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Gates Foundation funding $40 million effort to help develop mRNA vaccines in Africa in coming years

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A $40 million investment will help several African manufacturers produce new messenger RNA vaccines on the continent where people were last in line to receive jabs during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced Monday.While it could still take at least three more years before any of the vaccines are approved and on the market, the foundation said that its mRNA investment marks an important step forward in improving vaccine equity. “Whether it’s for local diseases in Africa like Rift Valley (fever) or for global diseases like TB, mRNA looks like a very promising approach,” Bill Gates told The Associated Press on Sunday after visiting one of the facilities involved, the Institut Pasteur in Dakar, Senegal. “And so it allows us to bring in lots of African capabilities to work on these vaccines, and then this can be scaled up.” The announcement comes as the foundation opens its annual three-day Grand Challenges event, which brings to...

Nobel economics prize goes to professor for advancing the understanding of the workplace gender gap

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

STOCKHOLM (AP) — The Nobel economics prize was awarded Monday to Claudia Goldin, a professor at Harvard University, for research that has advanced the understanding of the gender gap in the labor market.The announcement went a tiny step to closing the Nobel committee’s own gender gap: Goldin is just the third woman to win the prize out of 93 economics laureates.She has studied 200 years of women’s participation in the workplace, showing that despite continued economic growth, women’s pay did not continuously catch up to men’s and a divide still exists despite women gaining higher levels of education than men.“Understanding women’s role in the labor market is important for society. Thanks to Claudia Goldin’s groundbreaking research, we now know much more about the underlying factors and which barriers may need to be addressed in the future,” said Jakob Svensson, chair of the Committee for the Prize in Economic Sciences.Goldin does not offer solutions, but her resear...

RFK Jr. is expected to drop his Democratic primary bid and launch an independent or third-party run

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to announce Monday that he will drop his Democratic bid for president and run as an independent or third-party candidate, adding a new wrinkle to a 2024 race currently heading toward a rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.Kennedy’s campaign has teased the announcement in the days leading up to a Monday afternoon speech in Philadelphia. In a recent video, Kennedy said there is corruption “in the leadership of both political parties” and said he wants to “rewrite the assumptions and change the habits of American politics.” The video came shortly after Mediaite reported he planned to launch an independent bid. A member of one of America’s most famous Democratic families, the 69-year-old Kennedy was running a long-shot Democratic primary bid but has better favorability ratings among Republicans. It’s unclear whether GOP support would translate to a general election when Ken...

Heavy flooding in southern Myanmar displaces more than 10,000 people

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — Flooding triggered by heavy monsoon rains in Myanmar’s southern areas has displaced more than 10,000 people and disrupted traffic on the rail lines that connect the country’s biggest cities, officials and state-run media said Monday.A senior official at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, Lay Shwe Zin Oo, said constant rainfall in the Bago region that began last week caused flooding in the low-lying areas of its capital, Bago township. She said there were no casualties reported so far, but that more than 10,000 people had to abandon their homes.Bago township recorded 7.87 inches (200 millimeters) of rainfall, its highest level in 59 years, Myanmar’s Meteorological Department said Sunday. Rain or thundershowers was forecast for across the country until Monday evening.One of the leaders of an emergency rescue team in Bago told The Associated Press that the flooding was at least 7-8 feet (2.44 meters) deep in low-lying areas and 3-4 feet downtown.“Al...

Stock market today: Oil gains while share prices fall after Israel strikes back at Hamas attack

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — Crude oil prices surged and world share prices were mostly lower on Monday after the Israeli government declared war following deadly attacks by Hamas from the Gaza Strip. U.S. futures declined. The bond market in the U.S. will be closed Monday for the Columbus Day holiday, but the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq will be open. Oil prices were up more than $2 a barrel after gaining more than $3 earlier in the day. Conflict in the Middle East often pushes oil prices higher given the risk of disruptions to supplies. “Disruptions or escalations in the region can have far-reaching implications for energy markets, global supply chains, and geopolitical dynamics,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.The fighting has not yet had any discernible impact on oil output, but geopolitical escalations in the Middle East typically lead to a “buy-first-ask-questions-later” response, he said. Oil prices had eased back from highs of the mid $90 range last month...

