US President Joe Biden says defeating the coronavirus pandemic – both at home and around the world – is his top priority. VOA looks at how he handled this unprecedented global and domestic challenge during his first year as president, with this report from White House correspondent Anita Powell. …
While many countries are fighting off their worst coronavirus outbreaks yet, Japan is detecting hardly any COVID-19 infections at all. Observers are trying to figure out why. As recently as late summer, Japan’s coronavirus outlook wasn’t great. An outbreak coinciding with the Tokyo Olympics was killing dozens per day and overwhelming hospitals. Starting in September, though, as Japan ramped up its vaccination campaign, the country saw a dramatic plunge in the number of reported cases and eventually the number of deaths. Since then, the situation has only improved. Japan this month has reported an average of less than one COVID-19 death per day – a shockingly low number for a country of 126 million. No one knows exactly why Japan has experienced such success — especially while other countries, even its immediate neighbors, have been hit by serious winter waves of the coronavirus. There are many possible explanations. Nearly 80% …
“White-knuckle” — That’s how Rusty Whitman describes the month ahead, after the launch of the historic James Webb Space Telescope, now tentatively set for Saturday. From a secure control room in Baltimore, Maryland, Whitman and his colleagues will hold their breath as Webb comes online. But that’s just the beginning. For the first six months after Webb’s launch, Whitman and the team at the Space Telescope Science Institute will monitor the observatory around the clock, making tiny adjustments to ensure it is perfectly calibrated for astronomers across the world to explore the universe. The most crucial moments will come at the beginning of the mission: the telescope must be placed on a precise trajectory, while at the same time unfurling its massive mirror and even larger sun-shade — a perilous choreography. “At the end of 30 days, I will be able to breathe a sigh of relief if we’re on …
U.S. chipmaker Intel is facing criticism in China after it apologized Thursday for a letter the firm sent to suppliers asking them “to ensure that its supply chain does not use any labor or source goods or services from the Xinjiang region.” On Thursday, Intel posted a Chinese-language message on its WeChat and Weibo accounts apologizing for “trouble caused to our respected Chinese customers, partners and the public. Intel is committed to becoming a trusted technology partner and accelerating joint development with China.” Intel’s apology came as U.S. President Joe Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which bans the import of goods produced by Uyghur slave labor. Under the measure, a company is prohibited from importing from China’s Xinjiang region unless it can prove that its supply chains have not used labor from Uyghurs, ethnic Muslims reportedly enslaved in Chinese camps. Beijing denies complaints of abuses in the …
Under pressure from U.S. auto safety regulators, Tesla has agreed to stop allowing video games to be played on center touch screens while its vehicles are moving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the company will send out a software update over the Internet so the function called “Passenger Play” will be locked and won’t work while vehicles are in motion. The move comes one day after the agency announced it would open a formal investigation into distracted driving concerns about Tesla’s video games, some of which could be played while cars are being driven. An agency spokeswoman says in a statement Thursday that the change came after regulators discussed concerns about the system with Tesla. The statement says NHTSA regularly talks about infotainment screens with all automakers. A message was left Thursday seeking comment from Tesla, which has disbanded its media relations department. The agency says its investigation …
Worried that a new COVID-19 wave could overwhelm understaffed U.S. hospitals, federal officials on Thursday loosened rules that call on health care workers to stay out of work for 10 days if they test positive. Those workers will now be allowed to come back to work after seven days if they test negative and don’t have symptoms. Isolation time can be cut to five days or even fewer if there are severe staffing shortages, according to new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “As the health care community prepares for an anticipated surge in patients due to omicron, CDC is updating our recommendations to reflect what we know about infection and exposure in the context of vaccination and booster doses,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement. “Our goal is to keep health care personnel and patients safe, and to address and prevent undue burden on …
Polish Senator Krzysztof Brejza’s mobile phone was hacked with sophisticated spyware nearly three dozen times in 2019 when he was running the opposition’s campaign against the right-wing populist government in parliamentary elections, an internet watchdog found. Text messages stolen from Brejza’s phone — then doctored in a smear campaign — were aired by state-controlled TV in the heat of that race, which the ruling party narrowly won. With the hacking revelation, Brejza now questions whether the election was fair. It’s the third finding by the University of Toronto’s nonprofit Citizen Lab that a Polish opposition figure was hacked with Pegasus spyware from the Israeli hacking tools firm NSO Group. Brejza’s phone was digitally broken into 33 times from April 26, 2019, to October 23, 2019, said Citizen Lab researchers, who have been tracking government abuses of NSO malware for years. The other two hacks were identified earlier this week after …
