Beer byproduct mixed with manure proves an excellent pesticide

Byproducts from the beer and agricultural industry have been shown to reduce numbers of root-knot nematodes and increase yields of lettuce crops

FRONTIERS

Research News

 

IMAGE: A PRODUCTIVE LETTUCE YIELD FOLLOWING THE RESEARCHERS' NEW BIODISINFESTATION METHOD. view more 

CREDIT: IMAGE: MAITE GANDARIASBEITIA ET AL

The use of many chemical fumigants in agriculture have been demonstrated to be harmful to human health and the environment and therefore banned from use.

Now, in an effort to reduce waste from the agricultural industry and reduce the amounts of harmful chemicals used, researchers have investigated using organic byproducts from beer production and farming as a potential method to disinfest soils, preserve healthy soil microorganisms and increase crop yields.

In this study published to Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, researchers from the Neiker Basque Institute for Agricultural Research and Development in Spain investigated using agricultural by-products rapeseed cake and beer bagasse (spent beer grains), along with fresh cow manure as two organic biodisinfestation treatments. The lead author Maite Gandariasbeitia explains: "Rapeseed cake and beer bagasse are two potential organic treatments which have shown really positive results in previous studies.

"Their high nitrogen content promotes the activity of beneficial microorganisms in the soil, which helps to break down organic matter like manure and kill off nematodes and other parasites which damage crops."

Gandariasbeitia also highlights how nematodes can negatively impact crop yields: "Root-knot nematodes are a type of common soil parasite which penetrate a plant's root tissue to lay their eggs and this activity causes galls, or knot-like swellings, to form on the root," she says.

"This damage negatively impacts root development and means the crop can't take up nutrients efficiently, slowing plant growth and ultimately, leading to reduced yields for farmers."

To disinfest the soil and reduce these nematode populations, beer bagasse and rapeseed cake were incorporated into the soil with fresh cow manure as a potential organic treatment. After the first crop post-treatment, the researchers found a significant reduction in galling on plant roots.

Next steps for research

Plots also demonstrated increased yields by around 15% compared to the control plots after one year. Additionally, the organic matter treatment boosted populations of beneficial microorganisms in the soils, as demonstrated by a significantly higher soil respiration rate.

The study demonstrates that these agricultural byproducts are an effective treatment for root-knot nematodes and other soil parasites, achieving higher crop yields as well as promoting sustainable food systems to reduce waste from the agricultural industry. Gandariasbeitia highlights that further research is needed to explore other potential organic treatments that could be used in a similar way: "There are still many questions to answer so that we can gain a better understanding of what happens in the soil during and after these biodisinfestation treatments.

"This can help us to really elucidate what characteristics we should be looking for in other potential organic treatments to be effective in tackling soil parasite populations."

CAPTION

Root galling caused by root-knot nematode infestation.

CREDIT

Image: Maite Gandariasbeitia et al

 

Global warming already responsible for one in three heat-related deaths

New estimates suggest Central and South America and South-East Asia most affected regions

LONDON SCHOOL OF HYGIENE & TROPICAL MEDICINE

Research News

 

Between 1991 and 2018, more than a third of all deaths in which heat played a role were attributable to human-induced global warming, according to a new article in Nature Climate Change.

The study, the largest of its kind, was led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and the University of Bern within the Multi-Country Multi-City (MCC) Collaborative Research Network. Using data from 732 locations in 43 countries around the world it shows for the first time the actual contribution of man-made climate change in increasing mortality risks due to heat.

Overall, the estimates show that 37% of all heat-related deaths in the recent summer periods were attributable to the warming of the planet due to anthropogenic activities. This percentage of heat-related deaths attributed to human-induced climate change was highest in Central and South America (up to 76% in Ecuador or Colombia, for example) and South-East Asia (between 48% to 61%).

Estimates also show the number of deaths from human-induced climate change that occurred in specific cities; 136 additional deaths per year in Santiago de Chile (44.3% of total heat-related deaths in the city), 189 in Athens (26.1%), 172 in Rome (32%), 156 in Tokyo (35.6%), 177 in Madrid (31.9%), 146 in Bangkok (53.4%), 82 in London (33.6%), 141 in New York (44.2%), and 137 in Ho Chi Minh City (48.5%). The authors say their findings are further evidence of the need to adopt strong mitigation policies to reduce future warming, and to implement interventions to protect populations from the adverse consequences of heat exposure.

Dr Ana M. Vicedo-Cabrera, from the University of Bern and first author of the study, said: "We expect the proportion of heat-related deaths to continue to grow if we don't do something about climate change or adapt. So far, the average global temperature has only increased by about 1°C, which is a fraction of what we could face if emissions continue to grow unchecked."

Global warming is affecting our health in several ways, from direct impacts linked to wildfires and extreme weather, to changes in the spread of vector-borne diseases, among others. Perhaps most strikingly is the increase in mortality and morbidity associated with heat. Scenarios of future climate conditions predict a substantial rise in average temperatures, with extreme events such as heatwaves leading to future increases in the related health burden. However, no research has been conducted into what extent these impacts have already occurred in recent decades until now.

This new study focused on man-made global warming through a 'detection & attribution' study that identifies and attributes observed phenomena to changes in climate and weather. Specifically, the team examined past weather conditions simulated under scenarios with and without anthropogenic emissions. This enabled the researchers to separate the warming and related health impact linked with human activities from natural trends. Heat-related mortality was defined as the number of deaths attributed to heat, occurring at exposures higher than the optimum temperature for human health, which varies across locations.

While on average over a third of heat-related deaths are due to human-induced climate change, impact varies substantially across regions. Climate-related heat casualties range from a few dozen to several hundred deaths each year per city, as shown above, depending on the local changes in climate in each area and the vulnerability of its population. Interestingly, populations living in low and middle-income countries, which were responsible for a minor part of anthropogenic emissions in the past, are those most affected.

