Thai resort island Phuket grapples with growing garbage crisis

Thai resort island Phuket grapples with growing garbage crisis

PHUKET, THAILAND —  Plastic bottles and empty beer cans roll on the sea floor in the waters around Phuket in southern Thailand, while ever more garbage piles up on the island itself, a tourist hotspot better known for its pristine beaches and stunning sunsets. In one corner of the island, trucks and tractors trundle back … Read more

Proposed rules would require nutrition info, allergen warnings on alcohol labels 

Proposed rules would require nutrition info, allergen warnings on alcohol labels 

Labels on wine, distilled spirits and malt beverages in the U.S. would be required to list alcohol content and nutritional information per serving, plus notification of potential allergens, under two new rules proposed Thursday by the Treasury Department. The department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau is seeking public content on proposals to require … Read more

Malawi takes steps to end cholera outbreaks by 2030

Malawi takes steps to end cholera outbreaks by 2030

BLANTYRE, MALAWI —  Malawi’s government launched a plan Thursday to stop cholera outbreaks by 2030. Officials say that if the government and international partners can effectively cooperate, they can greatly reduce the prevalence of cholera in the southern African country, where it has killed at least 1,700 people over the past three years. Partners include … Read more

SpaceX catches Starship booster again, but upper stage explodes

SpaceX catches Starship booster again, but upper stage explodes

WASHINGTON —  Hours after Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin nailed its first-ever orbital mission, SpaceX seized back the spotlight on Thursday as its latest test of Starship, its gargantuan next-generation mega rocket, ended with the upper stage dramatically disintegrating over the Atlantic. In terms of sheer excitement, Elon Musk’s company didn’t disappoint, underscoring its technical prowess … Read more

US CDC recommends faster testing for bird flu in hospitalized patients

US CDC recommends faster testing for bird flu in hospitalized patients

People hospitalized for flu should be tested for bird flu within 24 hours, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday, in an expansion of the agency’s efforts to tackle increasing infections in humans. The advisory is intended to prevent delays in identifying human cases of avian influenza A (H5N1) viruses amid … Read more

WHO appeals for $1.5 billion to tackle ‘unprecedented’ global health crisis

WHO appeals for .5 billion to tackle ‘unprecedented’ global health crisis

GENEVA —  The World Health Organization appealed Thursday for $1.5 billion for emergency operations this year, warning that conflict, climate change, epidemics and displacement had converged to create an “unprecedented global health crisis.” The U.N. health agency estimated that health crises would leave 305 million people in need of urgent humanitarian assistance this year. “WHO … Read more

WHO says suspected outbreak of Marburg disease kills 8 in remote part of Tanzania 

WHO says suspected outbreak of Marburg disease kills 8 in remote part of Tanzania 

ARUSHA, Tanzania —  The World Health Organization said Wednesday an outbreak of suspected Marburg disease has killed eight people in a remote part of northern Tanzania. “We are aware of 9 cases so far, including 8 people who have died,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement. “We would expect further cases in … Read more

Despite international concerns, doctors say China flu-like virus is no COVID-19

Despite international concerns, doctors say China flu-like virus is no COVID-19

Reports of rising cases of a flu-like illness in China, where COVID-19 was first detected five years ago, sparked international concerns about the potential for another worldwide pandemic. But medical experts say the human metapneumovirus, known as HMPV, is no COVID-19. “That’s a routine virus that commonly causes upper respiratory tract infections, such as bronchitis … Read more

Despite international concerns, doctors say China flu-like virus is no COVID-19

Despite international concerns, doctors say China flu-like virus is no COVID-19

China says HMPV infections in the northern part of the country are declining. News of increased respiratory illnesses in China kindled international concerns about another potential pandemic. But, as VOA’s Dora Mekouar reports, medical experts say HMPV is nothing like COVID-19. VOA Mandarin contributed to this report. Read original article here Denial of responsibility! Pioneer … Read more

Elon Musk says third patient got Neuralink brain implant

Elon Musk says third patient got Neuralink brain implant

Elon Musk said a third person has received an implant from his brain-computer interface company Neuralink, one of many groups working to connect the nervous system to machines. “We’ve got … three humans with Neuralinks and all are working well,” he said during a recent wide-ranging interview at a Las Vegas event streamed on his … Read more