Having older sisters boosts survival odds for elephant calves

Asian elephants that grow up with siblings enjoy greater longterm survival rates than elephants that grow up without brothers or sisters. Photo by Virpi Lummaa

Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Only children may be at risk of stigma, but for humans, growing up without siblings isn't exactly dangerous. The same can't be said for elephants.

According to a new study, published Tuesday in the Journal of Animal Ecology, young elephants that grow up with older siblings enjoyed higher rates of survival and reproduced at a younger age than calves that grew up without siblings.

Females who were raised with older sisters had higher rates of long-term survival and reproduced two years younger on average.

Elephants that begin reproducing earlier tend to generate more offspring over their course of their lifetime.

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Male calves had slightly lower rates of survival when raised alongside older sisters rather than older brothers. However, having older sisters was associated with higher body weight for male elephant calves.

Researchers suggest the "live-fast, die-young" phenomenon may explain the discrepancy, as male elephants who mature faster may sacrifice long-term health.

"Our research confirms that sibling relationships shape individual lives, particularly in social species, such as the elephants, where cooperative behaviors are essential to the development, survival and reproductive potential of individuals," lead study author Vérane Berger, researcher at the University of Turku in Finland, said in a press release.

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Studying wild elephants over long periods of time is quite difficult, making it near impossible to study the long-term behavior and health impacts of siblings.

For the latest study, researchers studied semi-captive timber elephants living in Myanmar.

During the day, the elephants are used as work animals. Local people ride the elephants and use the large mammal to pull plows and haul goods. At night, the elephants live in the forest unsupervised.

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The semi-captive elephants mate and interact with both wild and tame elephants. Calves are raised my their mothers for five years until they're trained for work by the local people.

Regulations set by the Myanmar Timber Enterprise limit the kinds and amount of work elephants can be deployed to do.

"Because the elephants live in their natural habitats, there are many similarities to wild elephants, such as natural foraging and no assistance in breeding," study co-author Mirkka Lahdenperä said in the release.

"While there are differences -- in the wild, family groups are probably bigger -- there are more similarities than differences and we could assume that some of the associations found in our study would also hold true for wild elephants. But of course, these should be studied," said Lahdenperä, a postdoctoral researcher in the elephant and human projects at Turku.

Researchers have been studying the use of elephants for labor in Myanmar for years, and records of timber elephant populations date back decades.

For the study, scientists analyzed body mass, reproduction, sex and survival information for 2,344 calves born between 1945 and 2018.

Because the researchers didn't have information on the quality of maternal care and other external factors, they couldn't control for all the variables that might influence survivability and sexual maturity.

"By collecting more information on the body mass of mothers at birth, we hope to disentangle maternal effects from sibling effects," Berger said.

"More data will also let us explore the effects of the environment on sibling relationships and go into more detail on the effects siblings have on specific aspects of a younger calf's health, such as immunity, muscular function and hormonal variations," Berger said.

Six Ojibwe tribes sue Wisconsin to block fall wolf hunt

Six Ojibwe Native American tribes have sued the state of Wisconsin to block the state's fall wolf hunt, saying state agencies have violated treaties granting them equal share of any game hunted.

 File Photo by Geoffrey Kuchera/Shutterstock


Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Six Native American tribes sued Wisconsin on Tuesday in an effort to stop the state's wolf hunting and trapping season.

The six Ojibwe tribes claim the state's Department of Natural Resources and Natural Resources Board "knowingly discriminated" against the tribes by acting to nullify their share of wolves hunted in the upcoming Nov. 6 season, violating a pair of treaties dating back to 1837 and 1842.

The suit also states that the Natural Resources Board failed to use "sound biological principles" in establishing a quota of 300 wolves for the fall hunt, more than twice the number recommended by officials with the Department of Natural Resources.

Under the terms of the treaties, the tribes retain the right to hunt, fish and gather food in parts of northern Wisconsin that have been ceded to the U.S. government and are entitled to an equal share of any game hunted.

