Author: KnowledgeHippo
When Stephane Castel first met with a group of Maori and other Pacific Islanders in New Zealand to talk about his pharmaceutical company’s plans for genetic research, locals were concerned that he might be seeking to profit from members’ genes of the community without giving them much thought.On the contrary, explained Dr. Castel and his colleagues, that they aimed to make an unconventional deal: In exchange for entrusting them with their genetic heritage, the participating communities would receive a share of the company’s revenue. Dr. Castel also promised not to patent any genes — as many other companies had done…
Elon Musk, the billionaire tech mogul, has plunged into British politics in recent weeks, using his social media platform X to attack and spread misinformation about Prime Minister Keir Starmer and other members of the Labor government.In a series of scathing posts to his 211 million followers in recent days, Mr. Musk falsely accused Mr. Starmer and other Labor lawmakers for enabling Britain’s so-called grooming gangs. The phrase refers to a decades-long scandal involving a series of child sexual abuse cases in which girls were attacked and raped by gangs of men in several towns and cities. Most of the…
Wildfires in Southern California prompted officials to close schools across Los Angeles County on Wednesday.At least 18 of the county’s 80 school districts issued notices announcing that schools would be closed for the day. Many urged parents to take precautions as the fires continue to rage and strong winds affect the region.”Due to the volatility of the ongoing high wind event, power outages affecting many schools and the Eaton fire, all AUSD schools will be closed,” the Azusa Unified School District said in a formal statement, adding that community safety is ” top priority.”Here is a list of some of…
The political party on the brink of leadership in Austria would drag an already conservative country into a growing group of nations veering to the far right of European politics. He has flirted with Nazi slogans, stuck with Russia and warned Holocaust survivor groups. He campaigned on promises to deport immigrants and ban political forms of Islam.The Freedom Party, known as the FPÖ, and its leader, Herbert Kickl, had a chance to form a governing coalition this week after efforts to oust them from power collapsed. If they succeed in forming a government, it would be a shock to the…
Reports of an increase in respiratory virus cases in China have evoked dark echoes of the start of the Covid-19 pandemic almost exactly five years ago.But despite the superficial similarities, this condition is very different and far less alarming, medical experts say.The Chinese cases are being reported as infections with human metapneumovirus, known to doctors as HMPV. Here’s what we know so far:What is HMPV?It is one of the many pathogens that circulate around the world every year, causing respiratory diseases. HMPV is common — so common that most people will be infected while still children and may have several…
The proposal by President-elect Donald J. Trump’s announcement on Tuesday that the United States might reclaim the Panama Canal – including with violence – alarmed Panamanians, who have lived with a US military presence in the canal zone and had been invaded by US military forces once before.Few seemed to take the threats of Mr. Trump, but Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha made his country’s position clear at a press conference hours after the US president-elect mused aloud about recapturing the canal.”The dominance of our channel is non-negotiable and is part of the history of our games and an irrevocable…
A federal judge on Monday sentenced a Pittsburgh man to five years in prison and his wife to three years of probation for their involvement in the detonation of explosives that injured police officers at a 2023 transgender rights demonstration at the University of Pittsburgh.The man, Brian DiPippa, 37, “lit and threw two makeshift smoke canisters into and around a line of people waiting to enter a building for a scheduled event with guest speakers,” the Justice Department said in a news release Monday. .Then the wife of Mr. DiPippa, Krystal DiPippa, 42, “hid” him as he “lighted and threw…
Meta said Tuesday it was ending its long-standing fact-checking program, a policy instituted to curb the spread of misinformation on its social media apps, in a stark sign of how the company has repositioned itself for the Trump presidency and was dropping the weight of the back. unlimited internet talk.Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said it will now allow more speech, rely on its users to correct inaccurate and false posts and take a more personalized approach to political content. She described the changes with the language of regret, saying she had drifted far from her values in…
January 7, 2025, 3:38 pm ETPresident-elect Donald J. Trump at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday.Credit…Doug Mills/The New York TimesWhile Republicans largely cheered Meta’s announcement on Tuesday that it would effectively end the fact-checking program, several technology watchdog groups condemned the decision, warning of the potential for an increase in misinformation.Nicole Gill, executive director of Accountable Tech, said in a statement that the decision was “a gift to Donald Trump and extremists around the world.” Meta, he warned, was inviting “the same wave of hate, misinformation and conspiracy theories” that fueled the Jan. 6 attack on Capitol…
Pharmacists have begun prescribing abortion pills, not just dispensing them — a development aimed at expanding access to abortion.The new effort is small so far — a pilot program in Washington State — but the idea is expected to be tested in other states where abortion remains legal.”I think it’s going to expand and expand,” said Michael Hogue, executive director of the American Pharmacists Association, a national professional organization that is not involved in the new program and does not take a position on abortion.Many states now allow pharmacists to prescribe a variety of medications, he said, adding that in…