A group of 36 volunteers have completed the first human challenge study of COVID-19, after being given the virus and then monitored to examine what happened to them after infection, reports Medical Xpress.
Researchers from the Imperial College of London learned a great deal about the virus during the initial study period in March 2021 and in follow-up assessments, including the fact that a tiny 10-micron droplet from a cough or sneeze can make someone...
Canada's top court has imposed a $9.1-million CDN fine on a man behind one of the country's stickiest crimes – the theft of 3,000 tonnes of maple syrup.
The so-called Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist saw the loss of nearly $18 million worth of syrup from the country's reserves by a group of thieves.
The court ordered Richard Vallières, a "major player" in the scheme, to pay a penalty or face six years in prison.
Vallières was...
Russia has told "unfriendly" foreign countries they must start paying for gas in roubles, or it will cut supplies.
Vladimir Putin has signed a decree stating buyers "must open rouble accounts in Russian banks" from Friday, the BBC reports
"Nobody sells us anything for free, and we are not going to do charity either – that is, existing contracts will be stopped," the Russian president said.
Putin's demand is being seen as an attempt to boost the...
The UN Population Fund says new research shows that nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide – 121 million annually – are unintended, which it calls "a neglected crisis."
In its annual State of World Population Report 2022 released Wednesday, the fund said over 60% of unintended pregnancies end in abortion, and an estimated 45% of abortions are unsafe, causing 5% to 13% of maternal deaths, reports Medical Xpress.
"This report is a wakeup call," said Dr. Natalia Kanem, executive...
Nasa astronaut Mark Vande Hei and Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Pyotr Dubrov shared a capsule on their flight back to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS).
Vande Hei logged a US space-endurance record of 355 consecutive days in orbit as he finished his second ISS mission.
It was Dubrov's first space flight, while Shkaplerov was ending his rotation as the latest ISS commander, accumulating a total of 708 days in space.
There has been concern...
Thousands, if not millions, of people could have lost money in the second largest crypto hack in history.
Ronin Network, a key platform powering the popular mobile game Axie Infinity, has had $615 million stolen.
In the game, players fight cartoon pets called Axies to earn cryptocurrency. The game is hugely popular with millions of players around the world hoping to win cryptocurrency and collect the game's non-fungible tokens (NFTs). It is particularly big in the Philippines, where...
President Joe Biden has urged U.S. companies to "harden your cyber defences immediately" amid a growing risk of Russian cyberattacks. For many, that won't be easy.
The war for talent has been well-telegraphed throughout the country, but it's particularly acute in cybersecurity. And it's only worsened as competition in the broader labour market has heated up, heightening both companies' potential vulnerability to hackers and the urgency to boost the workforce, reports Bloomberg News.
About one million people...
University of Liverpool scientists have taken a significant step toward unlocking the medical potential of a new class of potent antibiotic capable of killing "superbugs" including MRSA without detectable resistance.
The researchers have developed simplified synthetic versions of the molecule teixobactin, used by producer bacteria to kill other bacteria in soil.
They have developed and tested a unique library of synthetic versions of the "game changing" antibiotic, optimizing key features of the drug to enhance its efficacy...
A refinement to a space weather model developed by a center director at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) could help scientists check out which planets outside our solar system are likely to have someone home.
Exoplanets are what planets are called when they orbit stars outside our own solar system, and the effort to winnow out those that could harbour life has been intensifying.
Now at the Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research...
Shanghai will launch a phased lockdown with intent to curb an Omicron-fuelled COVID-19 outbreak that has hit China with its highest caseloads since the early days of the pandemic, the city government said Sunday.
China's biggest city will lock down its eastern half from Monday until Friday, officials said, followed by a similar lockdown of its western side beginning April 1.
The metropolis of 25 million has in recent days become the leading hotspot in a...