NASA looks likely to launch a much hyped and often-delayed space telescope. Plus, SpaceX makes history again, and a space tourist is already planning his next trip. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us the Week in Space. …
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 to be admitted, compared to those who had been infected with the delta variant, which had been dominating the world in recent months. A separate study conducted at Imperial College London revealed that people diagnosed with omicron were 15%-20% less likely to seek emergency care at a hospital, while also showing a 40%-45% decline in the number of omicron patients who needed to be admitted for severe symptoms. And scientists at South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases Wednesday released a study that discovered the risk of hospitalization was 70%-80% lower among patients who tested positive for omicron, compared with …
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 unvaccinated patients being treated for COVID-19 have been irresponsible and have burdened taxpayers with “very substantial costs.” And they could be forced to pay for their hospital care. “There already is two classes of the hospital system because you have got the unvaccinated that are there because they have not been taking responsibility for their actions, and you have got the vaccinated there who have got a genuine requirement for health care, said State Transport Minister David Elliott. But members of Australia’s federal government have been skeptical about making unvaccinated COVID-19 patients pay for their treatment. The Australian Medical Association …
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 record number of deaths by at least 15,000, said Robert Anderson, who oversees the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s death statistics. Last year was the most lethal in U.S. history, largely because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A CDC report released Wednesday shows 2020 was actually worse than the agency previously reported. The report presents a final tally for last year of about 3.384 million U.S. deaths, about 25,000 more than a provisional count released earlier this year. Such jumps between provisional and final numbers are common, but 2020’s difference was higher than usual because of a lag in …
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 a report on how the company protects workers in its supply chain from forced labor. The request for information covered the extent to which Apple has identified suppliers and sub-suppliers that are a risk for forced labor, and how many suppliers Apple has taken action against. In a letter from the SEC reviewed by Reuters on Wednesday, regulators denied Apple’s move to block the proposal, saying that “it does not appear that the essential objectives of the proposal have been implemented” so far. The letter means that Apple will have to face a vote on the proposal at its annual …
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 low and it’s oral. It checks all the boxes,” Dr. Gregory Poland of the Mayo Clinic told The Associated Press. “You’re looking at a 90% decreased risk of hospitalization and death in a high-risk group—that’s stunning.” The pill is the first at-home treatment for the virus and is approved for use in those 12 and older who are at high risk. Pfizer says it’s ready to start delivery of the drug immediately in the U.S. and will produce 120 million courses in 2022. The U.S. government has a contract with the company for 10 million courses priced at $530 per …
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 system from attacking the kidney. But Australian researchers say the genetic mutation, which is present in about 15% of the population worldwide, can cause renal disease in patients with diabetes and other autoimmune conditions. The mutation is highly prevalent among indigenous people on the Tiwi Islands, 80 kilometers from the city of Darwin in the Northern Territory. According to the study, just less than 50% of the islands’ residents have the genetic mutation. The islands’ recorded rates of kidney disease are four times those of mainland indigenous Australians and about 11 times that of non-Indigenous Australians, according to researchers. Dr. Simon Jiang is from the John Curtin School of Medical Research at Australian National University. He says the mutation is mostly …
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 the COVID-19 pandemic are devastating the lives and livelihoods of people in Somalia. They are facing acute hunger. Many are on the verge of famine because the rains have failed to fall for a third year in a row.U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Adam Abdelmoula says 80 percent of the country is affected by drought. Speaking on a video link from the capital Mogadishu, he tells VOA 169,000 people have abandoned their homes in search of water, food, and grazing land for their livestock. “When I visited the countryside, I saw many dead animals,” he said. “The people I met …