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The Ojibwe tribes say wolves help to enhance and maintain healthy ecosystems and elect to use their share to protect wolves rather than kill them.

In their suit, the tribes note that Wisconsin's February hunting and trapping season resulted in 218 wolves being killed, 99 above the state quota which allocated 119 to the state and 81 for the tribes.

"In our treaty rights, we're supposed to share with the state 50-50 in our resources and we're feeling that we're not getting our due diligence because of the slaughter of wolves in February," John Johnson Sr., president of Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians said in a statement.

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Lac du Flambeau band is joined by the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, Red Cliff Band of Lake SUpperior Chippewa Indians, the Sokaogon Chippewa Community and St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin in the suit.

Summer snow creates wintry scenes around Yellowstone
By Zachary Rosenthal, Accuweather.com

Astronomical summer might not end for another day, but high-elevation areas in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming all saw their first snowfalls of the season this weekend, with more snow showers in the forecast.

September snowfalls are not particularly uncommon in parts of the West. Denver, which has recorded significant September snowfalls in the not-too-distant past, still averages 1 inch of snow during the month of September. According to the National Park Service, Yellowstone averages a half-inch of snowfall during the month of September.



Snow showers made it all the way down to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River, where AccuWeather forecasts an additional coating to an inch of snowfall. At Big Sky Resort, a popular skiing destination in Montana, the early-season snowfall lightly covered some of the resort's ski trails.

A time-lapse video shows clouds rolling over Lone Mountain, home to Big Sky Resort, before the mountain is enveloped by a wall of white. When the mountain emerges from the thick cloud cover, it has been whitened by snowfall. Still, ski season at Big Sky does not typically begin until around the Thanksgiving holiday, so don't dig out the ski poles from your closet yet.

The early-season snowfall that struck the region came as temperatures plummeted 10-20 degrees Fahrenheit below normal, pushing snow levels to 7,000 feet.

The snowfall that struck wasn't particularly heavy for the region, but it made for pretty sights across parts of the Rocky Mountains, including outside Grand Teton, Wyo. Along parts of the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway, which helps to connect the Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, the National Weather Service estimates that up to 8 inches of snow fell.

Despite the snowfall out West, most parts of the country still have a long way to go before winter begins. Astronomical winter does not start until Dec. 21, although cold weather and snowfall are certainly possible across vast swaths of the country before that date.

Still, with seasonable temperatures and thunderstorms still forecast across much of the eastern United States in the coming days, it is definitely not yet time to get out your snow boots.

Instead, get ready for pumpkin patches and fall foliage, which is starting to take off across higher elevations and northern parts of the country. Read AccuWeather's 2021 fall foliage forecast to see how vibrant the colors are expected to be in your area.

6.5-magnitude earthquake strikes in northwest Nicaragua


The earthquake could be felt in other Central American countries, including Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. Image courtesy U.S. Geological Survey

Sept. 22 (UPI) -- A powerful earthquake struck off the Nicaraguan coast early Wednesday.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake had a magnitude of 6.5 and struck about 50 miles southwest of Jiquilillo.

The USGS said the quake had a depth of about 20 miles.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or major damage. A tsunami warning was not issued.

The earthquake could be felt in other Central American countries, including Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

Jiquilillo is a beach resort town in northwestern Nicaragua located about 90 miles northwest of Managua.

Study: More women using marijuana to help ease menopause symptoms

By Dennis Thompson, HealthDay News

Women are increasingly using marijuana to ease the symptoms of menopause, according to a new study. Photo by Circe Denyer/publicdomainpictures

Restlessness. Night sweats. Anxiety. Irritability. Aches and pains.

Would smoking a little pot help women deal with these common symptoms of menopause?

A good number of middle-aged women apparently think so, because they've been turning to marijuana to help handle the change of life, a new study reports.

"Midlife women within the menopause transition period of their life are using cannabis, and they're using it for symptoms that tend to overlap with menopause," said lead researcher Katherine Babyn, a graduate student at the University of Alberta in Canada.

