Science

A man who had a medical emergency and died on a United flight last week was confirmed to have had COVID-19

Boeing 737 from United Airlines at the Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ), in Dominican Republic on December 5, 2020. Photo by DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images A coroner confirmed that a man who died on a United flight after a medical emergency last week had COVID-19, The Washington Post reported.  The report said 69-year-old Isaias Hernandez died of COVID-19 and acute respiratory failure.  United previously told Business Insider they were only made aware that the man had experienced c...
Tags: Transportation, Post, Science, Washington Post, Cdc, Los Angeles, Trends, New Orleans, Boeing, United, United Airlines, Orlando, Dominican Republic, Business Insider, Daniel, Hernandez

Lawmakers are fighting over the ethics of taking a COVID-19 vaccine before healthcare workers and the elderly

US Vice President Mike Pence receives the COVID-19 vaccine on December 18, 2020. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images A handful of both Republican and Democratic members of Congress are objecting to their colleagues receiving the COVID-19 vaccine ahead of more vulnerable populations.  The attending physician of Congress and the Supreme Court, Brian Monahan, has told members of Congress that "there is no reason why you should defer receiving this vaccine."  Public health experts told Insider that...
Tags: Politics, Science, News, Minnesota, Supreme Court, Congress, Washington Post, Senate, White House, Massachusetts, US, Trends, Joe Biden, Cnn, Getty Images, Hawaii

The 10 best science and technology books of 2020

The best science books push us to think, feel, and behave differently. This list includes new releases by authors Merlin Sheldrake, Isabel Wilkerson, James Nestor, David Attenborough, and others. Besides making us more knowledgeable, these books inspire curiosity, passion, and empathy for the universe in and around us. The best science books have the power to shift perspectives, pushing us to think differently and even behave differently. The following titles push boundaries by making novel con...
Tags: Books, Science, Technology, Germany, India, America, Reading, Artificial Intelligence, Nature, United States, New Jersey, Innovation, Nazi, Ai, David Attenborough, Oprah

UK reports another 691 Covid deaths – as it happened

Anthony Fauci ‘extremely confident’ in vaccine; BioNTech’s CEO says tests being run on mutant strain. This blog is now closed. Follow our new blog belowCoronavirus live updates 11.59pm GMT We are closing this live blog now, but you can stay up to date with the latest on our new global blog, which you can find below. Related: Coronavirus live news: US cases increase 14% in one week, France to reopen UK border 11.40pm GMT Tesco has introduced buying limits on items including toilet rol...
Tags: Europe, UK, Science, France, Africa, US, Tesco, UK News, World news, Australia news, US news, Asia Pacific, South Africa, Infectious Diseases, Anthony Fauci, Coronavirus

Global Law Enforcement Seizes VPN Network Favored By Cybercriminals

The FBI joined with other law enforcement agencies from around the world on Tuesday to take down the web domains and server infrastructure of three VPN services, stymying efforts by cybercriminals who had long favored them for their “bulletproof hosting” services.Read more...
Tags: Science, Server, Fbi, Vpn, Hosting, Hosts, VPN services, Cybercriminals, Law Enforcement Agencies, Web Domains

The ACLU Is Suing For Info On The FBI's Encryption Breaking Capabilities

The American Civil Liberties Union announced on Tuesday that it plans to sue for information related to the FBI’s shadowy and relatively new ability to break into encrypted devices at will.Read more...
Tags: Lawsuit, Science, Government, Information, Fbi, Devices, Software, Aclu, American Civil Liberties Union, Electronic Device Analysis Unit, Encryption Backdoors

Photos reveal Jupiter and Saturn aligned in the sky as a 'Christmas star' that hadn't been seen for 800 years

Saturn (above) and Jupiter (below) in the sky above a church in New York City. Gary Hershorn Photographers from around the world captured Jupiter and Saturn aligning almost perfectly in the night sky this week. Monday was the closest the two planets have appeared in 800 years — the last time they were both this close and visible was in 1226. The two planets move into alignment, or conjunction, every 20 years. But this year they were close enough to look like a "double planet." Visit Busine...
Tags: Photos, Space, Science, News, Australia, Youtube, Washington, New York City, Trends, Iran, Nasa, Earth, Planets, Saturn, Jupiter, Jet Propulsion Laboratory

