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Cyprus battles disease-carrying mosquitoes by breeding them with irradiated, sterilized ones

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus is battling an influx of disease-carrying mosquitoes by bringing in hundreds of thousands of the insects after being sterilized through radiation.The battle is primarily focused on eradicating the Aedes aegypti variety of mosquito that has been found in large numbers in the island nation’s coastal town of Larnaca.Cyprus’ Environmental Health Services head Herodotos Herodotou told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the Aedes aegypti has been specifically targeted to prevent its potential migration to continental Europe.The effort is also targeting the Aedes albopictus mosquito on the island, which is more common in Europe.Both varieties can transmit to humans dangerous diseases such as dengue, Zika and yellow fever, as well as West Nile virus.Herodotou said that his service collects and dispatches both varieties of mosquitos — both eggs and grown insects — to laboratories in Italy and Austria where they’re bred and separated into male and female.The ...

The hazy future for caregiver payments expanded during the pandemic worries families

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

Nathan Hill started receiving $12.75 an hour from a state Medicaid program to help care for his severely disabled son during the pandemic, money he said allowed his family to stop using food stamps.The program was designed to provide a continuation of care and ease a home health worker shortage that grew worse after COVID-19 hit.But now, with the COVID-19 public health emergency over, he worries that the extra income will disappear. Some states have already stopped payments while others have yet to make them permanent. “The success of this during the pandemic was tremendous … for the first time we were able to pay our own way,” said the Meridian, Idaho, resident. “We’re not relying on charities to help us pay our rent and utilities.”A total of 39 states, with the help of the federal government, either started paying family caregivers or expanded the population eligible for payment during the pandemic, according to a survey last summer by KFF, a non-profit that studies health care is...

Future of caregiver payments expanded during the pandemic worries families

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

Nathan Hill started receiving $12.75 an hour from a state Medicaid program to help care for his severely disabled son during the pandemic, money he said allowed his family to stop using food stamps.The program was designed to provide a continuation of care and ease a home health worker shortage that grew worse after COVID-19 hit.Nathan Hill cleans the gastrostomy tube on his son Brady, 14, at their home in Meridian, Idaho, June 19, 2023. Brady survived a rare brain cancer as a baby, but requires round the clock care. Each morning Nate and his wife spend about 3 hours with Brady performing his medical cares and getting him ready for the day. Families of severely disabled children across the country are worried about the future of crucial Medicaid payments they started receiving to provide care during the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Kyle Green)But now, with the COVID-19 public health emergency over, he worries that the extra income will disappear. Some states hav...

Tri-City wins slugfest over Schaumburg

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

TROY, NY (NEWS10) -- The Tri-City ValleyCats (23-17) took the series opener 16-9 over the Schaumburg Boomers (24-15) thanks to a plethora of free passes, and four homers at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium on Tuesday. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Schaumburg opened the scoring in the first. Chase Dawson and Brett Milazzo had back-to-back hits off Dwayne Marshall. The two baserunners advanced on a groundout from Blake Berry. Dawson scored on a straight steal of home to give the Boomers a 1-0 lead.Tri-City responded in the bottom of the first. Cito Culver walked, and Jakob Goldfarb cranked a two-run tater off Jackson Hickert. Carson McCusker and Aaron Altherr were each issued a free pass. Both baserunners moved up ninety feet on a walk. Parks went to first on a walk before Cale Jones came through with a two-run single to pull the ValleyCats ahead, 4-1.Schaumburg picked up a run in the second. Quintin Selma singled, and Kyle Fit...

Russian defence minister visits troops after Wagner mutiny

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu visited Russian troops involved in the military operation in Ukraine, the RIA news agency reported on Monday (26 June), his first public appearance since the weekend mutiny by the Wagner paramilitary group.RIA's report, which cited Russia's defence ministry, made it clear Shoigu remained in charge, but provided no details on when and where he met the troops and commanders of the Western military district.Mutineers led by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin advanced on Moscow to remove what they called Russia's corrupt and incompetent military leadership, before suddenly heading back to a Russia-held area of eastern Ukraine after a deal with the Kremlin brokered by Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.The deal included immunity for the mutineers in exchange for their return to camps, but it remains unclear whether Putin also agreed to reshuffle the top military leadership or make any other concessions.

