Science & Technology

• Study: British COVID Variant Not as Severe as Feared
  
  A highly contagious variant of COVID-19 first identified in Britain does not cause more severe disease in hospitalized patients, according to a new study published in the medical journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases on Monday.
• WH Convening Summit With Top Execs on Chip Shortage
  
  Almost 20 major companies worried about a global semiconductor chip shortage that has roiled the automotive industry will send senior executives to a White House summit Monday, a senior official said on Friday. Reuters reported earlier the summit is expected to include...
• COVID Patient Gets Lung Transplant From Living Donors
  
  Doctors in Japan announced Thursday they have successfully performed the world's first transplant of lung tissue from living donors to a patient with severe lung damage from COVID-19.
• Scientists: Toronto's Age-Based Vaccination Plan Flawed
  
  Even after Toronto administered over a half a million COVID-19 vaccinations to front-line healthcare workers and older residents of the city, infections are still spiraling "out of control" according to members of the Canadian COVID-19 Science Advisory Table.
• JAMA Pediatrics Study: Early Adolescent Drug Screening Needed
  
  A new study published by JAMA Pediatrics on March 29, 2021, has taken a hard look at substance use disorder "SUD" as it relates to the age of the user's first drug or substance initiation....
• The Best COVID-19 Treatments Available Today
  
  There is still a long way to go before we see the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the good news is we now have better treatments for the disease.
• NASA Gives All Clear: Earth Safe From Asteroid for 100 Years
  
  NASA announced this week that new telescope observations have ruled out any chance of Apophis smacking Earth in 2068...
• Report: Pregnant Women Show Strong Immune Response to COVID-19 Vaccines
  
  A new report discovered that pregnant and breastfeeding women enjoy a robust immune response to COVID-19 vaccines.
• GSK Fires Former Chief of Operation Warp Speed for 'Substantiated' Harassment Claims
  
  Moncef Slaoui, the former chief scientist for Operation Warp Speed, has been fired as chairman of the board of Galvani Bioelectronics after sexual harassment claims against him were "substantiated," according to CNBC...
• Danish Researchers Find COVID-19 Reinfections Rare
  
  Danish researchers have found the vast majority of people infected with COVID-19 have immunity against reinfection for 6 months, reducing the chances by about 80% for those under the age of 65, according to a new study.
• Study: Low-Dose Aspirin May Reduce Risk of ICU, Death in COVID Patients
  
  Low-dose aspirin might help protect the lungs and keep COVID-19 patients out of ICUs. The inexpensive drug can also reduce the risk of death, said researchers at George Washington University, according to a study released Wednesday.
• Worrisome Skin Rashes Could Signal COVID-19
  
  At the beginning of the pandemic, experts warned the 3 main symptoms of COVID-19 were fever, shortness of breath, and coughing. But as the disease unfolded, insidious and strange new side effects arose, including new loss of taste or smell, diarrhea, and headache.
• Dorian, Laura, Eta, Iota Retired as Hurricane Names
  
  The Atlantic hurricane names Dorian, Laura, Eta, and Iota are being retired due to the trail of death and destruction left in their wake, the U.N.'s World Meteorological Organization said Wednesday.
• Scientists Propose Building Doomsday Vault on Moon
  
  Preparing for a doomsday scenario that could destroy the Earth, scientists from the University of Arizona have proposed building an underground ark hidden in a network of tubes on the Moon that could provide a genetic backup for the planet, CNN reported.
• US Astronaut Launching Next Month May Spend Year in Space
  
  NASA may soon chalk up another one-year space mission thanks to an out-of-this-world Russian movie-making deal.Astronaut Mark Vande Hei learned just last week that he'll launch April 9 on a Russian rocket to the International Space Station. The former station resident...
• Tech War With News Media Flares in US With New Congress Push
  
  The battle between news publishers and Alphabet Inc.'s Google and Facebook Inc. that flared up in Australia recently is coming to the U.S. Lawmakers re-introduced legislation Wednesday to allow news organizations to band together to negotiate with the technology companies...
• Merck Oral COVID Treatment Yields Promising Trial Data
  
  German pharmaceutical giant Merck and a US partner reported promising results Saturday in trials of a drug administered orally to fight COVID-19, saying it helps reduce patients' viral load.
• NASA's New Mars Rover Hits Dusty Red Road, 1st Trip 21 Feet
  
  NASA's newest Mars rover hit the dusty red road this week, putting 21 feet on the odometer in its first test drive.The Perseverance rover ventured from its landing position Thursday, two weeks after setting down on the red planet to seek signs of past life. The roundabout,...
• The COVID-19 Baby Boom Is a Baby Bust
  
  Many people expected a baby boom during the intimacy of widespread COVID-19 lockdowns, but a year later, statistics show just the opposite happened.
• Spacewalking Astronauts Prep Station for New Solar Wings
  
  Spacewalking astronauts ventured out Sunday to install support frames for new, high-efficiency solar panels arriving at the International Space Station later this year.NASA's Kate Rubins and Victor Glover emerged from the orbiting lab lugging 8-foot (2.5-meter) duffle-style...
• Expert Warns of Possible Fertility Crisis Due to Falling Sperm Counts
  
  Falling sperm counts and changes to reproductive development could lead to a fertility crisis that would threaten the future of the human race, according to Mt. Sinai Medical School epidemiologist Shanna Swan. Swan, who co-authored a 2017 study that found the total sperm...
• FDA Requires More Data on Merck's COVID-19 Drug
  
  Merck & Co said Thursday that U.S. regulators have asked for additional data beyond the Phase III study already conducted in order to support potential emergency use authorization of its experimental COVID-19 drug MK-7110.
• Side Effect From COVID-19 Vaccines Affects Mammograms
  
  Doctors are noticing an uptick of abnormal mammograms as more people get their COVID-19 vaccine.
• 1st Clone of US Endangered Species, a Ferret, Announced
  
  Scientists have cloned the first U.S. endangered species, a black-footed ferret duplicated from the genes of an animal that died over 30 years ago. The slinky predator named Elizabeth Ann, born Dec. 10 and announced Thursday, is cute as a button. But watch out - unlike the...
• Thank Your Neanderthal Ancestors If You Survived COVID-19
  
  People who are asymptomatic with COVID-19 or have mild side effects might be blessed by a protective genetic mutation that goes all the way back to Neanderthal predecessors.

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