In the UK, 35% of heat-related deaths could be attributed to human-induced climate change, which corresponds to approximately 82 deaths in London, 16 deaths in Manchester, 20 in West Midlands or 4 in Bristol and Liverpool every summer season.

Professor Antonio Gasparrini from LSHTM, senior author of the study and coordinator of the MCC Network, said: "This is the largest detection & attribution study on current health risks of climate change. The message is clear: climate change will not just have devastating impacts in the future, but every continent is already experiencing the dire consequences of human activities on our planet. We must act now."

The authors acknowledge limitations of the study including being unable to include locations in all world regions--for example, large parts of Africa and South Asia--due to a lack of empirical data.

###

For media requests or interviews, please contact press@lshtm.ac.uk

A copy of the embargoed paper is available upon request. Once published the paper will be available here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01058-x

Notes to Editors

Publication

M. Vicedo-Cabrera, N. Scovronick, F. SeraD. Roye, R. Schneider, A.C. Astrom, Y. Guo, Y. Honda, D. M. Hondula16, R. Abrutzky, S. Tong M. de Sousa Zanotti Stagliorio Coelho, P. H. Nascimento Saldiva, E. Lavigne, P. Matus Correa, N. Valdes Ortega , H. Kan , S. Osorio , J. Kysely, A. Urban, H. Orru, E. Indermitte, J. J. K. Jaakkola, N. Ryti , M. Pascal, A. Schneider, K. Katsouyanni, E. Samoli, F. Mayvaneh, A. Entezari, P. Goodman, A. Zeka, P. Michelozzi, F. de'Donato, M. Hashizume , B. Alahmad, M. Hurtado Dia, C. De La Cruz Valencia, A. Overcenco , D. Houthuijs, C. Ameling, S. Rao, F. Di Ruscio, G. Carrasco-Escobar, X. Seposo, S. Silva , J. Madureira, I. H. Holobaca, S. Fratianni, F. Acquaotta, H. Kim , W. Lee, C. Iniguez, B. Forsber, M. S. Ragettli, Y. L. L. Guo, B. Y. Chen, S. Li14, B. Armstrong, A. Aleman, A. Zanobetti, J. Schwartz, T. N. Dang, D. V. Dung, N. Gillett, A. Haines, M. Mengel, V. Huber, and A. Gasparrini. The burden of heat-related mortality attributable to recent human-induced climate change. Nature. DOI: 10.1038/s41558-021-01058-x

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a world-leading centre for research, postgraduate studies and continuing education in public and global health. LSHTM has a strong international presence with over 3,000 staff and 4,000 students working in the UK and countries around the world, and an annual research income of £180 million.

LSHTM is one of the highest-rated research institutions in the UK, is partnered with two MRC University Units in The Gambia and Uganda, and was named University of the Year in the Times Higher Education Awards 2016. Our mission is to improve health and health equity in the UK and worldwide; working in partnership to achieve excellence in public and global health research, education and translation of knowledge into policy and practice. http://www.lshtm.ac.uk

 

The price is right: Modeling economic growth in a zero-emission society

Researchers analyze whether it is possible to simultaneously grow the economy while not producing more pollution

TOKYO UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE

Research News

 

Pollution from manufacturing is now widespread, affecting all regions in the world, with serious ecological, economic, and political consequences. Heightened public concern and scrutiny have led to numerous governments considering policies that aim to lower pollution and improve environmental qualities. Inter-governmental agreements such as the Paris Agreement and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals all focus on lowering emissions of pollution. Specifically, they aim to achieve a "zero-emission society," which means that pollution is cleaned up as it is produced, while also reducing pollution (This idea of dealing with pollution is referred to as the "kindergarten rule.")

Of course, any efforts to achieve this goal require monetary investment and changes to manufacturing strategies, which, many worry, could hurt the economy. Now, a modeling study conducted by researchers from Tokyo University of Science and The Shoko Chukin Bank, Japan, published in the Journal of Cleaner Production, shows that it is possible to achieve economic growth simultaneously with environmental preservation. "There are existing models that look at how economies fluctuate under various conditions, such as differing environmental quality or tax rates, but these models haven't examined the effects of implementing the kindergarten rule," Prof. Hideo Noda, the study's lead author, explained. "So we thought it was important to extend the model and include a condition where the hypothetical society spends a part of its GDP to achieve zero emissions. Looking at emissions is also more tangible and easier to grasp than a vaguer concept of 'environmental quality.'"

The researchers used an economic model that allows for movement back and forth between two stages: a no-innovation phase and an innovation phase. The key to this model is the importance of innovation; previous models that focus on the environment and the economy did not account for innovation (e.g., research and development) as a major driver of economic growth in most developed nations. Acknowledging this connection is essential for improving our knowledge regarding how environmental problems and economic growth are linked.

When researchers included rules for the zero-emission society, the model indicated that it was compatible with economic growth (i.e., a sustained GDP growth), despite a portion of the GDP being dedicated to reducing pollution. For this to work, however, the model says that the GDP needs to be above a certain level. Additionally, the amount of GDP allocated to lowering pollution must be flexible. Researchers also observed that under the no-innovation phase, GDP growth is higher and the amount spent on pollution reduction decreases faster. In contrast, under the innovation phase, GDP growth is lower and the decrease in amount spent combating pollution is also slower.

According to Prof. Noda, this work provides important theoretical groundwork for policy, because currently, the relationship between zero emissions and economic growth isn't well understood. "Yet, this topic is extremely relevant to any policy push for sustainability--for example, one section of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals explicitly focuses on economic growth," he explains. "Our model should help persuade the leaders of some countries that it is feasible to reduce emissions without tanking the economy."

That, Prof. Noda hopes, may in turn make leaders more eager to implement the changes that are urgently needed to address global environmental crises like climate change.

###

About The Tokyo University of Science

Tokyo University of Science (TUS) is a well-known and respected university, and the largest science-specialized private research university in Japan, with four campuses in central Tokyo and its suburbs and in Hokkaido. Established in 1881, the university has continually contributed to Japan's development in science through inculcating the love for science in researchers, technicians, and educators.

