One in four of the world’s population will suffer from hearing problems by 2050, the World Health Organization warned Tuesday, calling for extra investment in prevention and treatment. The first-ever global report on hearing said that the causes of many of the problems — such as infections, diseases, birth defects, noise …
your ad hereThird Vaccine Arrives as Another COVID Surge Looms
A third COVID-19 vaccine is heading to clinics and pharmacies across the United States. But U.S. health officials are warning that another surge in cases could be on the horizon.Regulators authorized the vaccine from pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson over the weekend. Nearly 4 million doses are expected to be …
your ad hereDeadly Drug Overdoses Epidemic Rages On
More than 86,000 people died from drug overdoses last year in the U.S. – a massive increase of just over 24 percent. It is an epidemic that as VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports, has been shoved in the shadows by the pandemic – but is no less serious a public …
your ad hereIceberg Bigger Than NYC Breaks off From Antarctica
Scientists with the British Antarctica Survey (BAS) say a huge iceberg — larger than New York City — has broken off from the northwestern Brunt Ice Shelf in Antarctica, almost 10 years after scientists discovered the first cracks. In a statement on its website, the BAS says the iceberg broke away Friday and that …
your ad herePhilippines Finally Receives First Batch of COVID-19 Vaccine
The Philippines launched its national coronavirus vaccination campaign Monday amid widespread public skepticism and a struggle to procure vaccines. Dr. Gerardo Legaspi, the director of the state-run Philippine General Hospital in Manila, received the first dose of the CoronaVac vaccine developed by China-based Sinovac Biotech Limited. The doctor’s inoculation came just hours after President Rodrigo Duterte greeted …
your ad hereSpacewalking Astronauts Prep Station for New Solar Wings
Spacewalking astronauts ventured out Sunday to install support frames for new, high-efficiency solar panels arriving at the International Space Station later this year.NASA’s Kate Rubins and Victor Glover put the first set of mounting brackets and struts together, then bolted them into place next to the station’s oldest and most …
your ad hereFDA Approves Johnson & Johnson Vaccine for Use in US
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration formally authorized the use of the Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose vaccine Saturday, clearing the way for shots to go into arms as early as Monday.The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is 85% effective against serious illness, hospitalization and death from COVID-19, the disease caused by …
your ad hereThird US COVID Vaccine on Verge of Approval
The U.S. moved a step closer Friday to having another vaccine in its coronavirus arsenal, after an advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration unanimously endorsed Johnson & Johnson’s one-dose COVID vaccine.Formal authorization for the vaccine could come in the next few days. The one-dose vaccine would become the …
your ad hereNew Zealand Supporting Drone Project to Monitor Rare Dolphins
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Friday her government is supporting a new project using drones designed to monitor and protect the Maui dolphin, one of the world’s rarest marine mammals. Maui dolphins are found only in a small stretch of ocean off the west coast of New Zealand’s …
your ad hereUS Advisers Endorse Single-shot COVID-19 Vaccine From Johnson & Johnson
U.S. health advisers endorsed a one-dose COVID-19 vaccine from Johnson & Johnson on Friday, putting the nation on the cusp of adding an easier-to-use option to fight the pandemic. The Food and Drug Administration is expected to quickly follow the recommendation and make Johnson & Johnson’s shot the third vaccine authorized …
your ad hereExperts Warn Crime Gangs Capable of Selling Fake Vaccines
International crime fighting agencies say organized crime groups have all the networks and methods needed to smuggle falsified, substandard and stolen COVID-19 vaccines across Africa. Interpol crime intelligence analyst John-Patrick Broome said, as is the case in the rest of the continent, criminal gangs in East Africa import …
your ad hereWHO Deems Human Spread of H5N8 Bird Flu Low
The World Health Organization on Friday said there is low risk of human-to-human spread of the H5N8 strain of bird flu, after a case of the virus being transmitted to people was recorded Feb. 20 in Russia. The WHO statement comes after seven workers were infected at a …
your ad hereVaccination ‘Passports’ May Open Society, but Inequity Looms
