Dark Matter Theory 'may Be Wrong'

SAO PAULO — More than 100 dolphins have died in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest in the past week as the region grapples with a severe drought, and many more could die soon if water temperatures remain high, experts say. The Mamiraua Institute, a research group of Brazil’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, said two more dead dolphins were found Monday in the region around Tefe Lake, which is key for mammals and fish in the area.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Denis Mukwege will join a growing list of candidates looking to unseat Democratic Republic of Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi in elections scheduled for December. Mukwege, a gynecological surgeon famous for his work with victims of Congo’s conflicts, announced his candidacy Monday in Kinshasa, the capital. The doctor joins a field of established candidates that will likely include a former prime minister and the owner of one of Africa’s most successful soccer clubs. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Read More: Thousands of African Women Face Sexual Violence.

Away from the glamor of Paris’ ongoing Fashion Week, French officials have warned of a “widespread” outbreak of bedbugs across public spaces in the capital. With tourists expected to flock to the city next year for the 2024 Olympics, concerns about health and safety implications are rising. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Transport Minister Clement Beaune has vowed to “reassure and protect” the public by convening a meeting of public transport operators this week to establish countermeasures against the blood-sucking pests which have been spotted in cinemas, at Charles-de-Gaulle Airport, and on public transportation. Deputy Mayor of Paris Emmanuel Gregoire wrote a letter on behalf of City Hall Thursday, calling on Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne to take action against the “scourge.” “The state urgently needs to put an action plan in place against this scourge as France is preparing to welcome the Olympic and Paralympic games in 2024,” Grégoire wrote, according to Reuters. Despite being firm in his requests, the deputy mayor cautioned against “hysteria,” adding that there is “no threat to the Olympic Games,” and they should all work together to solve the issue.

The surprise last-minute deal proposed by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to avert a government shutdown came at a steep price for Ukraine. The Republican-led 45-day stopgap spending bill, which dropped support for Ukraine, won enough support from House Democrats to overwhelmingly pass with 315 votes. Sadly, some congressional leaders have been emboldened to walk away from Ukraine given some surveys claiming 55% of voters do not believe Congress should authorize additional funding to support Ukraine—a reversal from 62% in favor this time last year. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Though both parties deserve credit for preventing a government shutdown, the reneging of support for Ukraine will have disastrous ripple effects and plays directly into Russian President Vladimir Putin’s only winning hand—propaganda and attrition—to weaken allied support.

(STOCKHOLM) — Two scientists won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for discoveries that enabled the development of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19. The award was given to Katalin Karikó, a professor at Sagan’s University in Hungary and an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and Drew Weissman, who performed his prizewinning research together with Karikó at the University of Pennsylvania. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “Through their groundbreaking findings, which have fundamentally changed our understanding of how mRNA interacts with our immune system, the laureates contributed to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times,” the panel that awarded the prize said. Thomas Perlmann, secretary of the Nobel Assembly, announced the prize and said both scientists were “overwhelmed” by news of the prize when he contacted them shortly before the announcement. Gunilla Karlsson Hedestam, part of the panel that chose the winners, said of their work that “in terms of saving lives, especially in the early phase of the pandemic, it was very important.” The Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine was won last year by Swedish scientist Svante Paabo for discoveries in human evolution that unlocked secrets of Neanderthal DNA which provided key insights into our immune system, including our vulnerability to severe COVID-19. The award was the second in the family.

Set back from a dusty highway in South India, three newly completed factory buildings rise up behind a black spiked iron fence. In their shadow, several yellow construction vehicles sit beside mounds of upturned soil and the skeleton of a half-built warehouse. On a May afternoon this year, a group of women in blue and pink uniforms hurried from one building to another over the din of traffic and construction.