With a mission of "Creating science and technology for the harmonious development of nature, human beings, and society", TUS has undertaken a wide range of research from basic to applied science. TUS has embraced a multidisciplinary approach to research and undertaken intensive study in some of today's most vital fields. TUS is a meritocracy where the best in science is recognized and nurtured. It is the only private university in Japan that has produced a Nobel Prize winner and the only private university in Asia to produce Nobel Prize winners within the natural sciences field.

Website: https://www.tus.ac.jp/en/mediarelations/

About Professor Hideo Noda from Tokyo University of Science

Dr. Hideo Noda is a Professor at the Department of Business Economics, School of Management at Tokyo University of Science. Prof. Noda has a PhD in Economics from Kyushu University, Japan. He is the sole author of this paper, and has over 40 research publications to his credit. His chief research areas include economic growth, infrastructure management, and work-life balance.

Funding information

This study was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C) (20K01639) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

Has COVID-19 caused Canadians to cut down on smoking? Expert says yes

An expert in public health and tobacco control is pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic as a factor in Canada's declining smoking rates.

Patchaanan Worrapatchareeroj\Getty

University of Waterloo public health professor David Hammond said the reduction in Canadian smoking over the last year -- as found by his own research as well as a recent StatCan report -- was a direct result of health concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic and years of anti-tobacco messaging from the federal government.
According to Hammond, the declining trend was also felt by the country's vaping industry as well, noting 2020 as one of the first years to see a levelling off in vaping among adults and kids.

Read more: Quitting smoking could help protect against coronavirus, experts say

"You know, most of us are at home, quite frankly, it's just not as cool to step outside on the porch and have a smoke with your mom as it is with your friends or vape with your mom or dad," said Hammond.

"So I think between health concerns about COVID, the link between smoking and vaping and maybe the increased risk of COVID severity, that has something to do with it."

Hammond also noted several policies that Canada put in place in the past decade like standardized cigarette packaging and the banning of menthol cigarettes.

"It's an accumulation of those things and that we just don't have many young people taking up smoking," he said.

Video: Experimentation driving youth vaping rates: Canadian Vaping Association

According to data from a StatCan survey of 8,112 people taken between December 2020 and January 2021, smoking saw a decline from 2019 -- the most significant of which was among those aged 20 to 24 -- with an overall five per cent decrease.

The March report also found the prevalence of vaping across all age groups in the past month had stayed relatively the same since 2019.

Fourteen per cent of teenagers between 15 to 19 reported having vaped in the past month, while those aged 20 to 24 were 13 per cent. Those rates were both 15 per cent in 2019, while the monthly prevalence of vaping in ages 25 and older stayed the same at three per cent.

How the pandemic is impacting youth & vaping

The declining trend has also manifested in a decline in the country's tobacco sales over the past few years. Monthly cigarette sales from 2010 to 2019 averaged roughly between 1.7 to 1.8 billion units, and decreased to about 1.4 to 1.5 billion from 2020 to April 2021.

Patients contracting COVID-19 have seen symptoms particularly associated with the lungs, such as coughing and shortness of breath. Smokers have been warned to be a particularly at-risk group to the disease.

While trends in the industry have been looking downward, Hammond warned vaping prevalence was in the midst of a bounce back.

Read more: New Jersey allows smokers to get early coronavirus vaccine. Here’s why

"We're starting to see some evidence that there is a little bit of a rebound in terms of vaping," he said. "It's a question people are asking about cannabis use, about vaping, about what's happening with our diet and physical activity.

"We've seen so many changes with COVID. Are those short-term or what's going to be the long-term impact?"

 

Ethnic diversity helps identify more genomic regions linked to diabetes-related traits

By including multi-ethnic participants, a largescale genetic study has identified more regions of the genome linked to type 2 diabetes-related traits than if the research had been conducted in Europeans alone.

UNIVERSITY OF EXETER

Research News

    SHARE

 PRINT  E-MAIL

By including multi-ethnic participants, a largescale genetic study has identified more regions of the genome linked to type 2 diabetes-related traits than if the research had been conducted in Europeans alone.

The international MAGIC collaboration, made up of more than 400 global academics, conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis led by the University of Exeter. Now published in Nature Genetics, their findings demonstrate that expanding research into different ancestries yields more and better results, as well as ultimately benefitting global patient care.

Up to now, nearly 87 per cent of genomic research of this type has been conducted in Europeans. This means that the way these findings are implemented may not optimally benefit people from non-European ancestries.

The team analysed data across a wide range of cohorts, encompassing more than 280,000 people without diabetes. Researchers looked at glycaemic traits, which are used to diagnose diabetes and monitor sugar and insulin levels in the blood.

The researchers incorporated 30 percent of the overall cohort with individuals of East Asian, Hispanic, African-American, South Asian and sub-Saharan African origin. By doing so, they discovered 24 more loci - or regions of the genome -linked to glycaemic traits than if they had conducted the research in Europeans alone.

Professor Inês Barroso, of the University of Exeter, who led the research, said: "Type 2 diabetes is an increasingly huge global health challenge- with most of the biggest increases occurring outside of Europe. While there are a lot of shared genetic factors between different countries and cultures, our research tells us that they do differ, in ways that we need to understand. It's critical to ensuring we can deliver a precision diabetes medicine approach that optimises treatment and care for everyone."

First author Dr Ji Chen, of the University of Exeter, said: "We discovered 24 additional regions of the genome by including cohorts which were more ethnically diverse than we would have done if we'd restricted our work to Europeans. Beyond the moral arguments for ensuring research is reflective of global populations, our work demonstrates that this approach generates better results."

The team found that though some loci were not detected in all ancestries, they were still useful to capture information about the glycaemic trait in that ancestry. Co-author Cassandra Spracklen, Assistant Professor at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, said: "Our findings matter because we're moving towards using genetic scores to weigh up a person's risk of diabetes. We know that scores developed exclusively in individuals of one ancestry don't work well in people of a different ancestry. This is important as increasingly healthcare is moving towards a more precise approach. Failing to account for genetic variation according to ancestry will impact our ability to accurately diagnose diabetes."

