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showing posts for 'ian'

Fleeing Russian bombs while battling Facebook. A Meta problem Ukrainian journalists did not need. - Coda Story

The challenge of local journalism and of censoring during war. "Facebook says it’s fighting disinformation and blocking Russian propaganda. But independent newsrooms in eastern Ukraine say they’re being restricted under the same rules."
Source: codastory.com

Senior health professionals call for urgent climate briefing of all MPs by the chief scientific adviser: open letter to

Dear prime minister, We wish to make you aware of our concern for the health of Angus Rose, a 52 year old man, who at the time of writing is on day 34 of a hunger strike outside Parliament, consuming only fluids, vitamins, and minerals. His not unreasonable demand is that all members of parliament...
Source: bmj.com

Health impacts of wood burning cost EU and UK €17 billion a year

Wood-based home appliances are responsible for 63 per cent of the health costs from air pollution related to heating and cooking in homes in the European Union and UK
Source: newscientist.com

Polygenic prediction of educational attainment within and between families from genome-wide association analyses in 3 million

We conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of educational attainment (EA) in a sample of ~3 million individuals and identify 3,952 approximately uncorrelated genome-wide-significant single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). A genome-wide polygenic predictor, or polygenic index (PGI), explains 12–16%...
Source: nature.com

Keyboard army using restaurant reviews to take on Russian state media

Rather than commenting on the food and service at Russian restaurants and cafes, some users have begun posting online reviews detailing Russian actions in Ukraine to try to smuggle information past the tight control of state media.
Source: reuters.com

Internet user classification

Grampound it seems is classified as 'e-Rational Utilitarian' ... but who is shouting out for more local facilities and better internet infrastructure? Checks notes ... methodological individualist and political liberals with social stratification (i.e. class, status distinctions) playing a relatively...
Source: cdrc.ac.uk

Climate activists buy environment secretary's Cornwall constituency office

"Insulate Britain supporters donate rent from George Eustice MP's HQ towards protesters'€™ court costs." Landlord activism.
Source: theguardian.com

For the first time in generations, this tribe in Washington has land

The Snoqualmie Indian Tribe has purchased thousands of acres of ancestral forestlands in East King County.
Source: opb.org

Fatalism - the stalemate of us vs. COVID-19

Stephen Casper - medical historian at Clarkson University - offers a worrying prediction for COVID for the end of 2022. The analogy for COVID-19 won't be influenza but 'tuberculosis before the discovery of antibiotics'. A new hospital specialty might even exist - looking after COVID patients - and they...
Source: twitter.com

Beyond Omicron: what’s next for COVID’s viral evolution Callaway, Ewen. Nature 2021 600:7888.

The rapid spread of new variants offers clues to how SARS-CoV-2 is adapting and how the pandemic will play out over the next several months. The rapid spread of new variants offers clues to how SARS-CoV-2 is adapting and how the pandemic will play out over the next several months.
Source: nature.com

Omicron-variant border bans ignore the evidence, say scientists Mallapaty, Smriti. Nature 2021.

Researchers say travel restrictions in response to the newly detected coronavirus variant come too late and could even slow studies of Omicron. Researchers say travel restrictions in response to the newly detected coronavirus variant come too late and could even slow studies of Omicron.
Source: nature.com

A father and son's Ice Age plot to slow Siberian thaw

A father and son are bringing bison and camels - maybe eventually a mammoth - to the Russian Arctic to slow global warming. Some research shows it's working.
Source: reuters.com

New Delta strain believed to have emerged among 53,000 revellers at Boardmasters festival

Almost 5,000 infections have been linked to the Boardmasters festival in Cornwall, and with half a million music lovers at even larger events over the Bank Holiday, officials fear revellers are being hit by a new strain of the Delta variant
Source: inews.co.uk

Clinically contextualised ECG interpretation: the impact of prior clinical exposure and case vignettes on ECG diagnostic

Does teaching ECGs with a clinical vignette improve training? Not greatly ... but having seen a condition previously (and presumably the ECG that went with it) is probably best. The researchers concluded that "ECG training should therefore not rely on experiential learning alone, but instead be supplemented...
Source: biomedcentral.com

Visa-free touring granted for UK artists in 19 EU countries – while industry demands "honesty" from government

"The government has announced that visa-free touring has been negotiated for UK artists in 19 EU member countries" This is great news for musicians but also good to see that individual EU states also still have control over their borders (they always did). It will be great for us all to have freedom...
Source: nme.com

Pegasus: Spyware sold to governments 'targets activists'

Israeli tech firm NSO denies media reports that its software has been sold to authoritarian regimes. The Android and iOS spyware can apparently see photographs and contacts, log everything that is typed, and turn on the camera and microphone.
Source: bbc.com

What happened when a 'wildly irrational' algorithm made crucial healthcare decisions

Advocates say having computer programs decide how much help vulnerable people can get is often arbitrary - and in some cases downright cruel
Source: theguardian.com

Australia's growing thirst for alcohol-free wine and beer

Demand for non-alcoholic drinks "explodes" as more Australians rethink their drinking habits.
Source: bbc.com

Tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants

 All viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, change over time. Most changes have little to no impact on the virus’ properties. However, some changes may affect the virus’s properties, such as how easily it spreads, the associated disease severity, or the performance...
Source: who.int

Germany declares U.K. a virus variant region

Germany's public health institute on Friday declared Britain and Northern Ireland a virus variant region, requiring anyone entering the country from the United Kingdom to quarantine for two weeks on arrival.
Source: reuters.com