Today's News
Parks and green spaces helped us get through lockdown – but not everyone has equal access
Parks and green spaces helped us get through lockdown – but not everyone has equal access Cliff Hands/Shutterstock What we could all see was solace: it was clear that nature at its loveliest and most inspiring, in springtime’s wondrous transformations, could offer people comfort at a moment of tragedy and great stress. Michael McCarthy, nature writer For many, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a damaging impact on their psychological health, but the chance to get out into nature provided some much needed respite and escape during a difficult year. Following restrictions in March 2020 that saw the UK closing non-essential…
Parks and green spaces helped us get through lockdown – but not everyone has equal access
Cliff Hands/Shutterstock What we could all see was solace: it was clear that nature at its loveliest and most inspiring, in springtime’s wondrous transformations, could offer people comfort at a moment of tragedy and great stress. Michael McCarthy, nature writer For many, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a damaging impact on their psychological health, but the chance to get out into nature provided some much needed respite and escape during a difficult year. Following restrictions in March 2020 that saw the UK closing non-essential retail and hospitality, and limiting people to leaving the house once a day for essential reasons,…
Climate adaptation finance is ineffective and must be more transparent
Climate adaptation finance is ineffective and must be more transparent Riccardo Mayer / shutterstock In 2019, an international climate fund approved a ten year US$9.3 million project to support communities in the drylands of Mozambique that are affected by frequent droughts. This money seems a lot, but it really is not much for a country also affected by other climate-related events such as cyclones. Indeed, the World Bank estimates Mozambique needs at least US$400 million a year to protect itself from climate change. The difference between the amount of money that developing countries, such as Mozambique, need and what they…
Tiangong: China may gain a monopoly on space stations – here’s what to expect
Artist's impression of Tiangong, Alejo Miranda/Shutterstock China launched Tianhe-1, the first and main module of a permanent orbiting space station called Tiangong (Heavenly Palace 天 宫), on April 29. Two additional science modules (Wentian and Mengtian) will follow in 2022 in a series of missions that will complete the station and allow it to start operations. While the station is not China’s first – the country has already launched two – the modular design is new. It replicates the International Space Station (ISS), from which China was excluded. There are many reasons for China to invest in this costly and…
Water firms are main source of microplastics in UK rivers, study says
Research says discharge of untreated sewage and wastewater during dry spells to blame Water companies are causing high levels of microplastic contamination in UK rivers by discharging untreated sewage and wastewater into the water system, new research reveals.As pressure builds on water companies, the Environment Agency and ministers to tackle the way water firms release untreated effluent into rivers, scientists have for the first time linked the practice to microplastic pollution. Continue reading… Source – Full Article https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/may/13/water-firms-are-main-source-of-microplastics-in-uk-rivers-study-says
Freedom United voices concerns over Ontario’s Anti-Trafficking Bill 251
Freedom United is concerned about Bill 251, the Combating Human Trafficking Act 2021, currently being proposed in Ontario, Canada. Below is our submission to the government. May 13, 2021 Dear Legislative Assembly of Ontario, On behalf of Freedom United, an international anti-trafficking NGO home to the world’s largest anti-slavery community, I am writing to the Ontario government to voice our concerns about Bill 251, Combating Human Trafficking Act 2021 in its current form. While addressing human trafficking and supporting trafficking survivors in Ontario are indeed important and necessary steps, the strategies proposed in Bill 251 threaten to undermine both of…
How One Round of Gene Therapy Fixed 48 Kids’ Immune Systems
How One Round of Gene Therapy Fixed 48 Kids’ Immune Systems Gene therapy has shown promise in recent years for treating a range of diseases, including sickle-cell anemia, hemophilia, various forms of inherited blindness, mesothelioma, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. A new success story may soon be added to this list, with the publication yesterday of the outcomes of a clinical trial that used gene therapy to cure a rare immune system disorder in infants. The study, described in the New England Journal of Medicine, was carried out by researchers from UCLA and Great Ormond Street Hospital in London over the…
Schizophrenia: new blood test device could improve treatment
Schizophrenia: new blood test device could improve treatment This device will provide results in a matter of minutes – while regular blood test results could take days or weeks. goodbishop/ Shutterstock Over 20 million people worldwide have schizophrenia. This mental illness has a number of serious symptoms – such as seeing or hearing things that aren’t there (hallucnations), having irrational ideas (delusions), apathy, blunting of emotions and loss of pleasure. While the condition is usually managed with so-called antipsychotic drugs, these drugs don’t work equally well for everyone – meaning some have to try more than one kind of treatment…
WhatsApp’s controversial privacy update may be banned in the EU – but the app’s sights are fixed on India
The May 15 deadline for users to accept WhatsApp's new privacy policy has also been extended by 'several weeks'. rafapress/Shutterstock The roll out of WhatsApp’s new privacy policy, which critics warn will lead to more data sharing with its parent company Facebook, received a blow on May 13 after German regulators temporarily banned the update. The regulators are now said to be seeking an EU-wide ban by presenting their case to the European Data Protection Board. WhatsApp users will have noticed a recent intensification of pop-ups nudging them to agree to the app’s new terms of service. The cliff-edge deadline…
COVID vaccine hesitancy: spell out the personal rather than collective benefits to persuade people — new research
Approximately 10% of UK adults say they will never get vaccinated against COVID-19 or will avoid doing so for as long as possible. Scientists call this group the “vaccine hesitant”, though hesitancy may not seem the right term to describe views often held with clear conviction. People who are vaccine hesitant have often thought long and hard about whether to take a COVID-19 vaccine. How can such views be shifted? Ideally, one would sit down with people, listen and discuss. In reality, public health campaigners have only mass messaging at their disposal: information disseminated through billboards, TV slots and social…
COVID vaccine hesitancy: spell out the personal rather than collective benefits to persuade people — new research
COVID vaccine hesitancy: spell out the personal rather than collective benefits to persuade people — new research Approximately 10% of UK adults say they will never get vaccinated against COVID-19 or will avoid doing so for as long as possible. Scientists call this group the “vaccine hesitant”, though hesitancy may not seem the right term to describe views often held with clear conviction. People who are vaccine hesitant have often thought long and hard about whether to take a COVID-19 vaccine. How can such views be shifted? Ideally, one would sit down with people, listen and discuss. In reality, public…
COVID vaccine hesitancy: spell out the personal rather than collective benefits to persuade people — new research
Approximately 10% of UK adults say they will never get vaccinated against COVID-19 or will avoid doing so for as long as possible. Scientists call this group the “vaccine hesitant”, though hesitancy may not seem the right term to describe views often held with clear conviction. People who are vaccine hesitant have often thought long and hard about whether to take a COVID-19 vaccine. How can such views be shifted? Ideally, one would sit down with people, listen and discuss. In reality, public health campaigners have only mass messaging at their disposal: information disseminated through billboards, TV slots and social…