###

The study is entitled 'The Trans-Ancestral Genomic Architecture of Glycemic Traits', and is published in Nature Genetics.

 

Brain activity reveals when white lies are selfish

Activity in prefrontal cortex provides clues about if a white lie has selfish motives

SOCIETY FOR NEUROSCIENCE

Research News

 

IMAGE: PEOPLE WITH HIGHER SELFISH MOTIVATION IN PARETO WHITE LIES SHOWED INCREASED VMPFC ACTIVITY (RED) FOR SELFISH LIES AND INCREASED RMPFC ACTIVITY (BLUE) FOR ALTRUISTIC LIES. IN ADDITION, THEIR NEURAL REPRESENTATIONS... view more 

CREDIT: KIM AND KIM, JNEUROSCI 2021

You may think a little white lie about a bad haircut is strictly for your friend's benefit, but your brain activity says otherwise. Distinct activity patterns in the prefrontal cortex reveal when a white lie has selfish motives, according to new research published in JNeurosci.

White lies -- formally called Pareto lies -- can benefit both parties, but their true motives are encoded by the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC). This brain region computes the value of different social behaviors, with some subregions focusing on internal motivations and others on external ones. Kim and Kim predicted activity patterns in these subregions could elucidate the true motive behind white lies.

The research team deployed a stand in for white lies, having participants tell lies to earn a reward for themselves, for an unknown person, or for both. The team used fMRI to measure the MPFC activity of participants and, by comparing the brain activity of white lies with the selfish and altruistic lies, they could predict the true motivation for the lies. Selfish white lies elicited greater activity in the ventral and rostral MPFC. Activity patterns in the ventral subregion was similar to that of selfish lies, while activity patterns in the rostral subregion was dissimilar to altruistic lies.

###

Paper title: Neural Representation in MPFC Reveals Hidden Selfish Motivation in White Lies

About JNeurosci

JNeurosci, the Society for Neuroscience's first journal, was launched in 1981 as a means to communicate the findings of the highest quality neuroscience research to the growing field. Today, the journal remains committed to publishing cutting-edge neuroscience that will have an immediate and lasting scientific impact, while responding to authors' changing publishing needs, representing breadth of the field and diversity in authorship.

About The Society for Neuroscience

The Society for Neuroscience is the world's largest organization of scientists and physicians devoted to understanding the brain and nervous system. The nonprofit organization, founded in 1969, now has nearly 37,000 members in more than 90 countries and over 130 chapters worldwide.

Australia's Wyloo promises metals hub in bid for Canada's Noront

IMPERIALISM THE HIGHEST STAGE OF CAPITALISM

By Jeff Lewis 

TORONTO (Reuters) - Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest's Wyloo Metals on Monday said it would develop a "future metals hub" and study battery material production in Canada as it seeks to clinch a takeover of nickel-copper miner Noront Resources.

Wyloo's planned unsolicited bid for the remaining shares of the Canadian miner values Noront at C$133 million ($110.12 million), or C$0.315 per share. It is Noront's top shareholder, with a 23% stake as of December.

Noront last week said it would look to adopt a poison-pill plan to thwart any takeover.

Wyloo head Luca Giacovazzi declined to comment on the potential for a higher bid, noting the offer is a 91% premium to Noront's share price in December, before Wyloo's initial investment.

"It's a very material premium to shareholders who have had to go through the pains of the Noront story for many years," he told Reuters.

Noront had no immediate comment.

Wyloo said it would commit C$25 million to study the potential to produce chemical products in Ontario province, Canada, for the emerging market for electric vehicle batteries, including the construction of a ferrochrome plant.

It would also target C$100 million in contract awards to First Nation businesses and develop Noront's flagship Eagle's Nest deposit as a net-zero emissions mine, the company said.

Wyloo is a subsidiary of Forrest's Tattarang, one of Australia's largest private investment groups.

Canada in March tightened foreign investment rules in critical minerals, but stopped short of barring the acquisitions of such assets.

(Reporting by Jeff Lewis; editing by Barbara Lewis)

Demonstrators gather outside Nashville hat store that offered 'not vaccinated' yellow Star of David badges

By Melissa Alonso and Andy Rose, CNN 

The owner of a Nashville hat store is being accused of anti-Semitism after announcing the sale of yellow Star of David badges, similar to the ones Nazis forced Jews to wear during the Holocaust, which read "NOT VACCINATED."© WSMV Demonstrators gather outside Nashville hat store that offered "not vaccinated" yellow Star of David badges

Nashville's hatWRKS posted a photo on Instagram on Friday announcing the sale of a Star of David patch that says "NOT VACCINATED," according to CNN affiliates WZTV and WSMV. The post has since been removed.


The caption on the post read: "patches are here!! they turned out great. $5ea. strong adhesive back .... we'll be offering trucker caps soon."

CNN has made several attempts to reach the store's owner, Gigi Gaskins, but has not heard back.

An apology was issued Sunday on the store's Instagram.

"In NO WAY did i intend to trivialize the Star of David or disrespect what happened to millions of people. that is not who i am & what i stand for," said the apology. "My intent was not to exploit or make a profit. my hope was to share my genuine concern & fear, and to do all that i can to make sure that nothing like that ever happens again. i sincerely apologize for any insensitivity."

Jewish people in Europe were legally forced to wear badges as far back as the 13th century, according to the Holocaust Memorial Center. The Nazis resurrected this practice, which facilitated the Jews' "separation from society and subsequent ghettoization, which ultimately led to the deportation and murder of 6 million Jews," the center's website says.

After the post was removed, another hatWRKS post from Friday said, "people are so outraged by my post? but are you outraged with the tyranny the world is experiencing? if you don't understand what is happening, that is on you, not me."

Western apparel maker Stetson announced Saturday evening it was cutting ties with the store.

