Month: March 2020

Britain's Prince Charles has tested positive for the coronavirus.  A statement Wednesday said he "has been displaying mild symptoms" but is otherwise in good health.  His wife, Camilla, tested negative for the virus.  The couple is in self-isolation at a home in Scotland.  ...

With the death toll soaring past 300,000 this year and a quarter of humanity now infected, the pandemic shows no signs of abating as it spreads invisibly throughout vulnerable communities.   Yet unlike the novel coronavirus, this disease is preventable, curable and centuries-old: tuberculosis.   On the occasion of Staff inspect medical equipments at an emergency hospital set up amid the new coronavirus outbreak in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 23, 2020.As of Tuesday 1100 GMT, there had been more than 386,350 confirmed COVID-19 cases, 16,961 of which have proved fatal.   World governments have taken unprecedented  peacetime measures to try to slow the spread.   Several European nations have announced country-wide lock downs as well as massive economic stimuli and financial support for businesses and workers.   Grania Brigden, TB director at The tuberculosis union, told AFP that testing capacity was crucial in tackling both diseases.   "With TB we've struggled…

Women live longer than men across the world and scientists have by and large linked the sex differences in longevity with biological foundation to survival. A new study of wild mammals has found considerable differences in life span and aging in various mammalian species.  Among humans, women’s life span is almost 8% on average longer than men’s life span. But among wild mammals, females in 60% of the studied species have, on average, 18.6% longer lifespans. The ratio is considerably different for different groups of mammals.  An international team of scientists led by Jean-François Lemaître, from the University Lyonin France, collected information on age-related mortality for 134 populations of 101 wild mammalian species.  “It was surprising to observe that this gender gap in lifespan often exceeds the one observed in humans and is, at the same time, extremely variable across species,” said Lemaître. "For example, lionesses live at least 50% longer in the wild than male lions,” said Tamás Székely, from the University of Bath, one of the authors of the study. “We previously thought this was mostly…

Austria will massively expand coronavirus testing in coming days to locate and isolate infected people and avoid an Italian-like overload of its health system, Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said on Tuesday.   The Alpine republic with a population of 8.8 million has tested around 28,400 people so far with nearly 4,900 cases and 28 deaths confirmed.   It was one of the first European countries to put severe restrictions on movement and close shops and schools in response to the developments in neighboring Italy and a strong increase in coronavirus infections in its western regions.   In coming weeks, Austria plans to test up to 15,000 people per day, the chancellor said.   "We will also launch rapid tests, to test hundreds of thousands of people, as quickly as possible," Kurz…

The European Space Agency (ESA) has noted a positive effect of the world-wide coronavirus outbreak, saying satellite data is showing reduced air pollution in areas hardest hit by the virus.The agency says a space observation satellite detected significantly lower levels of the air pollutant nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in in northern Italy and China’s Hubei province.   The ESA’s director of earth observation programs, Simonetta Cheli, says, certainly the reduction in human activity in those areas certainly played a role in reducing the pollutant. But she said the weather and how much heating is done in a given region over a period of time can also be a factor.Cheli says NO2 is a short-lived pollutant, staying in the atmosphere generally less than a day before being deposited or reacting with other gases.…

At a time of isolation, people in many European cities hit hard by the new coronavirus are taking at least a minute each night to come together in gratitude.They stand at open windows or on balconies in Rome, Madrid, Paris, Athens and Amsterdam, singing, cheering and applauding even though they know their intended audience is too busy to listen.The adulation is for the doctors, nurses and other health care workers putting themselves at risk on the front lines of the pandemic that is forcing most residents to stay home. A 52-year-old nurse on Thursday became the first medical professional in Spain to die of COVID-19.People applaud from their houses in support of the medical staff in Rivas Vaciamadrid, March 14, 2020.In Italy, where the number of virus-related deaths surpassed those…

Health authorities say Spain has registered a daily record increase in its daily virus infections and deaths.  Spain announced 6,584 new coronavirus infections Tuesday, bringing the overall total to 39, 673. The number of deaths also jumped by a record number of 514 to 2,696.   "This is the tough week," Fernando Simón, the head of the Spanish health emergency coordination center, said at a daily briefing.  Simon also said some 5, 400 health workers were infected. ...