RELATED Experts offer 'weak' support for marijuana to treat chronic pain

There's just one drawback -- little to no research has proven that pot can effectively treat menopause-related symptoms, said Dr. Stephanie Faubion, medical director of the North American Menopause Society.

"This hasn't been studied formally in women going through menopause, and so we don't know what the potential benefits or risks are," Faubion said. "That's the danger here, is we're using a drug that has not been studied."

For this study, Babyn and her colleagues surveyed nearly 1,500 middle-aged women in the Canadian province of Alberta.

RELATEDStudy: Cancer patients avoiding marijuana, even as rules relax on use

Two-thirds of the women said they had used pot at some time, and one-third said they'd done so within the past month.

Of the current users, 75% reported that they'd been using pot for medical purposes, even though only 23% had it medically prescribed to them.

They used pot in a number of forms, including 52% who use edibles, 47% who use oils, 41% who smoked flower and 26% who used a vape.

The products they used combined cannabidiol, or CBD, and THC, which is the chemical in pot that causes intoxication. About 58% reported using CBD/THC blends, while 36% used products with high THC and 35% used products with high CBD.

The most common menopause-related issues they were trying to address with pot included:
Troubling, at 74%
Anxiety, at 59%
Difficulty concentrating, at 58%
Irritability, at 55%
Muscle and joint aches, at 53%

Across the board, women who used cannabis reported more menopause symptoms than those who didn't use, "but we can't establish which way that relationship goes," Babyn said.

Faubion said the findings tell her that women who use cannabis have worse symptoms.

"Is it that they have worse symptoms that's driving them to cannabis, or is the cannabis making their symptoms worse?" she said. "We can't really make conclusions based on this article."

Up to 74% of the women reported improvement in their symptoms after using cannabis, said senior researcher Nese Yuksel, a professor of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Alberta.

But because it was a general question relating to all symptoms, "we can't make any real association with it," Yuksel said. "What we feel is that women feel they're getting some benefit, but we can't say that conclusively."

Faubion, Yuksel and Babyn agreed that until more medical evidence has accrued regarding pot's benefits, women are better off relying on tried-and-true menopause treatments.

"There is a need for future research to really investigate whether cannabis would be effective and safe for managing menopause symptoms," Babyn said.

Faubion agreed.

"We have safe and effective therapies for menopause symptoms," she said. "I would not be directing them to something that hasn't been studied."

Doctors should reach out to patients to assess their symptoms and steer them toward effective treatments, Yuksel said.

"It's a wake-up call to say we need to have these discussions with our patients," she said. "A lot of women do kind of fall through the cracks as far as even getting their symptoms assessed and knowing what different approaches there are for treatment."

The study was presented Wednesday at the annual meeting of the North American Menopause Society, in Washington, D.C. Findings presented at medical meetings are considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

More information

Harvard Medical School has more about dealing with the symptoms of menopause.

Copyright © 2021 HealthDay. All rights reserved. 

Federal marijuana legalization could tax drug back to the street, experts say


Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks during a news conference to call for the decriminalization of marijuana at the federal level at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on July 14. He is joined by Sens. Cory Booker (L), D-N.J., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who have been working in support of the legislation.

 File Photo by Sarah Silbiger/UPI | License Photo


PORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 22 (UPI) -- As more states and the public embrace legal cannabis, Congress is considering a bill to legalize the drug at the federal level and clear up legal ambiguity that's hampered the burgeoning industry.

But drug reform advocates and the cannabis industry have reacted cautiously to what may be the best shot at federal marijuana legalization. The Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, backed by U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., would disrupt the varying tax structures for the 19 states that have legal recreational weed.

The cannabis industry and its allies worry that federal legalization will come with higher taxes that'll put smaller companies out of business and send consumers back to the unregulated market.

"We need to be careful not to kill the goose that laid the golden egg," said Eric Gaston, owner of Evergreen Market, a chain of five recreational cannabis stores in the Seattle area.