"As a result of the offensive content and opinions shared by hatWRKS in Nashville, Stetson and our distribution partners will cease the sale of all Stetson products," the company said on Twitter.

Stetson announced its decision to stop selling its products to hatWRKS hours after tweeting it was investigating the complaints.

"Along with our distribution partners, Stetson condemns antisemitism and discrimination of any kind," the company said.

The website for hatWRKS showed dozens of styles of Stetson hats for sale Saturday evening, with many listed at more than $200.

Demonstrators react to the post

A group of demonstrators gathered outside the store Saturday morning with signs that read "No Nazis in Nashville" and "Nashville condemns hatWRKS," according to video from WSMV.

"We're here to protest hate and ignorance with regard to what she's doing in selling yellow stars that are a symbol of the greatest atrocity the world has ever seen, which is the loss of 6 million human beings," Nashville resident Ron Rivlin told WSMV on Saturday outside the hat store.

"I think I understand what she was trying to do, but the way she did it was just, she doesn't understand how offensive it is to the Jewish community and to everybody," Rivlin said.

"This is not about vaccine or anti-vaccine. People are free to make their own decisions," Rivlin added. "Jews didn't have a choice whether to wear that star or not. They were forced to wear that star and that led to their eventual death," said Rivlin.

"It's a terrible idea. It's a terrible thing," Roger Abramson, an attorney from Brentwood, Tennessee, told WSMV.

"There's no way you could reasonably associate choosing to go without vaccinations for Covid ... and assuming that you're in the same spot as a Jewish person in Nazi Germany," Abramson said.

"To me, it's willful ignorance," Abramson continued. "The information is out there. People are willfully ignoring facts, information and history because it doesn't fit what they want to believe or it doesn't fit some narrative they have."

Rabbi Laurie Rice, of Congregation Micah in Brentwood, told WSMV on Friday that "using the yellow star or any Holocaust imagery for anything really is a disservice to the memory of the 6 million Jews who were systematically murdered during the Holocaust."

Albertans give UCP failing grade for handling of pandemic: poll

Jason Herring CALGARY HERALD 31/5/2021

Albertans’ satisfaction with the province’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic has reached a new low, a recent poll suggests.

© Gavin Young/Postmedia The downtown Calgary skyline is hidden by fog as a commuter crosses the Centre Street bridge on Wednesday, May 26, 2021.

Seventy-eight per cent of Albertans say they do not believe the province has handled the pandemic well, according to the survey by Leger conducted for Postmedia, which polled 1,118 Albertans online between May 21 and 24.


Pollster Ian Large said this is likely to be the nadir of the pandemic for Premier Jason Kenney’s government, as polling took place immediately before the province announced its aggressive reopening plan last week , with the potential for nearly all COVID-19 restrictions to be lifted by the end of June.

“We’ve seen all through the pandemic that there’s been very poor scores for the Alberta government and the premier’s handling of it, almost out of the gate,” said Large, executive vice-president at Leger.

“But this is, in my opinion, as low as it’s going to get . . . During this week, certainly from where I’m sitting, there feels like a lot more optimism.”

Broad disapproval of the United Conservatives’ pandemic approach persists in all regions of Alberta, but Calgarians were more favourable than those in Edmonton or rural regions. UNITED CALGARY PARTY

The wide-reaching frustration with the province’s pandemic approach comes from opposite ends of the political spectrum, Large said.

Kenney has faced criticism over his handling of COVID-19 from those who believe the government isn’t taking strong enough action to mitigate virus spread, as well as those who think the province’s actions have been too strict.

“It’s only a smaller group in the middle that says it’s just about right, in kind of a Goldilocks zone,” Large said.

© Provided by Calgary Herald

One-quarter of respondents said they believe the province should lift all COVID-19 restrictions now, with support for removing restrictions highest among Albertans under 45 and those living outside of Calgary and Edmonton.

Albertans responded most favourably to the province’s handling of the vaccine rollout, though only about a third of respondents said it was good or very good.

Large said the frame of reference matters when evaluating Alberta’s vaccine campaign. In the context of Canadian provinces, Alberta trails only Quebec and Manitoba in per-capita doses administered, but some pessimism might come from higher rates in the U.S.

“Despite the fact the vaccine rollout is among the best if not the best in the country, people might look to what’s happening in the United States and say, why do they have significantly more people vaccinated than in Canada, and much looser health restrictions?” Large said.

“In Canada, we’re doing really well. But compared to some other countries — the United Kingdom, the U.S. — we’re not doing so well.”

Albertans gave the worst marks to the government for listening to the views of all Albertans during the pandemic — the issue at the core of a UCP caucus revolt earlier this month that saw two dissidents expelled from the party.

Only 17 per cent of respondents believe the Alberta government is doing a good job listening to views of those across the province.

“It’s easy to see why Albertans think they’re not being listened to, because there’s these very vocal anti-lockdown people,” Large said, referencing scofflaw churches and a large rodeo in central Alberta . “They’re the ones that are taking up all the oxygen.”

The Leger poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.9 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

jherring@postmedia.com

Twitter: @jason

Nestle, under fire over unhealthy products, working on new strategy

ZURICH (Reuters) - Nestle said on Monday it was working on updating its nutrition and health strategy after the Financial Times reported an internal document at the food giant described a large portion of its food and drinks as unhealthy.

© Reuters/Denis Balibouse FILE PHOTO: Logo is pictured on the Nestle research center in Lausanne

The newspaper said it had seen an internal presentation circulated among top executives early this year stating that more than 60% of Nestle's mainstream food and drinks portfolio could not be considered healthy under a "recognised definition of health".

The paper said this assessment applied to about half of Nestle's overall portfolio because categories like medical nutrition, pet food, coffee and infant formula were excluded from the analysis.

Kepler Cheuvreux analyst Jon Cox said that including these categories would significantly reduce the proportion of products potentially considered unhealthy.

"Given the group’s confectionery, ice cream, and pizza businesses, the real figure for the group based on 2021 estimates would be 28%, which is hardly a surprise," he said in a note. He said the report could point to changes in the product portfolio, notably an exit from mainstream confectionary.

