Life

10% of diabetics die within days of coronavirus hospitalization: study

PARIS, France (AFP) — One in 10 diabetics with coronavirus dies within seven days of hospital admission, according to a study of more than 1,300 patients published Friday in the journal Diabetologia. Two-thirds of the patients were men, and the average age across both sexes was 70, the study found. “The presence of diabetic complications and increased age increase the risk of death,” the researchers said in a statement. “Increased BMI” — body mass index, […]

Indonesia starts cloud seeding to keep forest fires at bay

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesia has started cloud seeding to induce rain as the archipelago moves to head off annual forest fires blamed for blanketing swathes of Southeast Asia in toxic haze. Last year’s fires were the worst since 2015 due to dry weather, with some 1.6 million hectares (3.95 million acres) of land, mostly on Sumatra and Borneo islands, razed by the out-of-control blazes. Authorities deployed tens of thousands of personnel and water-bombing aircraft […]

Host Britain asks to delay climate summit to November 2021

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The UN environmental agency said Wednesday it has received a request from host nation Britain to postpone this year’s global climate conference until November 2021 because of the coronavirus. This year’s COP 26 summit had been due to take place in the Scottish city of Glasgow in November before the pandemic forced a rethink and the possibility of rescheduling for March 2021. But it now appears it could take place […]

Scientists warn of ‘zombie fires’ in the Arctic

by Marlowe HOOD Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Dormant “zombie fires” scattered across the Arctic region — remnants of record blazes last year — may be coming to life after an unusually warm and dry Spring, scientists warned Wednesday. “We have seen satellite observations of active fires that hint that ‘zombie’ fires might have reignited,” said Mark Parrington, a senior scientist and wildfire expert at the European Union’s Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service. The hotspots, which […]

India wilts under heatwave as temperature hits 50 degrees Celsius

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — India is wilting under a heatwave, with the temperature in places reaching 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) and the capital enduring its hottest May day in nearly two decades. The hot spell is projected to scorch northern India for several more days, the Meteorological Department said late Tuesday, “with severe heat wave conditions in isolated pockets”. As global temperatures rise, heatwaves are a regular menace in the country — […]

Bushfire-hit Australians still in tents as virus slows recovery

by Andrew LEESON Agence France-Presse COBARGO, Australia (AFP) — Victims of Australia’s catastrophic bushfires are still living in tents, garages and makeshift shelters months after the blazes ended, with efforts to rebuild their lives hampered by the coronavirus pandemic. Inside a small tin shed on Australia’s southeast coast, a family of six takes refuge from the cold as the southern hemisphere winter begins to bite. The structure — chock-full of toys and beds — has […]

Italy’s nearly deserted Pompeii reopens its ruins to public

by Alexandria SAGE Agence France-Presse Pompeii, Italy (AFP) — Italy’s world-famous archaeological site Pompeii reopened to the public on Tuesday as the country’s coronavirus lockdown lifted — though guides outnumbered tourists at the ancient Roman city. The exceptionally-preserved remains of the city covered in volcanic ash by the eruption of nearby Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago in 79 A.D. are usually the country’s second-most visited site after the Colosseum in Rome. But on Tuesday, many […]

Anti-viral drug effective against coronavirus, study finds

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Anti-viral drug remdesivir cuts recovery times in coronavirus patients, according to the full results of a trial published Friday night, three weeks after America’s top infectious diseases expert said the study showed the medication has “clear-cut” benefits. Complete results from the research, which was carried out by US government agency the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), were published by leading medical periodical the New England Journal of […]

WHO suspends trials of hydroxychloroquine as virus treatment

  by Nina LARSON Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization said on Monday it had temporarily suspended clinical trials of hydroxychloroquine as a potential treatment for coronavirus. The decision came after a study published in The Lancet medical journal last week suggested the drug could increase the risk of death among COVID-19 patients, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual press conference. Tedros said the executive group of the […]

South Sudan: an unexplored Eden of biodiversity

by Nick Perry PICTURES BY TONY KARUMBA Agence France-Presse BOMA, South Sudan (AFP) — The light plane banked sharply to circle back over the plains. The pilot had spotted something below: antelope, first one, then many, the stragglers of a million-strong migration across this vast wilderness. But there are other wonders out here on the savanna. A trio of extremely rare Nubian giraffe lumber by, the seldom-seen, majestic giants casting long shadows over the grasslands. “There’s […]

Weather iffy for SpaceX astronaut launch

WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — Aside from a threat of bad weather, NASA and SpaceX confirmed Monday that everything is all-systems-go for their upcoming rocket launch with two American astronauts. Scheduled for Wednesday, the launch to the International Space Station will be the first US crewed space launch in nine years. “NASA and @SpaceX officials have given the ‘go’ for the launch on a mission that will return human spaceflight to the US,” NASA […]

EU launches first online film festival, online concert for Viva Europa 2020

(Eagle News) — The European Union (EU) Delegation in the Philippines will make available to the public 20 multi-awarded full and short films as part of this year’s Viva Europa cultural showcase. “The EU Delegation presents its first EUFFestival- online film festival with 11 European multi-awarded full and 8 short films to the Filipino audience”, the EU said in a statement. The films are available for free, subtitled in English, and will be available via […]