TDRC Archbishop Muteba accuses European NGOs of trying to pit Congolese civil societies against the DRC Government

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

A co-founder of the civil society coalition Congo Is Not For Sale (Le Congo N’est Pas à Vendre, or CNPAV), Archbishop Florimond Muteba, has announced his departure from the coalition, DRC publication ZoomEco reported. In a resignation letter, he has blamed the Belgian NGO 11.11.11, who describe themselves as seeking to achieve "fair world without exploitation" and provides financing to the coalition, for applying pressure on the national DRC NGOs to campaign against the Israeli businessman Dan Gertler, in what he described as “unacceptable blackmail”."One of the main reasons why I left the CNPAV was not only because of the differences in approach to implementing civil oversight, but also because of a kind of visceral relentlessness against one person, Mr Dan Gertler, as if that were the only essential reason for the platform's existence. I found it abnormal that they only released large sums of money if organisations agree to campaign against him, while giving no funds for other, eq...

Ask Amy: I’m unhappily single, and I’m hurt by what my co-workers say

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

Dear Amy: I am a single woman in my mid-30s.I’ve grown increasingly sad and frustrated with not being able to find a relationship, despite going on dates. I’m sad not to have a husband and family at this point, both of which I very much want.Related ArticlesAdvice | Ask Amy: When she called him, he denied even having a daughter Advice | Ask Amy: I can’t stop thinking about the wonderful life that I lost Advice | Ask Amy: This is the update that I found most moving Advice | Ask Amy: I took the online advice to dump my boyfriend, and here’s what happened then Advice | Ask Amy: Wife’s sarcasm takes center stage during evening with Martha and George However, I am trying hard to make the best of my life right now.My problem is this: I often contend with remarks from married or engaged coworkers along the lines of I am “able to do more with work” because I “don’t have to get home for anyone” ...

Harriette Cole: She had no right to approach my ex without my consent

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

DEAR HARRIETTE: I went to a bar with a couple of friends and ran into my ex. It was my first time seeing him since we stopped talking completely, and I was anxious about it.Related ArticlesAdvice | Harriette Cole: Should I tell my hometown friend why I’m annoyed at her? Advice | Harriette Cole: It was a completely innocent message, but he unfollowed me Advice | Harriette Cole: I’ve started to worry about my girlfriend’s ethics Advice | Harriette Cole: She drinks to have fun, and then the rest of us can’t Advice | Harriette Cole: How do I tell her there’s no way she could wear those clothes? One of my friends knew everything that had happened between us but did not know what my ex looked like. I told her that I would let her know which one he was when we were about to leave. We were all tipsy and I did not want to have to talk to him.As we were about to leave, she guessed whi...

Fishing for Secrets in the Nord Stream Abyss

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

The skies over the Baltic Sea are a clear blue with just faint ribbons of clouds. It’s May 24 and Erik Andersson eats a bowl of yogurt for breakfast on the deck of the Swedish diving vessel Baltic Explorer. Between bites, the 62-year-old retired engineer and entrepreneur discusses the previous day’s work on his investigation into one of the most significant international crimes in recent history: the bombing of the Nord Stream pipelines.“Well, we arrived at the site, it was the southern site, you know, the first bomb that exploded at 2:03 in the morning local time 26th of September, and we started by making sonar scans with the sonar sensors that are attached to the boat,” he says to the camera held by his daughter Agnes, who has joined him on the expedition to document his journey. “We’re scanning back and forth over the explosion site and by doing that, we got a three-dimensional depth profile. And we could map out, we could see immediately that that was the trench, 100 by 60 mete...

England wins toss and opts to bowl first against Australia in 2nd Ashes test at Lord’s

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:40 GMT

LONDON (AP) — England chose to bowl first against Australia on a green strip under cloudy skies at Lord’s in the second Ashes test on Wednesday.“The overheads have played a massive part in this,” England captain Ben Stokes said. “The wicket looks like it’s got plenty of grass on it so hopefully we can exploit that this morning.”Australia chose fast bowler Mitchell Starc ahead of Scott Boland in the only change to the side which won the first test by two wickets at Edgbaston.Starc played in the world test championship final win against India at the Oval this month but lost out to Boland at Edgbaston when Josh Hazlewood returned from injury.The cloud cover at Lord’s was expected to tip the scales in favor of the accurate Boland again but Starc’s pace and bounce was preferred.“We just wanted some variety,” Australia captain Pat Cummins said. “We’re really happy with how Scott has been going. Unfortunately he is the one to miss out this week but we’re...