Nestle said in a statement it was working on a "company-wide project" to update its nutrition and health strategy and was looking at its entire portfolio to make sure its products helped meet people's nutritional needs.

It said it had reduced sugars and sodium in its products by about 14-15% in the past seven years and would continue to make its products healthier.

Nestle shares were 0.2% higher at 0951 GMT, broadly in line with the European food sector.

(Reporting by Silke Koltrowitz; Editing by Mark Potter)

PREIMER IS BEGGING USA FOR VACCINES
Manitoba officials didn't heed warnings about a 3rd COVID-19 wave. Now hospitals are overwhelmed

DESPITE CANADA HAVING VACCINES

JUST ANOTHER TORY BLAMING TRUDEAU

FOR HIS INEPTITUDE

Bartley Kives  CBC

© Mikaela Mackenzie/Winnipeg Free Press/The Canadian Press As of Sunday, Manitoba has transferred 35 COVID-19 patients from intensive care wards — such as this one at Winnipeg's Health Sciences Centre — to hospitals in Ontario and Saskatchewan…

Across Canada, most provinces are relaxing pandemic restrictions or planning on reopening their economies later this spring or in the early summer — but Manitoba is a stark exception.

For the past two weeks, the province that once appeared as if it would be spared a third wave of the pandemic has posted the highest per capita COVID-19 infection rate of any Canadian province or U.S. state. This has forced Premier Brian Pallister's Progressive Conservative government to increase restrictions while most jurisdictions are removing them.

Manitoba's daily average of 26 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 citizens is more than triple the Canadian average and nearly double that of Washington state, the jurisdiction with the second-worst infection rate.

Even as Manitoba's daily case counts have started to recede, Pallister and his public health officials had little choice but to extend public health restrictions.

"We are in a tough situation and our need is to protect each other and to safeguard our health care system for all of us," Pallister said on May 27.

Epidemiologists, infectious disease experts and intensive care unit (ICU) physicians in Manitoba say the Pallister government has only itself to blame.

"They dithered with half-measures, ignoring the science and evidence all around them, and eroded public trust while squandering a month-long cushion at the start of the third wave," Souradet Shaw, a social epidemiologist at the University of Manitoba, said in a series of tweets on May 20 after Manitoba Shared Health began to transfer ICU patients out of province.

"Instead of developing a clearly articulated and evidence-based strategy to tackle predictable surges, they impugned critics; misled the public through distortions, obscuring data, and accountability, and blamed everyone but themselves."
Hospitals in crisis

The ongoing crisis in Manitoba hospitals, which have been struggling for weeks to treat record volumes of COVID-19 patients, is the main reason behind the continuing restrictions.

On Sunday, a record 106 Manitoban COVID-19 patients were receiving intensive care. This includes 32 ICU patients transferred to hospitals in Ontario and Saskatchewan because there is no capacity in Winnipeg and Brandon hospitals to handle the patients.

A total of 35 ICU patients have been transferred out of province as of Sunday. Three have been returned, while another prospective transfer — 31-year-old Krystal Mousseau of Ebb and Flow First Nation — died on May 25 after an attempt to move her from Brandon to Ottawa.

The hospital crisis has also led to the deaths of non-COVID patients, mainly because thousands of surgeries have been cancelled to free up hospital staff to work on COVID-19 wards.

Six cardiac patients have died waiting for heart surgeries that could not be performed because nurses and other health-care staff were not available, Winnipeg ICU physician Dr. Eric Jacobsohn said on May 25.

Other non-COVID patients are suffering while the health-care system struggles to provide basic care, he said.

Concerns raised weeks ago

Jacobsohn and Shaw are among dozens of doctors, infectious disease experts and epidemiologists who warned the provincial health-care system was in danger in early April, when COVID-19 case counts began rising exponentially in Manitoba.

Provincial officials dismissed those concerns, even as hospitalizations during Ontario's third wave rose to the point where Toronto intensive care wards were struggling to treat record numbers of COVID-19 patients.

Dr. Jazz Atwal, Manitoba's deputy provincial public health officer, promised Manitoba would enact restrictions in time to prevent his province from suffering a similar fate.

"Ontario, when you look at how the case numbers went up, likely waited much too long," Atwal said during an April 16 news briefing. "We're not going to go down that road, I could assure you that."

Manitoba: Daily new COVID-19 cases

Pallister went further later that month, lashing out at ICU physicians' calls for a lockdown. "It's coming all too often from people who wouldn't be affected adversely by a shutdown," he said.

"There are a lot of other people out in the province who don't have a guaranteed paycheque, who are struggling to make ends meet, who have to work for a living, and they don't want to go back to depending on a government program."
2nd-wave strategy returns

It took a month for the official rhetoric to change in Manitoba. By the Victoria Day long weekend, hospitals were transferring ICU patients out of province and the premier was asking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for critical-care nurses, respiratory therapists and contact tracers.

After the second wave of the pandemic, when Manitoba's slow imposition of pandemic restrictions led to the highest per capita COVID-19 death rate in Canada, there was an expectation the province would be more proactive if cases counts ever rose again.

Back in March, chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin suggested Manitoba had learned its lesson about imposing a series of incremental restrictions instead of enacting a lockdown.

"We quickly saw that the incremental approach and really trying to trying to limit the impact of those restrictions just didn't work when we started seeing more and more transmission," Roussin said, pledging more decisive action next time. "I think that's something we'd have to consider earlier on."

Instead, Manitoba officials opted to once again employ a strategy similar the one they utilized with little success during the second wave. And Pallister, who had hinted earlier at some form of reopening strategy akin to those of other provinces, acknowledged Manitoba's third wave is now destined to linger well into the summer.

"We're not in a position to reopen," Pallister said.

