVID-19, due to the highly contagious omicron variant. Under the new rules, all non-essential shops will be closed to at …
your ad hereRansomware Persists Even as High-Profile Attacks Have Slowed
In the months since President Joe Biden warned Russia’s Vladimir Putin that he needed to crack down on ransomware gangs in his country, there hasn’t been a massive attack like the one last May that resulted in gasoline shortages. But that’s small comfort to Ken Trzaska. Trzaska is president of …
your ad hereUS Workplace Vaccine Mandate Penalties to Start Jan. 10
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration said Saturday that it would not issue citations tied to its coronavirus vaccination mandate before Jan. 10, so that companies have time to adjust to and implement the requirements. The federal agency separately said there would be no citations of companies regarding its testing …
your ad hereEgypt Announces its First Cases of Omicron Variant
Egyptian health authorities said they have identified the country’s first cases of the highly transmissible omicron variant of the coronavirus. Three people were found to have the variant among 26 travelers who tested positive for coronavirus at Cairo International Airport, the Health Ministry said in a statement late Friday. It …
your ad hereWHO Chief: Inequitable Vaccine Distribution is ‘Failure for Humanity’
The head of the World Health Organization says the continuing surge of COVID-19 cases is a result of the unequal distribution of vaccines. Speaking at the First International Conference on Public Health in Africa, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that it has been just over a year since the …
your ad herePandemic Could Extend To 2024, Pfizer Says
Pfizer Inc on Friday forecast that the COVID-19 pandemic would not be behind us until 2024 and said a lower-dose version of its vaccine for 2- to 4-year-olds generated a weaker immune response than expected, potentially delaying authorization. Pfizer Chief Scientific Officer Mikael Dolsten said in a presentation to investors …
your ad hereKen Kragen, Who Helped Organize ‘We Are the World,’ Dies
Ken Kragen, a top entertainment producer, manager and philanthropist who turned to such clients as Lionel Richie and Kenny Rogers in helping to organize the 1985 all-star charity single We Are the World, has died. He was 85. Kragen died Tuesday of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles, …
your ad hereRockettes End Season as New York Tallies Record COVID-19 Cases
New York state reported Friday that just over 21,000 people had tested positive for COVID-19 the previous day, the highest single-day total for new cases since testing became widely available. Just under half of the positive results were in the city, where lines were growing at testing stations, the Rockettes …
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