Violet light bathed the club stage as 300 people, masked and socially distanced, erupted in gentle applause. For the first time since the pandemic began, Israeli musician Aviv Geffen stepped to his electric piano and began to play for an audience seated right in front of him.“A miracle is happening …
your ad hereBiden Touts Milestone of 50 Million Vaccine Shots
US President Joe Biden commemorated on Thursday the 50 millionth shot of the COVID-19 vaccine since his swearing-in, just days after the nation passed 500,000 coronavirus deaths. White House correspondent Patsy Widakuswara has this story.Producer: Barry Unger …
your ad hereAfrican Countries Kick Off Inoculation Campaigns with Chinese-Made COVID-19 Vaccine
As countries kick off vaccination campaigns in Africa amid mistrust over COVID-19 vaccine efficacy, health ministers are among the first ones to take the shots. VOA’s Mariama Diallo reports on Senegal and Zimbabwe, two countries that began inoculating their populations using Sinopharm — the Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccine. …
your ad here50 Million COVID-19 Vaccines Administered in US
U.S. President Joe Biden hosted an event at the White House Thursday honoring the 50 millionth coronavirus vaccination administered in the country.Four people — an elementary school counselor, a grocery store employee and two firefighter EMTs — were vaccinated against the virus at the White House Thursday afternoon to commemorate …
your ad hereCOVAX to Receive 170 Million AstraZeneca Vaccine Doses
The COVAX facility for coronavirus vaccines will soon get access to 170 million doses of AstraZeneca’s vaccine, according to the U.N. Children’s Fund. The COVAX Facility aims to ensure at least 2 billion vaccine doses are available to 85 of the world’s poorest countries. UNICEF said Thursday that …
your ad herePfizer COVID-19 Vaccine as Effective in General Use as in Trials, Israeli Researchers Say
A new study finds the new Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is as effective in real-world use as it was during its late-stage clinical trials. In a large-scale study of 1.2 million people, researchers at Israel’s Clalit Research Institute found the two-dose vaccine reduced symptomatic cases of COVID-19 by 94% across all age …
your ad here‘Hug Tents’ Pop Up to Ease Prolonged COVID Isolation
Residents at an assisted living facility in the US are getting a taste of life before the coronavirus pandemic. Thanks to a “hug tent,” residents can – while wearing plastic sleeves – embrace and hold hands with their families. More from VOA’s Mariama Diallo. …
your ad hereCOVAX Delivers First COVID-19 Vaccines
The COVID-19 vaccine rollout to date has been far from equitable. The vast majority of doses have gone to high-income countries, but a World Health Organization program aiming to change that delivered its first shots Wednesday, in Ghana. VOA’s Steve Baragona has more. …
your ad hereSniffer Dogs Learn to Detect COVID-19
At a dog training center in Myakka City, Florida, Heather Junqueira, founder of BioScent, brings a four-year-old beagle, Noel, into a room with stainless-steel canisters, several containing samples of COVID-19. Noel springs into action as she tries to find the ones with a smell that she knows will earn her …
your ad hereMars Rover’s Giant Parachute Carried Secret Message
The huge parachute used by NASA’s Perseverance rover to land on Mars contained a secret message, thanks to a puzzle lover on the spacecraft team. Systems engineer Ian Clark used a binary code to spell out “Dare Mighty Things” in the orange and white strips of the 70-foot (21-meter) …
your ad hereOne-Shot Vaccine Protects Against COVID, US Government Says
The U.S. government has determined that a one-shot COVID-19 vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson is safe and offers partial protection against the disease.In an analysis released Wednesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said the vaccine was about 66% effective during global trials in preventing moderate to severe cases …
your ad hereDemand Heats up for Solar Energy Panels in South Africa
Solar energy is a natural fit for sun-drenched Southern Africa, its proponents say. The only problem: Not enough panels to meet soaring demand. VOA’s Anita Powell looks at one company spinning sunshine into energy. Camera: Zaheer Cassim …
your ad hereChina’s Tianwen-1 Spacecraft Enters Mars ‘Parking Orbit’
China’s state media reported Wednesday the country’s Tianwen-1 spacecraft has entered a temporary “parking orbit’ around the planet Mars, where it will stay for about three months before attempting to land a rover on the surface.China National Space Administration (CNSA) said the spacecraft executed a maneuver to adjust its orbit …
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