Active COVID-19 cases by province & territory

Italy judge hands Riva brothers prison terms over Ilva pollution

By Crispian Balmer 

Reuters/CIRO DE LUCA FILE PHOTO:

 Steam comes out of the chimneys of the Ilva steel plant in Taranto

ROME (Reuters) - An Italian court on Monday sentenced the former owners of the Ilva steelworks, Fabio and Nicola Riva, to 22 and 20 years in jail respectively for allowing it to spew out deadly pollution.

Once the largest steel producer in Europe, the factory emitted a lethal cocktail of carcinogenic dioxins and mineral particles for more than half a century, that medics say caused a surge in cancer in the adjacent city of Taranto.

Wrapping up a trial that lasted five years, a Taranto court also handed prison terms to other ex-managers at Ilva, as well as the former head of the Puglia region, Nichi Vendola, who received a 3-1/2 year sentence.

All the defendants have the automatic right to two appeals before a sentence becomes definitive.

The Riva brothers, who have previously denied any wrongdoing, made no immediate comment. Vendola issued a statement denying any wrongdoing and saying he would appeal.

"It is like living in an upside-down world, where those who have worked for the good of Taranto are condemned without a shred of evidence," he said.

Ilva took root in Puglia, the heel of Italy's boot, in the 1960s as part of a government drive to industrialize the impoverished south.

At its peak, it produced more than 10 million tonnes of steel a year, but magistrates intervened in 2012 and said it had to be cleaned up or shut down, alleging the Riva family had allowed an environmental disaster to unfold.

A 2016 report by the regional health authority highlighted Ilva's impact on Taranto.

It showed lung cancer death rates were some 30% higher than normal in districts near the plant, while deaths from respiratory illnesses were as much as 50% above average. Ilva workers were 41% more likely to develop stomach cancer and 72% more likely to get pleural cancer.

The government took control in 2015 to safeguard some 16,000 jobs and reached a deal to sell the plant to ArcelorMittal in 2018. However, this is being renegotiated, with the state likely to become the main shareholder as environmental concerns remain.

The court on Monday said the plant must be confiscated, however this will only be executed once the appeals process is exhausted.

(Reporting by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Alexander Smith)

AP Staffers Demanded To Know Why Emily Wilder Was Fired After A Conservative "Smear Campaign" Over Her Pro-Palestinian Activism

"Wilder was a young journalist, unnecessarily harmed by the AP’s handling and announcement of its firing of her."

Tasneem Nashrulla BuzzFeed News Reporter
Last updated on May 24, 2021

Angel Mendoza Emily Wilder

More than 100 Associated Press employees have criticized the way the news organization fired a young journalist last week after a conservative "smear campaign" over her pro-Palestinian activism in college.

In the open letter published Monday, AP staffers from across the world demanded more clarity from the company about why Emily Wilder, 22, was fired as a news associate in Phoenix only three weeks into her job.

"Wilder was a young journalist, unnecessarily harmed by the AP’s handling and announcement of its firing of her," the staffers said in the letter. "We need to know that the AP would stand behind and provide resources to journalists who are the subject of smear campaigns and online harassment."
Twitter: @kat__stafford

In a viral Twitter thread last week, the Stanford College Republicans branded Wilder, who is Jewish, as an "anti-Israel agitator" by highlighting her old social media posts critical of Israel and her participation in pro-Palestinian groups and rallies during her time at Stanford.

Their tweets were amplified by several conservative news outlets as well as Republican lawmakers like Sen. Tom Cotton, who raised questions about AP's objectivity in covering Israel and Palestinian territories.

The AP fired Wilder on Wednesday despite an editor initially assuring her that she would not face any recrimination for her old social media posts, she said.

According to Wilder's termination letter, which she shared with BuzzFeed News, her old posts prompted the company to review her social media activity. In a statement to BuzzFeed News, the AP said that she was fired for violating the company's social media policy "during her time at AP," but they did not specify the offending posts either to her or to the staff.

The staffers said AP's lack of communication after Wilder's firing "gives us no confidence that any one of us couldn’t be next, sacrificed without explanation."

The employees noted that interest groups involved in targeting Wilder were "celebrating their victory and turning their sights on more AP journalists."

"Once we decide to play this game on the terms of those acting in bad faith, we can’t win," the letter said.

Responding to the letter Monday, AP spokesperson Lauren Easton said, "The Associated Press looks forward to continuing the conversation with staff about AP’s social media policy."

Easton appeared to refute some aspects of the letter, saying that the company's news leadership sent a note about Wilder's termination to its global news staff on Saturday and that AP "did not choose to name Emily Wilder publicly, as the letter states."

Easton also noted that AP's social media policy is negotiated with the News Media Guild which represents its US news staffers.

"Our News Values and Principles, including our social media guidelines, exist to ensure that the comments of one person cannot jeopardize our journalism or the journalists who are covering the story," Easton said.

Wilder did not respond to a request for comment about the letter.

In their letter, AP staffers said the episode also prompted the public to question the credibility of AP's reporting on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and did a disservice to their "courageous journalists in Gaza — who have already greatly suffered this month — and in Israel."


The Israeli military bombed the Gaza building housing AP's bureau and other international media organizations, without providing evidence that Hamas — the Palestinian militant group — operated there. Israeli officials gave the journalists just minutes to evacuate before destroying the building.

After her firing, Wilder and several journalists noted the disproportionate backlash against peers who publicly hold pro-Palestinian views and questioned the decision to fire employees based on newsrooms' vague social media policies governing objectivity.

"The lack of clarity on the violations of the social media policy has made AP journalists afraid to engage on social media — often critical to our jobs — in any capacity," AP staffers wrote in the letter.

They asked the AP to offer clarity about the disciplinary process used for Wilder and to specify which of her social media posts led to her termination.

Employees also demanded a commitment from AP to support any staffers "targeted by harassment campaigns" and a forum where AP journalists could discuss the best social media practices for its journalists.

"It’s important that the AP and its employees can articulate where the lines are drawn," the letter said.

In College, She Was A Pro-Palestinian Activist. The AP Just Fired Her After A Conservative "Witch Hunt."

