Author: Dmedia

U.S. President Joe Biden sympathized with coronavirus-weary Americans Thursday while ramping up the government’s effort to combat the surge of the omicron variant across the country. “I know we’re all frustrated as we begin the new year,” Biden said in a short White House speech.…

A new Hong Kong mandate that restaurants and other establishments require use of an app aimed at recording people’s locations and telling them if they have been near a COVID-19 patient has spurred opposition from the city’s pro-democracy voices. The LeaveHomeSafe app scans a two-dimensional QR…

The risk of dying from cancer in the United States has fallen by nearly a third in three decades, thanks to earlier diagnoses, better treatments and less smoking, an analysis said Wednesday.  The cancer death rate for men and women fell 32% from its peak…

The White House COVID-19 response team on Wednesday reminded Americans of the continued need to slow the omicron variant’s spread despite its decreased severity and announced new efforts to help keep schools open. As the omicron variant sweeps across the U.S., Dr. Rochelle Walensky emphasized…

From a seaside perch overlooking the hustle and bustle of ships coming and going at Port Canaveral on Florida’s east coast, Dale Ketcham reflects on decades of history with nostalgia.   “I moved here and learned how to walk on Cocoa Beach three years before…

The common cold can provide some protection from COVID-19, according to new research led by Imperial College London, which says the findings provide a blueprint for future vaccines that could offer immunity to all variants of the coronavirus.  Since the start of the pandemic, scientists…

U.S adults usually catch one or two common colds a year. They’re usually little more than an annoyance, but new research suggests they may offer some protection from a virus that’s much more dangerous. Henry Ridgwell reports from London. ...

Space launches are once again a regular feature on the “Space Coast” of Florida, thanks to a boom in commercial space transportation and a NASA initiative to return astronauts to the moon, with the eventual goal of reaching Mars. As VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports, it’s…

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans have forgotten about that age-old winter sickness: the flu. But it is flu season, and some unlucky people are getting hit with both illnesses. Angelina Bagdasaryan has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. Camera - Vazgen Varzhabetian. ...

A snowy owl apparently touring iconic buildings of the nation's capital is captivating birdwatchers who manage to get a glimpse of the rare, resplendent visitor from the Arctic. Far from its summer breeding grounds in Canada, the snowy owl was first seen on January 3,…

Starting Saturday, private health insurers will be required to cover as many as eight home COVID-19 tests per month for people on their plans. The Biden administration announced the change Monday as it looks to lower costs and make testing for the virus more convenient…

In a medical first, doctors transplanted a pig heart into a patient in a last-ditch effort to save his life. A Maryland hospital said Monday that the patient is doing well three days after the highly experimental surgery.  While it's too soon to know if…

Satellite measurements show that 2021 was one of the warmest years on record, with the past seven years being the hottest period recorded globally. The European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said Monday that last year was the fifth-warmest year according to records dating…

India began administering booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines to vulnerable groups on Monday, as infections surge to their highest levels in seven months fueled by the omicron variant and crowded cities like New Delhi and Mumbai reimpose restrictions to battle the third wave of the…

Despite having the highest number of COVID infections in Africa, nearly two years into the pandemic, fewer than half of South African adults have been vaccinated. The government has been reluctant to order vaccine mandates, but private companies are to encouraging people to get the…

International business groups are urging Hong Kong to restart international flights after a ratings group warned the travel restrictions, imposed last week because of COVID-19 outbreaks, could have dire effects on the territory’s economy. Fitch Ratings said, “A new wave of restrictions on various social…

At the start of 2022 most measures show the U.S. economy is booming, with an unemployment rate that is approaching record lows and a demand for goods that has imports from the rest of the world surging. On Friday, the Labor Department announced that the…

The European Union is under increasing pressure to further ease rules on airport take-off and landing slots to cut the number of "ghost flights" airlines are running to retain them. Carriers say the requirement for them to use 50% of their slots -- down from…

Ambulances in Kansas speed toward hospitals then suddenly change direction because hospitals are full. Employee shortages in New York City cause delays in trash and subway services and diminish the ranks of firefighters and emergency workers. Airport officials shut down security checkpoints at the biggest…

Australia’s New South Wales state reported 16 deaths from COVID-19 Sunday, its deadliest day in the two-year pandemic. The state, Australia’s most populous, already has 200,000 people in isolation, and reported more than 30,000 new cases. On Sunday, New South Wales Health issued a statement…

NASA's new space telescope opened its huge, gold-plated, flower-shaped mirror Saturday, the final step in the observatory's dramatic unfurling.   The last portion of the 6.5-meter (21-foot) mirror swung into place at flight controllers' command, completing the unfolding of the James Webb Space Telescope. "I'm…

Novak Djokovic's legal challenge to the Australian government's decision to cancel his visa on arrival this week says a certified COVID-19 infection in December meant he qualified for a medical exemption to the county's vaccination requirements. A 35-page document lodged in the Federal Circuit and…

The top men's tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, spent Orthodox Christmas in an immigration detention hotel in Australia on Friday as he sought to fend off deportation over the country's COVID-19 rules and compete in the Australian Open. Djokovic received calls from his…

The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled Friday to hear oral arguments against two of President Joe Biden’s administration’s COVID-19 vaccine policies issued by government agencies to combat the deadly coronavirus. The policies “are critical to our nation’s COVID-19 response,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki…

Midday queues snake out to the street in an upmarket Shanghai neighborhood, but it's not lunch at the city's hottest restaurant that people are lining up for -- it's cosmetic "micro-procedures", which are surging in popularity in China.     The "lunchtime facelift" and other "medical aesthetics"…

Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, six former health advisers for U.S. President Joe Biden are urging a different approach to fighting it. Writing Thursday in The Journal of the American Medical Association, the advisers wrote three articles urging Americans to learn to live…

A team of scientists is sailing to "the place in the world that's the hardest to get to" so they can better figure out how much and how fast seas will rise because of global warming eating away at Antarctica's ice.  Thirty-two scientists on Thursday…

After launching its next-generation space telescope, NASA scientists mark major milestones in its progress.  Plus, a new spaceplane arrives at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.  VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us The Week in Space. Camera: YouTube NASA/ REUTERS/ SIERRA SPACE  Produced by: Arash…