Health experts say Nigeria isn’t likely to meet the United Nations’ 2030 tuberculosis eradication target, as the nation still accounts for the highest fatality rate from the disease in Africa. Officials say they’re trying to address major factors like inadequate awareness and funding by offering free screening and treatment.  For VOA, Timothy Obiezu has more from Abuja as the world marks Tuberculosis Day on March 24. ...

The American Cancer Society says one in nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime and one in 41 will die from it. Several news studies offer hope that these number could decrease with early and accurate diagnosis.  A new study based on a randomized controlled trial on 300 prostate cancer patients in Australia has found that a molecular imaging technique is more accurate than conventional medical imaging that uses CT (computed tomography) and bone scan.  Prostate cancer is treated by surgery to remove the prostate or by intensive radiotherapy that targets the tumor.  Doctors often use CT and bone scans to determine if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body. A team led by Professor Michael Hofman conducted trials on prostate cancer patients in 10 hospitals in Australia using the prostate-specific membrane antigen PET-CT scan.  “We inject a radio-active small molecule intravenously. It finds its way to prostate cancer cells…

At a time of great uncertainty, even the seasons seem scrambled. Christmas lights in springtime?  Wrapped around a tree trunk in Colorado, fashioned into a heart in Alabama and hung high over Main Street in a New Hampshire town, holiday lights are going back up. As the coronavirus spreads, the displays are providing a bit of emotional and actual brightness. And they're especially easy to enjoy from a safe social distance. "We live out in the country, but I know you can see them from the highway," said Julie Check, who turned on the white lights that trace the roof line of her home in Eastman, Wisconsin, on Wednesday night. "Anything I can do to make people happy right now, I'm going to try to do." In Farmington, New Hampshire, a roughly five-block…

Now that the restaurant where he works full time in the Washington suburb is closed, server Gerardo Espiell, 23, plans to move back in with his mother and sister to make ends meet. Together, he’s hopeful they can make the mortgage.  “Honestly, it’s kind of crazy,” he says. “I’m very calm about everything. I’m just taking it day by day. I have some PTO (paid time off) saved up, so I’m using my PTO.”  Server Gerardo Espiell says he has no savings because all of his earnings go to rent and other living expenses. (Photo courtesy Gerardo Espiell)In San Francisco, Anita Reyes, who had her fourth child six months ago, usually waitresses at SanJalisco, the family restaurant owned by her mother, Delores. Her husband works there, too.  “It’s overwhelming,” she says. “I thought I’d come in and help her…

As the coronavirus infects more people around the world, conservationists are warning of the risk to another vulnerable species: Africa's endangered mountain gorilla.  Congo's Virunga National Park, home to about a third of the world's mountain gorillas, is barring visitors until June 1, citing "advice from scientific experts indicating that primates, including mountain gorillas, are likely susceptible to complications arising from the COVID-19 virus."  Neighboring Rwanda also is temporarily shutting down tourism and research activities in three national parks that are home to primates such as gorillas and chimpanzees.  Mountain gorillas are prone to some respiratory illnesses that afflict humans. A common cold can kill a gorilla, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature, one reason why tourists tracking gorillas are not normally permitted to get too close.  Around…

Millions of Americans are under orders Saturday from their state and local governments to stay home, venturing out only for essential needs, including trips to pharmacies, supermarkets, and gas stations, and solo exercise.California and New York residents have been ordered to stay home to help stop the spread of COVID-19, a disease that claims more victims every day. Illinois residents join in the stay-at-home strategy later Saturday.Early Saturday morning the global count of infected cases was 275,452, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.New Jersey and Oregon will likely be the next U.S. states to order their residents to stay home as part of the fight against the virus that has disrupted the very fabric of life around the world.Children no longer go to school, adults are either working from…

Cuba, whose economy depends heavily on tourism, said Friday it will not allow any foreign tourists to enter the country, beginning Tuesday.  The ban will be in effect for 30 days. The drastic measure is being initiated in an effort to prevent any more COVID-19 cases, President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on state television.  Cuba has reported at least 19 cases of the coronavirus and one death. The South Korea Centers for Disease Control reported 147 new cases of the virus Saturday.  The Asian nation has 8,799 infections and 102 deaths attributed to the virus. The coronavirus global death toll has surpassed 11,000 and infected more than 260,000 people worldwide, according to health officials.  More than 10,200 new cases were reported Friday in Europe, which World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said earlier…

