25 articles from SATURDAY 16.5.2020

For all its sophistication, AI isn't fit to make life-or-death decisions | Kenan Malik

‘Following the science’ is a disingenuous policy because mathematical reckoning and human judgments are very different things Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageArtificial intelligence is searching for the drugs to combat Covid-19. It enabled the pandemic to be tracked and information about it to be synthesised. It is diagnosing patients, triaging them, and...

When Did Coronavirus Arrive in the U.S.? Here's a Review of the Evidence.

SEATTLE -- In a county north of Seattle, two people who came down with respiratory illnesses in December now have antibodies for the coronavirus. In Florida, a public health official who got sick in January believes he had COVID-19.And in California, a surprising discovery that an early-February death in San Jose was linked to the coronavirus has triggered a broader search for how that person was...

The end of plastic? New plant-based bottles will degrade in a year

Carlsberg and Coca-Cola back pioneering project to make ‘all-plant’ drinks bottlesBeer and soft drinks could soon be sipped from “all-plant” bottles under new plans to turn sustainably grown crops into plastic in partnership with major beverage makers.A biochemicals company in the Netherlands hopes to kickstart investment in a pioneering project that hopes to make plastics from plant...

Government faces legal action over refusal to publish Sage minutes

Businessman Simon Dolan says ministers must disclose science behind ‘totalitarian’ lockdownCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA millionaire businessman is launching legal action against the government for refusing to disclose minutes of the Sage meetings that informed its decision to impose the coronavirus lockdown.Simon Dolan, who owns Jota Aviation, said he...

French boy dies from coronavirus-linked Kawasaki disease

Nine-year-old from Marseille had been ‘in contact with’ virus before dying in hospitalCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageA nine-year-old boy from Marseille is reported to have died from Kawasaki disease, the mysterious inflammatory syndrome linked to coronavirus.The boy is believed to be the first victim of the disease in France and only the second in Europe after a...

Trump says US is developing a 'super duper' missile – video

Unveiling the flag for his new space force, Donald Trump said the US was developing a 'super-duper missile' to outpace its military adversaries. 'We have no choice, we have to do it with the adversaries we have out there. We have, I call it the super duper missile and I heard the other night [it’s] 17 times faster than what they have right now,' the US president said on...

Humpback Whales Have Made a Remarkable Recovery, Giving Us Hope for the Planet

In the depths of the ocean, and out of sight for most of us, there’s a quiet miracle happening. Many humpback whale populations, previously devastated by commercial whaling, are making a comeback. And no, before you ask, this has nothing to do with the coronavirus. A recent study on humpbacks that breed off the coast of Brazil and call Antarctic waters home during the summer has shown that...

Why contact tracing may be a mess in America

Dozens of states across the US are pinning their hopes on contact tracing to control the spread of the coronavirus and enable regions to reopen without sparking major resurgences of the outbreak. Alaska, California, Massachusetts, New York, and others are collectively hiring and training tens of thousands of people to interview infected patients, identify people they may have...