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OSLO, Norway (AFP) – Norway’s new centre-left government said Wednesday it wants to toughen the country’s targets for reducing emissions by 2030 while preserving its economically important oil sector. The incoming government, formed from the Labour and Centre parties after September elections, said it wished to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent of their 1990 level by 2030. Climate ambitions had so far targeted a range between 50 and 55 percent. The aim for […]
“Star Trek” actor William Shatner finally became a real space traveler on Blue Origin’s second crewed mission Wednesday, calling it the most profound experience of his life. “It was unbelievable,” said the 90-year-old Canadian, known to the sci-fi show’s legion of “Trekkies” as the daring Captain James T. Kirk, a role he first played more than half a century ago. He was joined on the 11-minute journey beyond Earth’s atmosphere and back again by […]
SANTIAGO, Chile (AFP) Chilean President Sebastian Pinera on Tuesday announced a state of emergency and deployed troops to two southern regions where clashes have broken out between Mapuche indigenous people and security forces. The Mapuche are demanding the restoration of their ancestral lands and self-determination. “We have decided to call a state of exception” in four provinces of the southern regions of Biobio and Araucania and the deployment of troops to help control “the serious […]
WASHINGTON, D.C., United States (AFP) – Satellite data provider Planet announced Tuesday that it plans to launch a new fleet of orbiting eyes so powerful they can distinguish road markings on the ground. Planet, which already operates 200 Earth observation satellites from space, wants to make the new function available in 2023. The new satellites, called Pelican, could be used for mapping services, such as Google maps; in environmental tasks, such as spotting illegal forest […]
by Patrick GALEY Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) – Changing rain patterns caused by the El Nino warming phenomenon frequently drives millions of children into malnutrition and saddles them with life-long health issues, researchers said Tuesday, calling for action against the “predictable” impact. El Nino is a periodic event that affects global weather patterns, occurring every few years when eastern Pacific Ocean waters get unusually warm, leading to heavy rain in some regions but relative […]
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Daily exposure to phthalates, a group of chemicals used in everything from plastic containers to makeup, may lead to approximately 100,000 deaths in older Americans annually, a study from New York University warned Tuesday. The chemicals, which can be found in hundreds of products such as toys, clothing and shampoo, have been known for decades to be “hormone disruptors,” affecting a person’s endocrine system. The toxins can enter the […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A US government expert panel said Tuesday it no longer recommends a daily dose of aspirin to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in people aged 60 and over. People aged 40-59 who are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease but have no history of it, should consult with their doctor and make an individual decision on whether to start taking the medicine. The statement was […]
by Robin MILLARD GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization’s vaccine advisers on Monday recommended people with weakened immune systems should be offered an additional dose of all WHO-approved Covid-19 vaccines. The UN health agency’s experts also said over-60s fully immunised with China’s Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines should be offered an additional third vaccine dose. The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE) stressed it was not recommending an additional booster dose for […]
by Alexandra VARDI MITZPE RAMON, Israel (AFP) — Inside a huge crater in Israel’s sun-baked Negev desert, a team wearing space suits ventures forth on a mission to simulate conditions on Mars. The Austrian Space Forum has set up a pretend Martian base with the Israeli space agency at Makhtesh Ramon, a 500-metre (1,600-foot) deep, 40 kilometre (25 mile) wide crater. The six so-called “analogue astronauts” will live in isolation in the virtual station until […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – British pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca on Monday revealed more positive results from a trial of a treatment for Covid-19 symptoms. The drug, made from a combination of two antibodies, achieved a “statistically significant reduction in severe Covid-19 or death” in non-hospitalised patients with mild-to-moderate symptoms, AstraZeneca said in a statement. The group’s treatment, known as AZD7442, has been undergoing phase 3 or final clinical trials to assess its safety and efficacy. […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — Vaccination is highly effective at preventing severe cases of Covid-19, even against the Delta variant, a vast study in France has shown. The research published Monday — focusing on prevention of severe Covid and death, not infection — looked at 22 million people over 50 and found those who had received jabs were 90 percent less likely to be hospitalised or die. The results confirm observations from the US, the UK […]
by Yelim LEE / Claire LEE SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Simple, sweet, and fictionally fatal: the stallholder who makes the traditional South Korean children’s treat featured in the global cultural phenomenon “Squid Game” — and once associated with post-war poverty — has hit a real-life jackpot. The Netflix smash hit series features a group of South Korea’s most marginalised and deeply in debt, who compete in children’s games for the chance of 45.6 billion […]