The bill faces an uncertain future with Republican opposition, unease among moderate Democrats and no clear signals from the White House, The New York Times reports. But the bill's backing from Schumer, as well as Sen. Ron Wyden, chair of the powerful Senate Finance Committee, shows how mainstream the once fringe idea has become.

The proposal shows how taxation will remain a stumbling block for any federal legalization measure.

Gaston's business is an example of the complicated -- and expensive -- relationship weed stores already have with the tax collector.

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Evergreen Market has many common business expenses: attorneys fees, rent, utilities and payroll for 170 employees. But unlike more conventional businesses, Gaston can't deduct common expenses from his tax bill to the federal government because it recognizes no legal use of marijuana.

Gaston must pay Washington state's 37% excise tax and 10% sales tax on recreational cannabis -- the highest of any state that has legalized the drug. The state tax rate, along with being blocked from writing off many expenses, means that more than half of every dollar he makes goes to taxes.

The bill would allow cannabis businesses to access write-offs used by other businesses. It also funds programs intended to assist communities affected by the drug war. That funding comes from a 10% excise tax placed on cannabis in the first year the bill is enacted that would grow to 25% by the fifth year.

RELATED  Experts offer 'weak' support for marijuana to treat chronic pain

Industry groups have complained that the 25% rate still leaves businesses burdened.

Beau Whitney, a Portland, Ore.-based cannabis economist, said many cannabis businesses have little left after paying expenses and taxes. The legislation would increase the taxes for cannabis businesses that would disproportionately affect smaller operations owned by women or minorities.

Even with normal business deductions, cannabis businesses would pay $1.1 billion in higher taxes between 2021 and 2025, according to his analysis.

"If businesses have increased costs, it's hard to push those costs onto consumers," he said. "If it goes to the consumer, they will go back to the illicit market, but if operators absorb those costs, they are under stress. It's a lose-lose scenario."

A federal marijuana tax would also disrupt the existing tax structure in the 19 states that have legalized the drug for recreational use.

In a letter sent this month to Schumer, Karen O'Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Policy Project, pointed out, for instance, that Alaska only taxes cannabis at the point of sale from a state-licensed cultivator. So Alaska would see no revenue from products brought in from out of state under relaxed federal restrictions, she wrote.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser also weighed in with a letter arguing that the proposed cannabis tax rate "would pressure states to consider cutting their tax rates," reducing revenues they rely on for social equity and education programs. He also warned that national cannabis regulations could spur consolidations and push smaller, local businesses out.

"We are learning that the cannabis industry is quickly becoming a piggy bank for special projects," said Peter Marcus, spokesman for Terrapin, a chain of six recreational stores in Colorado.

He said headlines of how much money is flowing through the industry obscure its tight margins and how many are struggling or going out of business.

Colorado has a combined 30% wholesale and retail transaction tax on cannabis. Marcus said the rate could be higher as the state government seeks money to cover services. He pointed to Initiative 25, an education funding measure Colorado voters will decide on in November. If approved, it will add another sales tax on cannabis that will rise to 5% by 2024.

Vicki Christophersen, executive director of the Washington CannaBusiness Association, said that if taxes become too high they'll undermine the legal market and send consumers back to the black market, which doesn't have safeguards to keep products safe and out of the hands of minors.

She said she's grateful that Congress is seriously discussing legalization and expects there to be some taxation. But she said that discussion needs to consider how state and local cannabis taxes will play into any national regulation framework.

"Every state has a different tax structure, and I don't think we necessarily know what that sweet spot is," she said.

Heaviest rainfall in more than a decade floods major city in India
By  Mary Gilbert, AccuWeather, Accuweather.com

People wade through flooded street at Sonarpur town near Kolkata, Eastern India, on Tuesday. 

Photo by Piyal Adhikary/EPA-EFE

Sept. 22 (UPI) -- Streets and homes were inundated with floodwaters and transportation ground to a halt on Monday when the Indian city of Kolkata received more than 50% of its normal rainfall for the entire month of September in just 24 hours.

