135 articles from TUESDAY 26.10.2021

Why the trial data supports covid-19 vaccines for children

On Tuesday, a panel of experts at the FDA will meet to discuss whether Pfizer’s covid vaccine should be approved for 5-to-11-year-olds in the US. If that group says yes, the decision will go to the CDC’s immunization advisory board, known as ACIP, which meets next week. According to Anthony Fauci, if both those groups give the thumbs up, vaccinations for millions of children could begin in...

How AI could solve supply chain shortages and save Christmas

With the supply-chain disruptions of the past two years showing no signs of easing anytime soon, businesses are turning to a new generation of AI-powered simulations called digital twins to help them get goods and services to customers on time. These tools not only predict disruptions down the line, but suggest what to do about it. Desperate companies struggling with the collapse of just-in-time...

The psychology of masks: why have so many people stopped covering their faces?

In England, masks are expected and recommended in crowded and enclosed spaces – but not legally required. Many have abandoned them altogether. What would convince everyone to put them back on?Dave stopped wearing his face mask “the second I didn’t have to. I grudgingly wore it, because it was the right thing to do and because it was mandatory,” says the teacher from East Sussex. “But I...

Managing water resources in a low-to-no-snow future

Mountain snowpacks around the world are on the decline, and if the planet continues to warm, climate models forecast that snowpacks could shrink dramatically and possibly even disappear altogether on certain mountains, including in the western United States, at some point in the next century. A new study led by researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) analyzes the likely...

Covid-19: with cases on the rise, will ‘plan B’ be enough in England? – podcast

Many experts have called for the reintroduction of some public health measures to reduce transmission rates. However, the government has repeatedly said it is not yet bringing in its so-called ‘plan B’ for England. Madeleine Finlay speaks to science correspondent Nicola Davis about what ‘plan B’ could entail and whether it would help us avoid the need for more stringent and longer-lasting...

Poll: Majority in US concerned about climate

President Joe Biden heads to a vital U.N. climate summit at a time when a majority of Americans regard the deteriorating climate as a problem of high importance to them, an increase from just a few years ago.

'Nanozyme' therapy prevents harmful dental plaque build-up

A growing body of evidence points to a link between iron-deficiency anemia and severe tooth decay. Whether the connection is correlative or causative is unknown, though both conditions are associated with poor diets and are more common in people living in impoverished environments and with underlying medical conditions.

Waters off French coast in winter may be a deadly trap for small, foraging turtles

The documented habitat boundaries of the loggerhead, Kemp's ridley and green turtles are questioned by a new study suggesting that stranded turtles rescued from European French Atlantic and Channel waters could be visiting the area to forage for food. Published in Frontiers in Marine Science, satellite tracking data reveals that while some turtles may be able to return home, after their...

Why people believe Covid conspiracy theories: could folklore hold the answer?

Researchers use AI – and witchcraft folklore – to map the coronavirus conspiracy theories that have sprung upResearchers have mapped the web of connections underpinning coronavirus conspiracy theories, opening a new way of understanding and challenging them.Using Danish witchcraft folklore as a model, the researchers from UCLA and Berkeley analysed thousands of social media posts with an...

The world was woefully unprepared for a pandemic. Let’s be ready for the next one | Elhadj As Sy

The Global Preparedness Monitoring Board is calling for a coherent action plan to counter future health emergencies Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageTwo years ago, three months before coronavirus erupted, the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB) issued a warning to the international community that a pandemic was only a matter of time, and that the world was not...