DOJ Accuses Walmart of Perpetuating the Opioid Crisis by Looking the Other Way

In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, the Department of Justice accused Walmart of being a reckless drug peddler who put profits over the nation’s health and said the retail giant was a key player in the opioid crisis that resulted in 50,000 overdoses in 2019 alone. Read more...
Tags: Lawsuit, Science, Walmart, Department Of Justice, Doj, William Barr, Opioid Crisis, Sackler Family

Amazon Lets Shoppers Donate to Anti-Abortion and Conversion Therapy Groups

AmazonSmile, which launched in 2013, would seem to be one of the mega-corporation’s less overtly awful functions: it’s a simple service that adds a surcharge to Amazon purchases and donates it to a participating charity of a shopper’s choice. However, UK-based media organization openDemocracy has found among those…Read more...
Tags: Amazon, UK, Science, AmazonSmile

Pfizer close to federal deal that could provide 'at least tens of millions' more COVID vaccine doses in 2021

The administration of outgoing U.S. President Donald Trump is close to a deal with Pfizer that could provide tens of millions more doses of the coronavirus vaccine to Americans in 2021, the NYT reports. Pfizer and Moderna are the two pharmaceutical companies whose COVID vaccines have been approved for accelerated use by the U.S. — Read the rest
Tags: Post, Science, News, Medicine, Public Health, Pfizer, Vaccine, Vaccines, Donald Trump, Moderna, Coronavirus, COVID-19, COVID, Coronavirus Vaccine, Covid Vaccine

New Marvel Sets Coming to Unmatched and Gen Con Makes 2021 Plans in the Latest Gaming News

Welcome back to , io9's column all about board games and tabletop roleplaying games. ‘Tis the holiday season, and with it comes an exciting set of Unmatched Marvel games, a brand-new Root expansion, and some possibly good news about Gen Con 2021.Read more...
Tags: Star Wars, Science, Marvel, Disney, Board Games, Conventions, RPG, Tabletop Games, Gen Con, Gaming Shelf, Star Wars Legion, Unmatched, Io9 Features

Coronavirus live news: Biden warns 'darkest days' ahead for US; UK reports another 691 deaths

Latest updates: Anthony Fauci ‘extremely confident’ in vaccine; BioNTech’s CEO says tests being run on mutant strain; Ireland to tighten restrictions from Christmas Eve US Congress passes $900bn Covid-19 aid billCovid cases recorded in Antarctica – reportsTaiwan confirms first local case in more than 250 daysBiden receives vaccine live on TV 10.09pm GMT Brazil’s health ministry expects to have at least 150m doses of vaccines against Covid-19 available in the first half of 2021, with a third ...
Tags: Europe, UK, Science, Congress, China, Africa, US, UK News, World news, Australia news, US news, Asia Pacific, Ireland, South Africa, Infectious Diseases, Antarctica

Coronavirus live news: Biden says 'darkest days' ahead; AstraZeneca says vaccine should work against variant

Latest updates: Anthony Fauci ‘extremely confident’ in vaccine; BioNTech’s CEO says tests being run on mutant strain; Ireland to tighten restrictions from Christmas Eve US Congress passes $900bn Covid-19 aid billCovid cases recorded in Antarctica – reportsTaiwan confirms first local case in more than 250 daysBiden receives vaccine live on TV 9.21pm GMT Late on Monday night, Congress approved a $900bn stimulus package which will deliver financial aid to millions of families and businesses fac...
Tags: Europe, Science, Congress, Africa, US, UK News, World news, Australia news, Joe Biden, US news, Asia Pacific, Ireland, South Africa, Infectious Diseases, Antarctica, Astrazeneca

The Mandalorian Isn't the Only Star Wars Finale This Month

One of the best Star Wars shows is ending its second season this week. A show filled with heart, passion, and incredible stories that illustrate why the franchise means so much to so many. A show made by Star Wars fans, for Star Wars fans, aiming to gives us the kind of feels the franchise has been delivering since…Read more...
Tags: Star Wars, Science, Interview, Documentary, Disney, Fans, Lucasfilm, Nostalgia, Fandom, Jordan Hembrough, Io9 Features, Our Star Wars Stories

Now You Too Can Look Like a Fool While Trying to Solve the AR New York Times Crossword Puzzle