AccuWeather forecasters say an area of low pressure that originated in the Bay of Bengal brought a record-breaking period of torrential rainfall over Kolkata to start the week. In a 24-hour period ending Monday morning, Kolkata, the capital of India's West Bengal state, received 5.60 inches of rainfall.

According to the India Meteorological Department, the only larger single-day rainfall total in September ever recorded occurred on Sept. 25, 2007, when 6.85 inches of rain fell, making the rainfall that deluged Kolkata early this week the heaviest rainfall in nearly 14 years.

The heaviest rain occurred over the course of Sunday night and many residents woke up to significant flooding issues on Monday morning.

Streets were completely flooded as commuters waded through knee-high to waist-high floodwaters. Vehicles that attempted to forge floodwaters were submerged in water that reached the top of the tires and created waves that crested higher than front headlights.


Portions of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata were underwater for a time on Monday, but the airport was still able to operate without a complete shut down.

However, other transportation services were completely overrun by floodwaters. Operation of the Kolkata Circular Railway, a railway loop that encircles the entire city, was suspended on Monday, according to the Hindustan Times.

One of the primary reasons this early week rainfall led to so many issues throughout Kolkata, home to 14.85 million people, was the unusually high rainfall rates.

"Kolkata's drainage system can handle up to 6 mm [0.2 of an inch] in an hour, but several parts of the city received over 100 mm [4 inches] of rain in four or five hours. It is impossible to avert waterlogging in such a situation," a Kolkata Municipal Corporation senior engineer told to The Telegraph India.



According to the IMD, more than 4 inches of the overnight deluge fell between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m.

"We operated all 76 pumping stations in full capacity, yet the water could not be drained out from most places till Monday evening," said the KMC engineer.

On average, the city receives a total of just under 11.5 inches of rain over the course of September, largely due to the effects of the Southwest monsoon.

For residents hoping to begin cleaning up after Monday's flooding event, AccuWeather forecasters caution that Mother Nature may not be of much assistance through at least midweek.

"A weak area of low pressure will bring rain, some heavy, to Odisha and West Bengal, including Kolkata, into Wednesday. Scattered, generally lighter, rains are expected the rest of the week," AccuWeather lead international meteorologist Jason Nicholls said.

West Bengal wasn't the only Indian state to encounter severe weather this week. In the state of Madhya Pradesh, at least five people were killed and at least one other was injured as a result of lightning strikes on Tuesday.

The frequency of lightning strikes is often elevated during India's monsoon season.

"Monsoonal storms can result in an impressive amount of lighting," AccuWeather meteorologist Alyssa Smithmyer said.

From April 2020 through March 2021, over 18.5 million lightning strikes were recorded across the country and nearly 1,700 people were killed by lightning, according to information gathered by India's annual lightning report.

RUSSIA

Witnesses recount horror of Perm State University shooting

Witnesses describe the brutality of the attacker, who killed six people and wounded dozens at the Russian university. University lecturers say students should not be left to deal with the trauma alone.

The shock sits deep among students and staff at Perm State University

Alexei Trapesnikov was about to get in his car and leave Perm State University after a presentation on campus — but he wasn't able to. "The security guards at the entrance told me to turn back," Trapesnikov, a reporter with Rossiyskaya Gazeta, told DW. 

"I saw a man covered in blood running towards the building. He appeared to have a shotgun wound in his abdomen. He fell. You could hear chaotic shooting." 

When Trapesnikov returned to the campus on the advice of the guards, he began to film the unfolding events that Monday from the window of one of the buildings. However, he could not see the suspected shooter who went on a rampage at the university in Perm. After the suspect was arrested, the journalist began to form a picture of the carnage that the man had left behind.

Trapesnikov is calm, but clearly shocked. "I walked along the corridor and saw a body," he said. "An older woman, who was a member of the university staff, was screaming. It was a surreal, nightmarish image."

The attacker killed at least six people and wounded dozens more.

'Shotgun wounds were huge'

The reporter did not take footage of the bodies of the dead students. "There are moments that you just can't film," he said. According to the journalist, the perpetrator must have used "a very big caliber."

