Author: Freddie Atkins

The U.S. Commerce Department added two Europe-based spyware companies to its technology export blacklist on Tuesday for developing surveillance tools deemed to have threatened U.S. national security as well as the privacy and integrity of individuals and organizations worldwide. Such tools are regularly used for political repression and other human rights abuses, including for spying on journalists and intimidating political dissidents. The sanctioned companies are in Greece-based Intellexa S.A., Hungary-based Cytrox and related entities in Ireland and Macedonia. Intellexa and Cytrox have been linked to Predator spyware, whose reported use in Greece helped precipitate the resignation last year of two top government officials, including the national intelligence…

The U.S. economy showed much stronger-than-expected growth in the first quarter than previously thought, according to a big upward revision Thursday from the Commerce Department. Gross domestic product increased at a 2% annualized pace for the January-through-March period, up from the previous estimate of 1.3% and ahead of the 1.4% Dow Jones consensus forecast. This was the third and final estimate for Q1 GDP. The growth rate was 2.6% in the fourth quarter. The upward revision helps undercut widespread expectations that the U.S. is heading toward a recession. A separate economic report released Thursday showed layoffs running well below expectations, indicating…

Showing surprising resilience in the face of higher interest rates, the U.S. economy grew at a 2% annual pace from January through March as consumers spent at the fastest pace in nearly two years. Thursday’s revised figure from the Commerce Department sharply upgraded its assessment of first-quarter growth from its previous estimate of a 1.3% annual rate. Despite the uptick, the government’s third and final report on January-March economic growth still marked a deceleration from the 2.6% annual rate from October through December and the 3.2% growth from July through September. The economy has been slowed by the Federal Reserve’s aggressive drive to…

A retrospective analysis of patient data from the COPDGene study suggests that targeting mucus plugs could help prevent deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease—the fourth leading cause of death in the United States Many patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) experience airway-clogging mucus plugs, an accumulation of mucus in the lungs that can affect quality of life and lung functioning. A new study led by researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, has found that mucus plugs were also associated with greater mortality. The findings, published in JAMA and presented simultaneously at the American Thoracic Society…

Summary: Researchers provide new insight into the genetic origins of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The study suggests that, contrary to long-standing beliefs, siblings with ASD may share more of their father’s genome. The investigation involved the analysis of over 6,000 volunteer families’ genomes, revealing a potential new source of ASD. Further research may yield new strategies for diagnosis, treatment, and understanding of autism. Key Facts: Source: CSHL Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) researchers have flipped the script on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) genetics. Scientists long thought that siblings born with ASD share more of their mother’s genome than their father’s. But CSHL…

When the Ravens signed quarterback Josh Johnson on the first day of OTAs, my first thought was, “They must not expect to see much of Lamar Jackson.” On Monday, they didn’t see him at all I know it’s voluntary. But Lamar doesn’t get a pass. Aaron Rodgers didn’t get one last year, and Lamar doesn’t get one this year. It’s unclear where the line is that separates “it’s OK to skip” from “you should be there.” A compensation package in excess of $50 million per year lands on the “be there” side of the ledger. Jackson recently scored a new deal that pays him $52…

Facebook’s parent company Meta has been fined a record $1.3 billion by European Union data protection regulators for transferring the personal data of users in the region to the U.S. In a binding decision taken by the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), the social media giant has been ordered to bring its data transfers into compliance with the GDPR and delete unlawfully stored and processed data within six months. Additionally, Meta has been given five months to suspend any future transfer of Facebook users’ data to the U.S. Instagram and WhatsApp, which are also owned by the company, are not…

Stock futures are modestly higher Tuesday morning after a key debt ceiling meeting between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, even though the two did not strike a deal. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 30 points, or 0.09%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures each also gained 0.13% and 0.19% respectively. McCarthy and Biden met at the White House Monday evening, in a discussion that the House speaker described as “productive” and “professional.” These latest talks – taking place with just 10 days until June 1, the earliest date that the U.S. could default – seemed to have a more positive…

Clear skies don’t signal the end of a weather disaster. It’s easy to see that in the small Central California farming town of Pajaro. In March, a nearby river breached a levee after days of heavy rainfall, leaving much of the small farming town underwater. “This was a bedroom and there was beds and those were ruined, so this is all ruined,” said Evelia Martinez as she showed damage to a space she rented out to make extra money. “I am a doer and I can physically do it, but financially, I don’t have the money to do that. I…

El Faro has survived many pressures in its 25 years reporting on El Salvador’s bloody drug wars, crime and institutional corruption. “We’ve been harassed. We’ve received death threats from drug cartels, requiring us to contract armed security guards. And we’ve had the police coming to our houses after we revealed their corruption scandals,” said Óscar Martínez, editor of the online investigative outlet. “Some of our journalists have been exiled, but we have managed to continue reporting from San Salvador.” Now, the digital publication says it is leaving the Central American country to escape a ratcheting clampdown on press freedom by its…