The coronavirus global death toll has surpassed 11,000 and infected more than 260,000 people worldwide, according to health officials.More than 10,200 new cases were reported Friday in Europe, which World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said earlier this week had become the epicenter of the outbreak after cases began to wane in China, where the outbreak began.   There were at least 87,108 cases in Europe on Friday and 4,084 deaths. Spain reported 235 new deaths on Friday, becoming the second-hardest-hit European country after Italy. Italy’s overall death toll passed 4,000 Friday.Spanish officials warned Friday that the situation could soon overcome the country’s health care system. They announced plans to turn a Madrid conference center into a makeshift hospital. Earlier this week, a four-star inn in Madrid was converted…

The global death toll for the coronavirus pandemic as it spreads around the world has surpassed 10,000 people.  COVID-19 has infected more than 244,500 people.    In the United States, California Governor Gavin Newsom Thursday ordered the 40 million residents of the west coast state to stay home as part of the battle against the disease.   Newsom issued the mandate following the deaths of 19 people and 958 people who tested positive for the coronavirus in California.     The lockdown for the entire state followed a Los Angeles County order earlier Thursday that shut down all the county’s shopping malls, nonessential retail stores and playgrounds.    Newsom asked Congress Thursday for $1 billion in federal funds to pay for expected medical costs related to the disease.     On Wednesday, the California governor wrote to President Donald Trump asking for the Navy’s hospital ship to be deployed to the port of Los Angeles for the expected surge in infected patients    Ground zero shifts to Italy Meanwhile, Italy is now ground zero for…

Twenty thousand years ago, humans lived in grassy tundras near the Arctic Circle. Trees were scare in these cold, dry regions, so Ice Age hunters could not build campfires using wood.  Instead, these hardy humans made campfires by burning the bones of the big animals they hunted.  Few modern people know how to make a bone fire.  Recently, a Colorado archeologist and some volunteers gave it a try.  From Longmont, Colorado, Shelley Schlender reports. ...

With the coronavirus pandemic alarming the global community, South Sudan is grappling with another potentially fatal viral infection: measles. Last year, more than 4,700 people were affected due to low immunization coverage. Chika Oduah reports from the South Sudan capital, Juba. ...

Massachusetts    State officials are promising a significant increase in Massachusetts' capacity to test for the coronavirus. Massachusetts Health and Human Services Secretary Marylou Sudders said Thursday the state aims to administer 3,500 tests a day by the beginning of next week.   Gov. Charlie Baker has said expanding coronavirus testing is among his top priorities as state-run labs can only currently process about 400 tests a day. The top prosecutor for Boston and surrounding communities is seeking the release from custody of certain people who are particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus because of their health or age. Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins' office said in an emailed statement Thursday that it is working with defense attorneys to identity "individuals whose release we deem urgent and necessary for public…

The Las Vegas airport was running Thursday with reduced operations after an air traffic controller tested positive for the new coronavirus, temporarily closing the airport's control tower, the Federal Aviation Administration said.Airplanes coming into McCarran International Airport were being guided by by other nearby air traffic controllers, the FAA said in a statement.The closure of the airport's control tower because of the virus was the second of its kind in the U.S., after the FAA on Tuesday closed the control tower at Chicago's Midway International Airport after several technicians tested positive.Las Vegas visitors hoping to see the city's famous casinos on Thursday will be met with closures and barricades in front of some of them after Nevada's governor ordered gambling to stop on Wednesday, along with the closure of non-essential…

Phones have been ringing off the hook lately for Brian Edwards, a sales manager of a small medical supply company in California.  And he has to say “No” to all the people who called.Edwards used to buy tens of thousands of facemasks from China. But not in the past three months.His company, the First Choice Industrial Supply Company, has not been able to get any masks from China since the outbreak of coronavirus in late December while the demand is soaring in the U.S."You can’t get a product. You are not going to get a product for months. " said Edwards, whose company advertises itself as "If it’s something you use, it’s something we stock".Edwards said in the interview with Voice of America last Friday that he gets about 50…