France ambassador for LGBTQ+ rights: Canada, Quebec can counter Russia-led regression

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

OTTAWA — France’s ambassador for LGBTQ+ rights says Russia is helping sow a global backlash against gender and sexual minorities, and argues francophone countries should work together to counter growing polarization. “LGBT subjects are among the most confrontational, the most inflammable, in international relations,” Jean-Marc Berthon said in a French-language interview during his recent visit to Canada.Berthon also said he was taken aback by Canadian anti-LGBTQ+ protests he witnessed during a visit in late September.Nearly a year ago, the government of French President Emmanuel Macron named Berthon as an ambassador tasked with advancing LGBTQ+ rights, both through public advocacy and work within France’s diplomatic and civil service.“The mere fact of having an ambassador for the rights of LGBT people means that the machine is put to work on these issues,” he said.Berthon advises France’s embassies on how to support local LGBTQ+ advocacy gro...

Senator Booker forced to shelter in Jerusalem, says he's 'shaken' from Hamas attacks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

(The Hill) - Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) said Sunday he is "shaken" from Hamas's attacks on Israel after he and his staff were forced to shelter in place while in Jerusalem on Saturday. "I was in Israel when the horrific attacks carried out by Hamas started on Saturday," Booker wrote Sunday in a post on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. "My team and I are now safe, but like many we are shaken, angered, and heartbroken by the hundreds killed, the thousands injured, those taken hostage, and all who are directly affected by these sickening terrorist attacks."In a video posted to X, Booker recounted being in Jerusalem on a run when Hamas's attacks began and he was advised to get back to his hotel. The New Jersey Democrat said he joined others in a bomb shelter in the stairwell of the hotel. "Frightened faces, there were children and elderly, families, many Americans," Booker said. "There was a sense of fear and worry and a knowledge to many of us that there were horrific things g...

Americans confirmed killed as Israel intensifies Gaza strikes and searches for Hamas fighters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

(NEXSTAR) - Several U.S. citizens were killed in the onslaught of attacks from Palestinian group Hamas on Israel over the weekend while some remain unaccounted for, the White House National Security Council (NSC) confirmed to The Hill on Sunday.A spokesperson for the NSC said the agency can confirm the deaths of “several” U.S. citizens, but did not provide a specific number. “We extend our deepest condolences to the victims and to the families of all those affected, and wish those injured a speedy recovery,” the spokesperson wrote in a statement shared with The Hill. ‘Several’ US citizens confirmed killed in Israel-Hamas conflict: NSC Israel's military scoured the country's south for Hamas fighters and guarded breaches in its border fence with tanks on Monday as it pounded the Gaza Strip from the air and mustered for a campaign its prime minister said would destroy “the military and governing capabilities” of the militant group.Rockets are fired toward Israel from the Gaza Strip,...

One in hospital after downtown Austin shooting early Monday

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Police said one person was in the hospital early Monday morning after a shooting between two drivers in downtown Austin. Police said a Department of Public Safety trooper witnessed the shooting. According to APD, the DPS trooper saw the shooting around 1:30 a.m. at East Seventh Street and the Interstate 35 service road. The drivers left the scene, APD said, and one of them was stopped in the 2200 block of Interstate 35. University of Texas Police told APD a person with a gunshot wound had arrived at Dell Seton Medical Center. APD said that person turned out to be the other driver in the shooting.Austin Police did not give any other information about the people involved other than that officers were investigating. Police had closed East Seventh Street at Red River Street for the investigation until 4:30 a.m. Monday.

98.3 TRY Social Dilemma: Do I Help My Parents Financially If They're Irresponsible?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:46:58 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Today's 98.3 TRY Social Dilemma came from Kris and it's about taking care of your parents. Here's his email: Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Hi Jaime. Let me start my saying, I love my parents, but they weren’t always the best role models when I was growing up. They were always scraping by, late on the rent, and when they did have money, they wasted it on stupid stuff instead of saving. So, when I was out on my own, I vowed to never let that happen to me. Now at the age of 38, I’m a relentless saver and keep my finances tight. My parents know this and are just as careless now as they ever were. I lent them money last year to make their mortgage and now they’re asking me to help them again. Only this time I’ve told them no. Now they’re mad at me, but I don’t think that’s fair. I want to help them, but I can’t let their mistakes become my mistakes. How can I get them to understand that I can’t help them, ...