Life

Pacific sees a ‘Blood Moon’ rising

by Andrew BEATTY Agence France Presse Stargazers across the Pacific Rim cast their eyes skyward on Wednesday night to witness a rare “Super Blood Moon”, as the heavens align to bring an extra-spectacular lunar eclipse. The first total lunar eclipse in two years will happen at the same time as the Moon is closest to Earth, in what astronomers say will be a once-in-a-decade show. If the skies are clear, anyone living in the Pacific […]

Japan premium melons go for $24,800 after virus slump

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — In what might be the unlikeliest indicator of a post-pandemic recovery, a pair of premium Japanese melons have sold for $24,800 at auction, over 22 times more than last year’s virus-hit price. The 2.7 million yen price tag at the season’s first auction for the famed Yubari melons is still a snip compared to records for the prized produce. “This year’s recovery in price can be seen as a result of […]

EBC Films’ “Guerrero Dos” receives nominations at Int’l Filmfest Manhattan New York

  (Eagle News) — The film “Guerrero Dos: Tuloy Ang Laban (The Fight Continues)” of Eagle Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) has received five nominations from the International Film Festival Manhattan New York (IFFMNY) Spring 2021, including best director, best actor, best actress, the “Jury Feature Global” and “Best Film Festival Grand Prize Performance.” This EBC movie is one of the featured films in the IFFMNY Spring 2021 which will have virtual showings of films from around […]

Study shows dogs can detect Covid-positive arrivals

by Patrick GALEY PARIS, France (AFP) — Dogs can be trained to detect more than 90 percent of Covid-19 infections even when patients are asymptomatic, according to research published Monday, which authors hope could help replace the need to quarantine new arrivals. Using their remarkable sense of smell — which can pick up the equivalent of half a teaspoon of sugar in an olympic-sized swimming pool — dogs have already shown that they can sniff […]

How PHL Dumagat tribe cook fish sinigang, steamed rice using bamboo; wrapped chicken under the ground

  (Eagle News) — The Philippine Dumagat tribe in Luzon has a unique traditional way of cooking food, harking backing to the old days when their ancestors had to cook food using what could be found in the forest.  With the use of bamboo, they are able to cook rice and even the Philippine dish “sinigang”.  They also cook chicken in a unique way while buried in the ground. -Sinigang with katmon fruit, lando leaves […]

TikTok helping deaf Black Americans preserve their brand of sign language

by Louis BAUDOIN WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — “English is not my first language,” writes Nakia Smith on her TikTok account, although the 22-year-old grew up in Texas. The young African American woman has been deaf since birth, and uses her large online following to promote her little-known dialect: Black American Sign Language. In her video clips, she tells her 400,000 followers about the differences between her language and the standard American Sign Language (ASL). […]

China’s Mars rover starts roaming the Red Planet

SHANGHAI, China (AFP) — China’s Mars rover drove from its landing platform and began exploring the surface on Saturday, state-run Xinhua news agency said, making the country only the second nation to land and operate a rover on the Red Planet. The launch last July of the Tianwen-1 Mars probe, which carried the Zhurong rover, marked a major milestone in China’s space program. Tianwen-1 touched down on a vast northern lava plain known as the […]

New Yorkers enjoy new park floating on Hudson River

by Laura BONILLA NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — A new public park skimming the surface of the Hudson River atop 132 concrete “tulips” opened Friday for New Yorkers eager to emerge from a year of onerous pandemic restrictions. Little Island, which can be accessed free-of-charge by two pedestrian bridges, offers lush green spaces and scenic views into southern Manhattan and New Jersey for those who want to get away without getting away. Its opening […]

Over 80 percent in Japan oppose Olympics this year: poll

    TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — More than 80 percent of Japanese polled oppose hosting the virus-postponed Olympics this year, a new survey showed on Monday, underlining public antipathy less than 10 weeks before the Tokyo Games. The latest downbeat poll comes after Japan expanded a coronavirus state of emergency Friday as the nation battles a fourth wave of infections. The surge in cases has put pressure on the country’s healthcare system, with medical professionals […]

New CDC study in health workers shows 94% efficacy of Covid-19 mRNA vaccines

https://youtu.be/VI3Ye2gcvak (Eagle News) — A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study on a group of health care workers showed that COVID-19 mRNA vaccines authorized by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are effective in protecting health care personnel (HCP) against COVID-19 by as much as 94 percent. In a release from the US CDC, it said that the mRNA vaccines Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna “reduced the risk of getting sick with COVID-19 by […]

Don’t vaccinate kids, but give doses to Covax: WHO chief

  GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The WHO urged wealthy countries Friday to stop vaccinating children against Covid-19 and instead donate doses to poorer nations, while warning that the pandemic’s second year looked set to be more deadly. World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus voiced outrage that a number of rich countries were now vaccinating children and teenagers, while poorer states had barely begun vaccinating health workers and the most vulnerable groups. Instead of offering […]

Huge Titanic replica to open as Chinese tourist destination

by Noel Celis and Qian Ye SUINING, China (AFP) — The Titanic is being brought back from the deep, more than a century after its ill-fated maiden voyage, at a landlocked Chinese theme park where tourists can soon splash out for a night on a fullscale replica. The project’s main backer was inspired to recreate the world’s most infamous cruise liner by the 1997 box office hit of the same name — once the world’s […]