Author: zppiot
On July 21, 2024, temperatures soared in many parts of the world, breaking the record for the hottest day ever recorded on the planet. The following day—July 22—the record was broken again. But even as the heat index rises each summer, the people working outdoors to pick fruits, vegetables, and flowers have to keep laboring. The consequences can be severe, leading to illnesses such as heat exhaustion, heatstroke and even acute kidney injury. Now, researchers are developing an innovative sensor that tracks multiple vital signs with a goal of anticipating when a worker is at risk of developing heat illness…
But because farmworkers are largely from Latin America (63% were born in Mexico) and nearly half are undocumented, “it’s difficult for [them] to speak up about [their] working conditions,” says Chicas. Workers are usually careful not to draw attention that “may jeopardize their livelihoods.” They’re more likely to do so if they’re backed up by an organization like the Farmworker Association of Florida, which organizes agricultural workers in the state. FWAF has collaborated with the Emory program for more than a decade, recruiting farmworkers to participate in the studies and help guide them. There’s “a lot of trust” between those…
After falling steadily for decades, the prevalence of global hunger is now on the rise—nowhere more so than in sub-Saharan Africa.Conflicts, economic fallout from the covid-19 pandemic, and extreme weather events linked to climate change have pushed the share of the population considered undernourished from 18% in 2015 to 23% in 2023.Africa’s indigenous crops are often more nutritious and better suited to the hot and dry conditions that are becoming more prevalent, yet many have been neglected by science, which means they tend to be more vulnerable to diseases and pests and yield well below their theoretical potential.Now the question…
FTC cracks down on fake reviews with new rule set to ban phony feedback – CBS News Watch CBS News With up to 40% of online reviews found to be fake, the Federal Trade Commission is introducing a new rule to ban deceptive feedback. Nick Thompson, CEO of “The Atlantic,” explains how it will work. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On #FTC #cracks #fake #reviews #rule #set #ban #phony #feedback
Great expectations for generative AI The expectation that generative AI could fundamentally upend business models and product offerings is driven by the technology’s power to unlock vast amounts of data that were previously inaccessible. “Eighty to 90% of the world’s data is unstructured,” says Baris Gultekin, head of AI at AI data cloud company Snowflake. “But what’s exciting is that AI is opening the door for organizations to gain insights from this data that they simply couldn’t before.” In a poll conducted by MIT Technology Review Insights, global executives were asked about the value they hoped to derive from generative…
Change, though, was afoot: In 2021, with hunger on the rise, the African Union explicitly called for “intentional investments towards increased productivity and production in traditional and indigenous crops.” It found a sympathetic ear in Cary Fowler, a longtime biodiversity advocate who was appointed US special envoy for global food security by President Joe Biden in 2022. The 74-year-old Tennessean was a co-recipient of this year’s World Food Prize, agriculture’s equivalent of the Nobel, for his role in establishing the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a facility in the Norwegian Arctic that holds copies of more than 1.3 million seed samples…
23andMe’s business is built on taking saliva samples from its customers. The DNA from those samples is processed and analyzed in its labs to produce personalized genetic reports detailing a user’s unique health and ancestry. The uncertainty swirling around the company’s future and potential new ownership has prompted privacy campaigners to urge users to delete their data. “It’s not just you. If anyone in your family gave their DNA to 23&Me, for all of your sakes, close your/their account now,” Meredith Whittaker, president of the encrypted messaging platform Signal, posted on X after the board’s resignation. “Customers should consider current…
In the summer of 2022, I was walking on the beach at Half Moon Bay in California, when I saw the strangest thing approaching on the waves. When it struck the shore and deflated, I knew: it was a dead whale.But it wasn’t just any whale. It was Fran. “I knew this whale, and I’m like, Ohhhhh. It just hit my heart, because Fran, at the time, she was the most well-known whale in our entire database,” said Ted Cheeseman, the creator of HappyWhale.com. That’s a database of whale sightings, which includes more than 850 pictures of Fran the humpback…
Random House We may receive an affiliate commission from anything you buy from this article.Yuval Noah Harari, the author of the bestseller “Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind,” returns with “Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI” (Random House). It examines how intelligence has shaped and controlled civilizations throughout history, and the role of artificial intelligence in changing society, economics and politics. Read an excerpt below. “Nexus” by Yuval Noah HarariPrefer to listen? Audible has a 30-day free trial available right now. What Is Information? It is always tricky to define fundamental concepts. Since they are…
TikTok knew app was harmful to kids, lawsuit alleges – CBS News Watch CBS News Just days after multiple states sued TikTok for allegedly designing the app to addict children, new details have emerged about how they say the company does it. Jo Ling Kent reports. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On #TikTok #knew #app #harmful #kids #lawsuit #alleges
How to use night mode to get good photos of the northern lights How to use night mode to get good photos of the northern lights 02:10 PITTSBURGH, Pa. (KDKA) — The northern lights are expected to be visible again throughout parts of the United States on Friday night. When the northern lights, or the aurora borealis, are visible, the best way to see them is to find a dark spot away from bright lights, allow time to enable your eyes adjust to the darkness and look toward the north. The northern lights show up best in photos. Here’s how to…
This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. These are the best ways to measure your body fat —Jessica Hamzelou We all know that being overweight is not great for your health—it’s linked to metabolic diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular problems. But weighing yourself won’t tell you all you need to know about your disease risk. A friend of mine is a super-fit marathon runner. She’s all lean muscle. And yet according to her body mass index (BMI), which is a measure of weight relative to…
It takes forest soil decades to recover after being compacted by heavy logging equipment. That’s why Roth has digitally mapped all the logging trails and equipped tree harvesters with high-precision satellite antennas so the machines can precisely follow the same route for decades and easily find them in the chaotic aftermath of a storm. GPS data is used to record how much timber was extracted from which location—a crucial upgrade in a forest with many different owners. A digital reality: Since most of his work can now be done on a mobile device, Roth is spending more time outdoors: “I take…
I, on the other hand, have never been all that muscular. I like to think I’m a healthy weight—but nurses in the past have advised me, on the basis of my BMI, to eat more butter and doughnuts. This is advice I never expected to receive from a health professional. (I should add here that my friend and I are roughly the same height and wear the same size in clothes.) The BMI is flawed. So what should we be using instead? There are several high-tech alternatives, but a simple measure that involves lying on your back could also tell…
DOJ requests Tesla autopilot system documents DOJ requests Tesla autopilot system documents 00:27 Los Angeles — Tesla unveiled its long-awaited robotaxi at a Hollywood studio Thursday night, though fans of the electric vehicle maker will have to wait until at least 2026 before it’s available. CEO Elon Musk pulled up to a stage at the Warner Bros. studio lot in one of the company’s “Cybercabs,” telling the crowd the sleek, AI-powered vehicles don’t have steering wheels or pedals. He also expressed confidence in the progress the company has made on autonomous driving technology that makes it possible for vehicles to…
Tesla’s Robotaxi Day event is set to take place at a Hollywood studio Thursday night, and expectations are high. Too high for some analysts and investors.The company, which began selling software it calls “Full Self-Driving” nine years ago that still can’t drive itself, is expected to show off the so-called “Cybercab” vehicle, which may not have a steering wheel and pedals.The unveiling comes as CEO Elon Musk tries to persuade investors that his company is more about artificial intelligence and robotics as it struggles to sell its core products, an aging lineup of electric vehicles. But some analysts are predicting…