Truthout: “A group of senators led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) has introduced a bill to combat the Supreme Court’s seismic pro-corporate decision last month to overturn a precedent known as Chevron deference that has enabled federal agencies to issue regulations for decades. Ten senators joined Warren on Tuesday in introducing the bill that would… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Health Care
Massive IT outage spotlights major vulnerabilities in the global information ecosystem
Via LLRX – Professor Richard Forno highlights the fragility of our enterprise IT systems against the backdrop of the global information technology outage on July 19, 2024 that paralyzed organizations ranging from airlines to hospitals and the delivery of uniforms for the Olympic Games, representing a growing concern for cybersecurity professionals, businesses and governments. Continue Reading
A terrific primer on all things Long Covid
Via Boing Boing: “If you have an hour to spare and want to learn more about Long Covid, here’s a great, thorough overview by a public health and science communicator who goes by the name of “Lola Germs” on social media. They describe their educational project on their YouTube: “I’m a public health and science… Continue Reading
We mapped weather forecast accuracy across the U.S. Look up your city.
[unpaywalled] “Everyone complains about the weather forecast, but some people have more cause to grumble than others. In Miami, the temperature forecast is usually accurate a week into the future. But in Paonia, Colo., even the one-day temperature forecast is wrong by almost 6 degrees Fahrenheit on average. That’s according to our analysis of government… Continue Reading
The biggest data breaches in 2024: 1 billion stolen records and rising
TechCrunch: “We’re over halfway through 2024, and already this year we have seen some of the biggest, most damaging data breaches in recent history. And just when you think that some of these hacks can’t get any worse, they do. From huge stores of customers’ personal information getting scraped, stolen and posted online, to reams… Continue Reading
Millions of Americans are stranded on “heat islands”
Axios: “Millions of Americans live in parts of cities where the “urban heat island” effect can significantly increase temperatures, especially during heat waves, per a new analysis by nonprofit climate research group Climate Central. Why it matters: Heat islands — wherein heat is trapped by heat-absorbing surfaces and structures — can make cities less livable… Continue Reading
Climate Zones
The Pudding – Visualization: How will your city feel in the future – “This project looks at 70 global cities, and tracks their classification from present day to 2070. And with climate change, your city isn’t just getting hotter: it will resemble the distinctive climate of completely different places…A 2018 study, led by climatologist Hylke… Continue Reading
The World’s Power Grids Are Failing as the Planet Warms
Bloomberg [unpaywalled] – Outages from Albania to Texas show how electricity networks aren’t ready for climate change. “…The climate crisis exposes electricity networks to flash floods ripping down transmission towers, droughts drying up hydro reservoirs and demand spikes from cooling during searing heat. “The whole power system was built and designed in one climatic era… Continue Reading
Pharmacy Benefit Managers – Middlemen Inflating Drug Costs, Squeezing Main Street Pharmacies
StatNews: FTC report finds PBMs profit at the expense of patients and independent pharmacies Pharmacy Benefit Managers: The Powerful Middlemen Inflating Drug Costs and Squeezing Main Street Pharmacies Interim Staff Report July 2024 U.S. Federal Trade Commission Office of Policy Planning. Continue Reading
Peer review is essential for science. Unfortunately, it’s broken.
Ars Technica: “Rescuing Science: Restoring Trust in an Age of Doubt was the most difficult book I’ve ever written. I’m a cosmologist—I study the origins, structure, and evolution of the Universe. I love science. I live and breathe science. If science were a breakfast cereal, I’d eat it every morning. And at the height of… Continue Reading
New map gives horror glimpse at world’s climate in 60 years
Express UK: “As Britons experience a cold, rainy summer, experts are urging them to appreciate the milder conditions while they can. A new interactive map developed by scientists from the University of Maryland offers a glimpse into a much hotter future, predicting drastic changes in climate for cities worldwide within the next 60 years. According… Continue Reading
Association between passenger-vehicle front-end profiles and pedestrian injury severity in motor vehicle crashes
The association between passenger-vehicle front-end profiles and pedestrian injury severity in motor vehicle crashes. Journal of Safety Research Volume 90, September 2024, Pages 115-127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2024.06.007 – “Introduction: Vehicles play an important role in pedestrian injury risk in crashes. This study examined the association between vehicle front-end geometry and the risk of fatal pedestrian injuries in… Continue Reading
