Vaccines mean Hungary's restaurants open for outdoor service

People in Hungary got a taste Saturday of what life was like before the coronavirus pandemic as restaurants and bars served in-person customers for the first time in nearly six months, the latest round of openings in a country hit hard by COVID-19.

Billion COVID-19 vaccine doses administered globally

More than one billion doses of coronavirus vaccines have been administered worldwide, less than five months after the first mass inoculation programmes began to be rolled out, according to an AFP tally at 17:45 GMT on Saturday.

Study highlights risks of anxiety and depression after cardiac device implantation

Patients receiving an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) should be regularly screened for anxiety and depression, according to research presented at EHRA 2021, an online scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

India virus patients suffocate from low oxygen amid surge

Authorities scrambled anew Saturday to supply medical oxygen to Indian hospitals where COVID-19 patients were suffocating amid low supplies as the country with the world's worst coronavirus surge set a new global daily record of infections for the third straight day.

Germany pulls virus 'emergency brake' but not all on board

Chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday defended a fiercely-opposed new law imposing tough coronavirus restrictions across Germany including night curfews and school closures.

A breakthrough astrophysics code rapidly models stellar collisions

A breakthrough astrophysics code, named Octo-Tiger, simulates the evolution of self-gravitating and rotating systems of arbitrary geometry using adaptive mesh refinement and a new method to parallelize the code to achieve superior speeds.

A more efficient, safer alternative to sourcing copper via bacteria

Copper remains one of the single most ubiquitous metals in everyday life. As a conductor of heat and electricity, it is utilized in wires, roofing and plumbing, as well as a catalyst for petrochemical plants, solar and electrical conductors and for a wide range of energy related applications. Subsequently, any method to harvest more of the valuable commodity proves a useful endeavor.

Simple robots, smart algorithms

Anyone with children knows that while controlling one child can be hard, controlling many at once can be nearly impossible. Getting swarms of robots to work collectively can be equally challenging, unless researchers carefully choreograph their interactions—like planes in formation—using increasingly sophisticated components and algorithms. But what can be reliably accomplished when the robots on hand are simple, inconsistent, and lack sophisticated programming for coordinated behavior?

Global experts define how to assess quality of care for patients with atrial fibrillation

Management and outcomes of adults with atrial fibrillation are presented today at EHRA 2021, an online scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). The document is published in EP Europace, a journal of the ESC.

Simple foot test detects heart rhythm disorder in patients with diabetes

Atrial fibrillation can be detected during annual foot assessments in patients with diabetes, according to research presented today at EHRA 2021, an online scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).

Outages blamed on malware still plaguing budget airlines

A technology provider says a malware attack triggered a dayslong outage that has caused reservations systems to crash at about 20 low-cost airlines around the world.

One billion Covid jabs: a pin-prick of hope for humanity

On December 8, 90-year-old British woman Margaret Keenan, resplendent in her Christmas T-shirt, received the Western world's first COVID vaccination—a chink of light at the end of the tunnel for humanity after a devastating pandemic year.

Targeting drug-resistant breast cancer with estrogen

Researchers at Dartmouth's and Dartmouth-Hitchcock's Norris Cotton Cancer Center (NCCC) hope to make estrogen therapy a more accessible treatment option for breast cancer patients who could benefit from it. Anti-estrogen treatments, which block growth signals from estrogen receptors (ER) in tumors, are effective treatments for ER+ breast cancer. But it is common for breast tumors to become resistant to anti-estrogen treatments over time. The research team, led by molecular biologist Todd Miller, Ph.D., and Nicole Traphagen, a Ph.D. candidate in the Miller Laboratory, found that in mice, cycling between estrogen treatment and anti-estrogen treatment at a specific point in time can dramatically increase the duration of tumor regression.

Body's natural pain killers can be enhanced

Fentanyl, oxycodone, morphine—these substances are familiar to many as a source of both pain relief and the cause of a painful epidemic of addiction and death.

China names Mars rover for traditional fire god

China's first Mars rover will be named Zhurong after a traditional fire god, the government announced Saturday.

'Best thing I've done': First person to get COVID jab is still beaming

It was the shot in the arm that made history: in December last year British grandmother Margaret Keenan became the first person in the Western world to get an approved coronavirus vaccine, kicking off a global campaign to end the pandemic.

Covid jabs at the ends of the earth

Nearly one billion COVID jabs have now been administered worldwide but reaching people in all four corners of the planet is an unprecedented logistical challenge.

Out of the cave: French isolation study ends after 40 days

Ever wonder what it would feel like to unplug from a hyperconnected world and hide away in a cave for a few weeks? Fifteen people in France found out.

US experts recommend resuming J&J COVID vaccinations

The United States should resume Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccinations, an expert panel recommended to health authorities on Friday, after a pause prompted by blood clot concerns.

California to ban new fracking from 2024

California plans to stop issuing new fracking permits by 2024, Governor Gavin Newsom said Friday, as the state looks toward progressively halting fossil fuel extraction in the coming decades.

Old SpaceX capsule delivers new crew to space station

A recycled SpaceX capsule carrying four astronauts arrived at the International Space Station on Saturday, the third high-flying taxi ride in less than a year for Elon Musk's company.

Hatchery reviving Britain's near-extinct local oysters

Decimated by over-fishing and pollution, British oysters could make a comeback as a hatchery in the Channel port city of Portsmouth is helping to revive a native species.

India COVID deaths hit record as J&J jab gets US green light

India's daily COVID death toll hit a new high Saturday, with hospitals facing oxygen shortages and crematoriums pushed to capacity, as US regulators said pharma giant Johnson & Johnson can restart a vaccine rollout paused due to worries over blood clots.