Science and Technology

Covid-19 vaccines are less effective on people with weakened immune systems, three small Italian studies show, which the studies’ researchers say highlight the need to deploy booster shots for this group of vulnerable people. The studies show that, on average, 30% of immunocompromised patients do not develop immunity to the virus after vaccination. The remaining 70% respond to the vaccine, especially after the second dose, but to a lesser extent than healthy people and with differences from group to group, the Bambino Gesu Hospital in Rome, which conducted the three small studies, said in a statement on Monday. The studies…
Sicilian Rouge High GABA is a special type of tomato designed to contain high levels of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), an amino acid believed to aid relaxation and help lower blood pressure. Tokyo-based startup Sanatech Seed Co. teamed up with scientists at the University of Tsukuba to develop a new variety of tomatoes using CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology. Named Sicilian Rouge High GABA, this new type of tomato contains five to six times the normal level of a type of amino acid called gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA. According to Japanese media, the company removed an inhibitory domain within the tomato’s genome to…
Merck & Co. said Friday that its experimental Covid-19 pill reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half in people recently infected with the coronavirus and that it would soon ask health officials in the U.S. and around the world to authorize its use. If cleared, Merck’s drug would be the first pill shown to treat Covid-19, a potentially major advance in efforts to fight the pandemic. All Covid-19 therapies now authorized in the U.S. require an IV or injection. Merck and its partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics said early results showed patients who received the drug, called molnupiravir, within five days of Covid-19…
A head-to-head study of all three authorized coronavirus vaccines in the United States finds the Moderna vaccine is slightly more effective than Pfizer's in real-life use in keeping people out of the hospital, and Johnson & Johnson's Janssen vaccine comes in third, but still providing 71% protection. Pfizer's vaccine provided 88% protection against hospitalization, and Moderna's was 93% effective. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention led a nationwide study of vaccination involving more than 3,600 adults hospitalized for Covid-19 between March and August. "Among U.S. adults without immunocompromising conditions, vaccine effectiveness against Covid-19 hospitalization during March 11--August 15,…
Moderna Inc. has released a set of data which suggested its Covid-19 vaccine is effective in preventing serious health issues or death from "variants of concern" but admitting that efficacy decreases over time, such that those who received the vaccine last year were twice more likely to contract a breakthrough case of the coronavirus disease. According to the data, which Moderna released Wednesday, a "study shows lower risk of breakthrough infection in participants vaccinated more recently (median 8 months after first dose) than participants vaccinated last year (median 13 months after first dose)." A Moderna trial conducted over the summer,…
With time, monitors have grown wider and wider to give us more space and more resolution for videos and gaming. Setting up your screen horizontally may come naturally to you—that’s how it’s shown on the box anyway—but when you’re working, it might not be the most efficient option. Flipping your external monitor into a vertical position is easy to do and can make more efficient use of every single inch of your screen. When you’re using programs like Microsoft Word or Google Docs, or you’re looking at traditional scroll-down webpages, there’s only so much a wider screen can do for…
The natural immune protection that develops after a SARS-CoV-2 infection offers considerably more of a shield against the Delta variant of the pandemic coronavirus than two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, according to a large Israeli study that some scientists wish came with a “Don’t try this at home” label. The newly released data show people who once had a SARS-CoV-2 infection were much less likely than never-infected, vaccinated people to get Delta, develop symptoms from it, or become hospitalized with serious Covid-19. The study demonstrates the power of the human immune system, but infectious disease experts emphasized that this…
Friday, 10 September 2021 05:43

Gmail will soon allow you to place calls

In the fires of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Age of Always Online was forged. Everybody works from home now, and so work life and home life have completely blurred together into an indiscernible slop of constant optimization, with no clear delineation between being “at work” and “cooking dinner at home with loved ones.” It’s the reason more and more companies are rolling out Zoom-like “social audio experience” features, and also ostensibly the reason that Google has been fine-tuning the branding on G Suite by giving it a new name—Google Workspace—and a new set of communication capabilities. As part of a…
Thursday, 09 September 2021 05:55

FG approves deployment of 5G network in Nigeria

Federal executive council (FEC) has authorised the National Policy on fifth-generation (5G) networks for the country’s digital economy. The approval will enable deployment of the network in Nigeria. The 5G policy was approved at the weekly council meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday. Femi Adeluyi, technical assistant (on Information Technology) to Isa Pantami, minister of communications and digital economy, said this in a statement. The statement added that the implementation of the National Policy is with immediate effect. “The National Policy has been developed over a period of 2 years, due to the need for extensive stakeholder…
Moderna Inc.’s Covid vaccine generated more than double the antibodies of a similar shot made by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE in research directly comparing immune responses to the inoculations. A study of almost 2,500 workers at a major Belgium hospital system found antibody levels among individuals who hadn’t been infected with the coronavirus before getting two doses of the Moderna vaccine averaged 2,881 units per milliliter, compared with 1,108 units/mL in an equivalent group who got two jabs of the Pfizer shot. The results, published Monday in a letter to the Journal of the American Medical Association, suggested the…
April 30, 2025

NNPCL faces criticism as Warri Refinery fails to take off after $897m in repairs bill

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited is under scrutiny after the Warri Refining and Petrochemical…
April 28, 2025

Natasha mocks Akpabio in scathing ‘apology’ over sexual harassment claim

Suspended Kogi Central Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan on Sunday delivered a blistering, sarcastic "apology" to Senate…
April 29, 2025

How African popes changed Christianity - and gave the world Valentine's Day

Now predominantly Muslim, North Africa was once a Christian heartland, producing Catholic popes who left…
April 26, 2025

Declassified CIA file about UFO aliens attacking soldiers released

A declassified document posted to the CIA’s website is raising eyebrows with claims of an…
April 29, 2025

At least 26 people killed as 2 vehicles run over bomb planted by Boko Haram…

At least 26 people were killed on Monday when two vehicles detonated an improvised explosive…
April 30, 2025

Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 572

UN chief urges 'irreversible action' on Israel, Palestinian two-state solution United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres…
April 27, 2025

Smartphone use could reduce dementia risk in older adults, study finds

The first generation that has been exposed consistently to digital technology has reached the age…
January 08, 2025

NFF appoints new Super Eagles head coach

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has appointed Éric Sékou Chelle as the new Head Coach…

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