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. …
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 fold, while a full dose of the vaccine — which is used in the full dose regimen — boosted antibodies levels over 80 fold. Dr. Paul Burton, Moderna’s chief medical officer, says the study — which has not been peer-reviewed — proves the company’s vaccine is effective, “extremely safe” and “will protect people through the coming holiday period and through these winter months, when we’re going to see the most severe pressure of omicron.” U.S. federal health officials authorized both the Moderna and the two-shot Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to be used as booster shots for all adults last month. Moderna’s announcement comes …
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 in the office, the memo said. “We are doing this out of an abundance of caution,” CNN President Jeff Zucker said in the memo. “And it will also protect those who will be in the office by minimizing the number of people who are there.” Employees who need to come to the office will be required to wear a mask at all times, CNN said. The network will also make changes to its studios and control rooms to minimize the number of people at offices, according to the memo. The news was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. The …
“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 least mid-January. Only two guests will be permitted to visit a household at one time. Four guests, however, will be allowed during the upcoming holidays from Dec. 24-26 and New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Schools will be immediately closed until at least Jan. 9. While the Netherland boasts an 85% inoculation rate of its population, only 9% have received booster shots. Jaap van Dissel, the chief of the Dutch outbreak management team, said the shutdown will give people time to get their booster jabs and gives hospitals time to prepare for the possible surge in COVID cases. Other …
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 Lewis & Clark Community College, a small Illinois school that canceled classes for days after a ransomware attack last month that knocked critical computer systems offline. “That first day,” Trzaska said, “I think all of us were probably up 20-plus hours, just moving through the process, trying to get our arms around what happened.” Even if the United States isn’t currently enduring large-scale, front-page ransomware attacks on par with ones earlier this year that targeted the global meat supply or kept millions of Americans from filling their gas tanks, the problem hasn’t disappeared. In fact, the attack on Trzaska’s college …
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 requirements before Feb. 9. The announcement came after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth District in Cincinnati decided on Friday that the mandate for large employers could go forward, reversing a previous court decision made after 27 Republican-led states, conservative groups, business associations and some individual companies challenged the mandate. OSHA said in a statement that it would not issue citations before the listed dates “so long as an employer is exercising reasonable, good faith efforts to come into compliance with the standard.” The mandate was previously slated to take effect Jan. 4. The Biden administration’s vaccine requirement …
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 first COVID-19 vaccines began to be administered. He said, “A year ago, we all hoped that by now vaccines would be helping us all emerge from the long, dark tunnel of the pandemic. Instead, as we enter the third year of the pandemic, the death toll has more than tripled, and the world remains in its grip. COVID-19 has now killed more than 5 million people. And they’re just the reported deaths.” Tedros told the virtual conference that the rapid development of not one, but several safe and effective vaccines, is a triumph of science. But he said, “the inequitable …
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 didn’t say where the three came from. The local Masrawy news outlet reported the three were among travelers from South Africa. The ministry said two of the people infected showed no symptoms, while the third suffered from mild symptoms. The three have been isolated in a Cairo hospital, it said. Authorities on Friday reported more than 900 confirmed new cases of coronavirus and 43 deaths over the previous 24 hours. Egypt has reported a total 373,500 cases, including 21,277 fatalities, since the pandemic began. …
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 that the company expects some regions to continue to see pandemic levels of COVID-19 cases over the next year or two. Other countries will transition to “endemic” with low, manageable caseloads during that same time period. By 2024, the disease should be endemic around the globe, the company projected. “When and how exactly this happens will depend on evolution of the disease, how effectively society deploys vaccines and treatments, and equitable distribution to places where vaccination rates are low,” Dolsten said. “The emergence of new variants could also impact how the pandemic continues to play out.” Pfizer developed its COVID-19 …
