Science and Technology

A few months ago, most people had never heard of the R number. Now, thanks to the novel coronavirus, we all know – or think we know – what it means. R is the reproduction number of an infectious disease – basically how many people one infected person will transmit… »

“If you thought the antitrust cases of big tech were a memory, you’d be mistaken.” By Eoin Higgins, staff writer  – Common Dreams Anti-monopoly groups are celebrating news that the Justice Department and state attorneys general are investigating online behemoth Google for possible antitrust cases. “An antitrust case against Google… »

By David Swanson What’s the matter with science? By that, do I mean, why don’t we turn away from corrupt politics and religion and follow the way of science? Or do I mean, why have we allowed science to so corrupt our politics and our culture? I mean, of course,… »

The Conversation Tom Oliver Is bigotry in our DNA, a remnant of our fear of “the other” way back when that was necessary? If so, why do some battle with their instincts while others embrace them? Peter, 71, Darlington I, Pencil, simple… »

By Countercurrents Collective Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and UPMC, the school’s medical center, are working on a possible vaccine for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Scientists announced news of the potential vaccine, which has now been tested successfully on mice, on Thursday. Several research… »

Following the threat of legal action against the Italian open source researchers Fracassi and Ramaioli from the company contracted to provide respiratory devices for a hospital in the Italian city of Chiari, we spoke with Panos Papadopoulos, lawyer and social anthropologist, who served as Director… »

In the battle to meet the needs in consumables and especially masks and stethoscopes, various scientists around the world are involved. Their weapon is 3D printing which seems to help in many areas, as we saw in a previous article on valves in Italy. This time, researchers who have gained… »

A teenager’s website tracking coronavirus has become one of the most vital resources for people seeking accurate and updated numbers on the pandemic. The URL is nCoV2019.live. We speak with 17-year-old Avi Schiffmann, a high school junior from Mercer Island outside Seattle, who started the site in late December, when coronavirus… »

When Facebook announced that it would not remove political advertising with inaccurate content (aka lies) very few people seemed to be surprised, or bothered. When it was reported that interference by Cambridge Analytica, may be with some help from Canadian AggregateIQ was most likely responsible for the success… »

Sonia Shah is an investigative science journalist and author of “Pandemic: Tracking Contagions, from Cholera to Ebola and Beyond.” Her new book is titled “The Next Great Migration: The Beauty and Terror of Life on the Move” and will be published in June. She says the climate crisis is making… »