Technology

Outgoing CDC director says the US is not prepared for the next pandemic because parts of the public health system still use 'old fax machines'

Tue, 2023-06-27 17:44 — mike kraft

Outgoing CDC director says the US is not prepared for the next pandemic because parts of the public health system still use 'old fax machines' Outgoing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky warned about what needs to be done to prepare. Yahoo News

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COVID-related phone scams are once again on the rise in the U.S.

Thu, 2023-06-22 17:39 — mike kraft

Three years after a pandemic shut down the country, COVID-related phone scams are once again on the rise The COVID-related phone scams include defrauding Medicare and the IRS. Yahoo News

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COVID-related phone scams are spiking again several years after the COVID-19 pandemic led much of the United States to shut down for a lengthy period, according to a new report from robocall-blocking company Hiya.

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AI photos can accurately diagnose rashes such as mpox-- research

Wed, 2023-06-14 17:21 — mike kraft

AI can accurately diagnose mpox using photos of rash, researchers say Scientists used artificial intelligence to diagnose mpox using photos of skin lesions with an accuracy up to 99.5%. CIDRAP

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Climate change: More companies setting ‘net-zero’ climate targets, but few have credible plans -- report

Mon, 2023-06-12 10:24 — mike kraft

More companies setting 'net-zero' climate targets, but few have credible plans, report says A growing number of companies are pledging to cut their greenhouse gas emissions to “net zero” to curb climate change, but a report says the goal is rarely supported by a credible plan. According to the report published Monday, the number of publicly listed corporations aiming for net zero increased from 417 to 929 since late 2020. Researchers say they found that less than 5% of the companies they examined met basic credibility criteria. They say companies often fail to include the emissions caused by their products in their emission tallies.

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EU lawmakers reach deals on emissions trading, carbon tax

Tue, 2023-04-18 09:39 — mike kraft

EU lawmakers adopt deals on emissions trading, carbon tax European Union lawmakers have adopted on Tuesday key pieces of a package designed to achieve the EU’s climate goals of cutting emissions of the gases that cause global warming by 55% over this decade. European Parliament members approved deals to reform the 27-nation bloc’s emissions trading system and to create a new hardship fund for vulnerable households and small businesses affected by higher fuel costs arising from the new measures. The emissions trading system covers about 40% of the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions.

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Covid Exposure Apps Are Headed for Extinction on May 11

Mon, 2023-04-17 09:58 — mike kraft

Covid Exposure Apps Are Headed for a Mass Extinction Event The US government will pull the plug on the servers powering the nation’s Covid notifications on May 11. States aren’t rushing to boot up replacements. Paresh Dave WIRED

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Opinon : The U.S. needs stronger measures to deal with extreme heat problems

Tue, 2023-04-11 20:10 — mike kraft

Current heat warning systems are woefully inadequate in an age of climate change Currently, weather warnings for heat are issued based on the probability and magnitude of the heat event itself, rather than health outcomes. Torie Bosch STAT

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Despite these very real consequences of extreme heat, the U.S. has lagged behind other nations in both recognizing the risk of extreme heat and organizing the necessary resources and capacity to address it.

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New frequency comb breathalyzer detects COVID-19 with excellent accuracy

Fri, 2023-04-07 17:41 — mike kraft

New frequency comb breathalyzer detects COVID-19 with excellent accuracy JILA researchers have upgraded a breathalyzer based on Nobel Prize-winning frequency-comb technology and combined it with machine learning to detect SARS-CoV-2 infection with excellent accuracy in 170 ... Science X

...Their achievement represents the first real-world test of the technology's capability to diagnose disease in exhaled human breath. Their study on this topic was published in the Journal of Breath Research.

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Many U.S public schools failed to improve ventilation despite federal Covid related funding--CDC study

Fri, 2023-04-07 15:59 — mike kraft

Ventilation Improvements Among K–12 Public School Districts — United States, August–December 2022 -- CDC study

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Many public school districts have not taken steps to improve school building ventilation. Equitable access and support might be needed to assist school districts in their efforts to prevent respiratory infections through ventilation improvements.

Improving ventilation has been one of several COVID-19 prevention strategies implemented by kindergarten through grade 12 (K–12) schools to stay open for safe in-person learning. Because transmission of SARS-CoV-2 occurs through inhalation of infectious viral particles, it is important to reduce the concentration of and exposure time to infectious aerosols (1–3). CDC examined reported ventilation improvement strategies among U.S. K–12 public school districts using telephone survey data collected during August–December 2022....

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