Emily Wilder spoke with BuzzFeed News after she was fired by the Associated Press when conservatives shared her old social media posts and noted her pro-Palestinian college activism.

Tasneem NashrullaBuzzFeed News Reporter
Last updated on May 22, 2021

A 22-year-old Stanford graduate was fired by the Associated Press on Wednesday, after what she described as a "witch hunt" by conservatives who resurfaced her old social media posts critical of Israel, as well as her pro-Palestinian activism in college.

"It really felt like I got hung out to dry," said Emily Wilder, who was fired only three weeks after joining the AP as a news associate in Phoenix. The role was not a reporting position and did not involve covering international news.

A spokesperson for AP told BuzzFeed News that Wilder was dismissed for violating the company's social media policy "during her time at AP."

"We have this policy so the comments of one person cannot create dangerous conditions for our journalists covering the story," the spokesperson said.

However, Wilder told BuzzFeed News that her editors at AP refused to tell her which of her tweets or posts had violated the news agency's policies. The AP spokesperson also did not specify the offending posts.

Several journalists on Friday criticized the AP's decision to fire Wilder, noting the disproportionate backlash against peers who publicly hold pro-Palestinian views. Others were critical of firing journalists for their old college or high school tweets.



Twitter: @GlennKesslerWP


Wilder, who is Jewish, said AP's decision to fire her felt like a "convenient cover story for sacrificing me as collateral" after conservative outlets and lawmakers branded her as anti-Israel and slammed the news organization for hiring her.

Wilder, who first spoke with SF Gate on Thursday, said the "harassment campaign" against her began when the Stanford College Republicans on Monday wrote a Twitter thread branding her as an "anti-Israel agitator" and highlighting her pro-Palestinian posts and activism during her time at Stanford.

In one post shared by the group, Wilder called Sheldon Adelson, the late billionaire GOP mega-donor and close ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a "naked mole rat." She also referred to conservative commentator Ben Shapiro as "a little turd" in a 2019 op-ed for the Stanford Daily.

The Twitter thread brought up her affiliations with Jewish Voice for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine, as well as her participation in a 2017 "Return the Birthright” rally in New York.

Wilder said the Stanford College Republicans had "antagonized" her and her friends in the past over her activism in college, including a time she hosted a 2019 speech by Jewish cartoonist Eli Valley, an outspoken critic of Israel's treatment of Palestinians.

"They were holding on those screenshots for three years, I guess," Wilder said. "They're known for these kind of cheap tactics and for their sole politics really being to disrupt other people's lives."

After the tweets went viral, Wilder said she was shaken and concerned, especially after receiving a barrage of online harassment.

"Any woman in journalism understands how violent and vile those messages can become very quickly," she said.

However, she said an AP editor assured her in a phone call on Tuesday night that the organization was most concerned about the harassment she was facing and was going to take steps to address that.

Wilder said the editor told her that she would not face repercussions for her old posts and activism she was involved with in college before becoming a journalist.

During that call, she said, the editor also suggested that she should remove "Black Lives Matter" from her Twitter bio, which she did at the time.

The next day, however, things "really escalated" after her old posts were amplified by several conservative news outlets, including Fox News, and by Republican lawmakers like Sen. Tom Cotton.

In one article, the Washington Free Beacon wrote that Wilder's hire "could fuel concerns about the AP's objectivity amid revelations that the news outlet shared an office building with Hamas military intelligence in Gaza."

The AP has said Israel's army had not provided any evidence so far to support its decision to bomb the building that housed the AP's Gaza bureau and other international media organizations.

Wilder said that on Wednesday afternoon the same AP editor who had assured her that she would not face consequences for her old posts and activism called to tell her she was being terminated immediately.

According to Wilder, the editor told her that since their last conversation "new things came to light," prompting a review of her social media.

Wilder's termination letter, which she shared with BuzzFeed News, reads, "As discussed, over the last few days some of your social media posts made prior to joining AP surfaced. Those posts prompted a review of your social media activity since you began with the AP, May 3, 2021. In that review, it was found that some tweets violated AP’s News Values and Principles."

The letter recalled that during her first week at the AP, an editor had a meeting with her and "specifically spoke to you about the social media expectations of AP journalists."

"It’s paramount that journalists working for The Associated Press cover the news impartially, do not have any conflicts that could be perceived as leading to bias in reporting and on social media refrain from sharing opinions or engaging in any activity that could compromise AP’s reputation for objectivity," the letter said.

Wilder said that when she asked what posts violated the AP's policies, she did not get an answer from either her editor or the letter.

She said she did not believe any of her social media posts were egregious enough for her to be singled out and fired and that the AP should have given her a warning instead of firing her immediately.

Amid the recent surge of violence in the region, leading to more than 200 Palestinians being killed in Israeli airstrikes, Wilder said she retweeted articles about the AP building being bombed by the Israeli military and about the death toll in Gaza.

She also wrote a tweet questioning the language media outlets used while writing about Israel and Palestinian territories and how one side always gets "policed and censored."

Twitter: @vv1lder

Wilder said social media policies surrounding objectivity were "so imprecise, vague, and nebulous" that they were "haphazardly and selectively enforced and almost universally and disproportionally used against journalists of color and journalists who expressed dissent towards the state of Israel."

Wilder said that while she was heartened by the support she was getting from others, she hoped that people would recognize Palestinian journalists and journalists of color have long experienced this kind of blowback for expressing their views even when "it's totally irrelevant to your beat or your job."
Twitter: @vv1lder

In a statement posted on Twitter Saturday, Wilder said her firing is "heartbreaking as a young journalist so hungry to learn from the fearless investigative reporting of AP journalists."

"It's terrifying as a young woman who was hung out to dry when I needed support from my institution most. And it's enraging as a Jewish person — who grew up in a Jewish community, attended Orthodox schooling and devoted my college years to studying Palestine and Israel — that I could be defamed as antisemitic and thrown under the bus in the process," she wrote.

"While the last few days have been overwhelming, I will not be intimidated into silence," Wilder added. "I will be back soon.