For 25 years, I’ve held a long, deep-seated grudge against the New York Times Crossword puzzle. It started when a family friend gifted me a daily calendar of NYT Crossword puzzles because I was a “smart kid.” I don’t know what possessed this woman to think a 7-year-old would enjoy the NYT Crossword—a puzzle famed for…Read more...
Tags: Science, Instagram, Augmented Reality, Nytimes, Crossword Puzzles, I Hate Everything, New York Times Crossword, AR New York Times Crossword Puzzle

The 10 Best Deals of December 22, 2020

Tuesday’s Best Deals | Kinja DealsRead more...
Tags: Deals, Kinja Deals, Science

2020 Has So Broken Me That This KFC-Branded Console Is Giving Me Joy

It only took 15 years after the now-infamous World of Warcraft raid for someone to Frankenstein a PC and a fried chicken warmer together, but if anyone was going to do it, I’m glad it was KFC. Bless Colonel Sanders—the KFConsole is going to be an actual thing!Read more...
Tags: Gadgets, Science, Asus, Seagate, Intel, Kfc, World of Warcraft, Sanders, Consumer Tech, Frankenstein, Gaming Consoles, CoolerMaster, Kfconsole, At Least I Have Chicken

The coronavirus was circulating in Europe and China months before officials identified the outbreak in Wuhan, studies show

A man walks past a billboard that reads "All together, without fear," in Naples, Italy, March 22, 2020. Carlo Hermann /AFP/Getty December 31 marks the anniversary of the first confirmed coronavirus cases in Wuhan. But a growing body of evidence suggest the virus was circulating in China and some European countries months before that. In the US, meanwhile, a study found that some people had coronavirus antibodies in December 2019. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Almost e...
Tags: Health, Europe, Science, Milan, News, Washington, France, China, US, Trends, Spain, Genetics, Harvard University, Paris, Italy, Middle East

Apple's M1 MacBook Pro Is Compelling Enough to Make a PC Fan Think About Switching

It’s a good time to be a Mac user. The MacBook Air, Mac Mini, and MacBook Pro all have a stellar new processor that’s pretty damn zippy with native ARM apps for the same price as their entry-level Intel predecessors. I do all my work and play on PC, but Apple’s M1 processor has me wondering if I really need a Windows…Read more...
Tags: Reviews, Apple, Science, Intel, Macbook Pro, Consumer Tech, Macbooks, MacBook Air Mac Mini, Apple Silicon, Apple M1

The Butt Pajamas Will Follow You Forever

If you’re reading this, you might have read the juicy piece that Elle dropped this weekend chronicling how a former Bloomberg reporter torched her entire career after falling for the longtime subject of her reporting—professional-tool-turned-convicted-securities-fraudster Martin Shkreli. And if you know about that…Read more...
Tags: Google, Science, Privacy, Advertising, Bloomberg, Elle, Ad Tech, Martin Shkreli, Backends

Running out of space, hospitals in California are setting up tents and trailers to take in patients

Engineers and volunteers stand outside a mobile field hospital at UCI Medical Center, Monday, Dec. 21, 2020, in Orange, Calif. Photo/Jae C. Hong With an overflow of patients with COVID-19, California hospitals are hastily building field hospitals outside their facilities. According to the COVID Tracking Project, California has seen a 19.4% increase in confirmed cases over the past week — Monday alone recorded more than 37,000 new cases. KCAL reported that Fountain Valley Regional Hospital ...
Tags: Science, News, California, US, Trends, Hospital, Los Angeles Times, Southern California, UCI, San Joaquin Valley, UC Irvine, KCAL, California Department of Public Health, Fresno County, UCI Medical Center, AP Photo Jeff Chiu Earlier

10 Disney+ Movies That'll Make You Feel Great

Holidays mean happiness. Whether that’s a chance to laugh with your friends and family in a normal year, or just be as safe and healthy as you can in 2020, everyone can use a little extra joy as we reach the end of any year. Movies can absolutely help with that, but sometimes it’s hard to pick one that hits the right…Read more...
Tags: Star Wars, Science, Holidays, Planes, Streaming, Guardians Of The Galaxy, The Princess Bride, The Muppets, Return Of The Jedi, Zootopia, Moana, Ratatouille, Disney Movies, The Muppet Christmas Carol, Disney Plus, Watch It Nerds

Congress to Employers: You Can Go Back to Not Giving Paid Leave to Covid-Positive Staff

Here’s a big fuck you from Congress to everyone else: The coronavirus relief bill passed this week removes a requirement that employers provide at least two weeks of paid sick leave at full salary if their employees contract the coronavirus.Read more...
Tags: Health, Politics, Science, Medicine, Congress, Healthcare, Pandemic, Paid Sick Leave, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Sars Cov 2, Contagious Presenteeism

I'm a doctor who tried to plan an extremely safe Thanksgiving for 3 people. My son got COVID-19 anyway - it wasn't worth the scare it put us through.

The pandemic has changed a lot of families' in-person holiday plans. skynesher/Getty Images Dr. Robin Schoenthaler has been a long-time radiation oncologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. She and her two sons recently got together for what they hoped was a quick, science-based, "as-safe-as-we-can-make-it" Thanksgiving dinner. A couple of days later, one of her sons tested positive for COVID-19. "Was it worth all the 4 a.m. wake-ups, the test-result anxiety, the constant t...
Tags: Facebook, Europe, Science, News, Thanksgiving, Holidays, China, Boston, Massachusetts, Trends, Healthcare, Nordic, Massachusetts General Hospital, Cooper, The Boston Globe, MacKenzie

The 11 most mind-blowing, awe-inspiring health discoveries and innovations of 2020

United Parcel Service President of Global Healthcare, Wesley Wheeler, holds up a sample of the vial that will be used to transport the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at a Senate Transportation subcommittee hybrid hearing on December 10, 2020, in Washington, DC. Samuel Corum / AFP via Getty Images In 2020, scientists learned a lot about the coronavirus, developing several impressive new vaccines. Striking innovations included a new treatment for peanut allergies, and a non-hormonal gel birth contr...
Tags: Science, Cdc, Washington, White House, Boston, US, Trends, Features, Public Health, Healthcare, Food And Drug Administration, Who, Fda, Pfizer, Donald Trump, Anthony Fauci

3 COVID-19 breakthroughs Bill Gates says 'will make 2021 better than 2020'

Chesnot/Getty Images In his end-of-year blog post, Bill Gates says the challenges we've faced in 2020 have bred innovations and collaborations that will support a brighter global future.  Additional effective vaccines, better coronavirus tests, and an ability to tackle climate change are among the factors that will make 2021 will be better than 2020, Gates wrote.  Read the full post here.  Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. A pessimist would say next year will be better t...
Tags: Science, Microsoft, Savings, US, Trends, Bill Gates, Astrazeneca, Pfizer, Vaccine, Honda, Gates, Moderna, Serum Institute of India, Coronavirus, COVID, Coronavirus Vaccine

Ebola Species Thought to Be Harmless to Humans Can Sicken Pigs, Raising Alarm Bells

U.S. government scientists have shown in the lab, for the first time, that pigs can become severely sick from a particular species of the Ebola virus, called Reston ebolavirus (RESTV). The virus is known for being the only species of Ebola not to sicken people so far. But the discovery suggests that it can still pose…Read more...
Tags: Ebola, Science, Infectious Diseases, Pigs, RESTON, Pandemic

The 11 most mind-blowing health discoveries and innovations of 2020

United Parcel Service President of Global Healthcare, Wesley Wheeler, holds up a sample of the vial that will be used to transport the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at a Senate Transportation subcommittee hybrid hearing on December 10, 2020, in Washington, DC. Samuel Corum / AFP via Getty Images In 2020, scientists learned a lot about the coronavirus, developing several impressive new vaccines. Striking innovations included a new treatment for peanut allergies, and a non-hormonal gel birth contr...
Tags: Science, Cdc, Washington, White House, Boston, US, Trends, Features, Public Health, Healthcare, Food And Drug Administration, Who, Fda, Pfizer, Donald Trump, Anthony Fauci

How Smartwatches, Workout Apps, and Connected Bikes Dominated 2020

Back in January 2019, as I huffed and puffed on the Peloton Tread (now Tread+), I thought to myself, “This thing is really nice, but I don’t know in what world the average person would fork over $4,000 for this.”Read more...
Tags: Science, Fitness, Smartwatches, Year In Review, Strava, Consumer Tech, Peloton, Fitness Tech, Peloton Tread now Tread

Antarctica Got the 'Rona

The virus responsible for covid-19, SARS-CoV-2, has now reached all seven continents on Earth, with Antarctica reporting its first batch of cases.Read more...
Tags: Science, Earth, Infectious Diseases, Antarctica, Pandemics, Epidemiology, Rona, Coronavirus, Covid 19