"The shotgun wounds were huge. You only shoot bears or elk like that. It leaves dreadful wounds on the body," added the journalist.

The gunman used large-caliber ammunition

He also gained access to video footage in which the attacker first wounded a security guard and then pulled him into the building and "shot him in the head in front of everyone's eyes." People ran away and the gunman started to shoot everyone he encountered, says Trapesnikov.

"This was a very brutal attack," he stressed. The journalist said the two civilian guards did not stand a chance.

"There has never been a massacre like that here in Perm. Our city is pretty quiet," he said. There have been security exercises for this kind of event at the university, but no one ever thought that something like this could happen, he added. During the attack, a few people even thought that it was just another drill, says Trapesnikov.

The mass shooting in Perm was very similar to the deadly massacre in the Russian city of Kazan in which nine people were killed in a school gym in May this year, according to the journalist. "It is as if the perpetrators knew one another, or one had copied the other."

'At first, I thought it was a fire'

Ivan Petchichtchev, a lecturer at the Institute of Journalism at Perm State University, was on his way to his students that morning. His lecture was due to begin at 11:30 am, but he was running a little late. When he walked past Building 8, he suddenly saw students jumping out of windows on the second floor.

"You could hear screams and people panicking. Everyone was running away. At first, I thought there was a fire. But the students said it was gunfire. Shortly afterward, I heard the shots myself. It was terrible and we ran out of the building," said Petchichtchev.

Students jumped out of windows to escape the massacre

His first thought went out to his students, who were in a different building. "I realized they were waiting for me because I was late. I thought that they might not know about what was happening and was worried — God forbid — that they might leave the building. So I tried to get to them as quickly as possible," said the lecturer.

After taking a circuitous route and sheltering behind parked cars, he finally arrived at Building 2 where his lecture was due to be held, only to discover that he could not get in. "Security had cordoned off all the entrances. Everything was closed. I only managed to get in with great difficulty after showing my employee ID," Petchichtchev said.

'Everyone was very scared'

By this time, however, his students had already found out what was happening via social media. Everyone was very scared, some were crying.

"We were stuck in a cordoned-off building and in a locked auditorium. We were told from time to time on the intercom system that we were not allowed to leave the room under any circumstances," said Petchichtchev.

After about 90 minutes, he said they got permission to leave the room. "We were led out of the building in an organized manner," according to the lecturer.

After that, everyone was sent home and classes were canceled. 

Six people were killed and dozens wounded in the barbaric attack

The city's inhabitants are shocked about the tragedy that unfolded at the university. "While I was walking home along the street, I met a neighbor, a colleague and a student. They all know that I work at the university and they asked me whether everything was OK. This is a shock for Perm," said the lecturer. 

Students will need help

Ivan Petchichtchev is certain that many students will need psychological support after the massacre. "When I left the building, I bumped into colleagues from the Chair of General Psychology. I talked to them. They also think that the students will need professional help."

He does not think it is a good idea now to switch to distance learning. "That means the students will be left to deal on their own with their thoughts, with the stress that they have experienced," he said.

"I only saw students from my group and they were not affected, thank God! But others were in the midst of this nightmare. That is why many will need psychological help — and the university has staff capable of giving that."

This article was originally written in Russian.

BUSINESS
Artificial intelligence a key challenge for Germany's next government

Germany's reputation as an industrial powerhouse could be on the line if the country fails to integrate artificial intelligence technology. Succeeding will require addressing several smaller issues first.

A skilled labor shortage and problems with digitalization are slowing Germany's uptake of artificial intelligence
Germany has long been a leader in science and engineering. Now, with artificial intelligence (AI) coming of age, the erstwhile technological trailblazer in western Europe is experiencing some growing pains.

AI is poised to become one of the key technologies of the economic and industrial future. Germany's federal election is just around the corner, and the country's next government will have a laundry list of grievances to address to make the country fit for the AI future.

This isn't news to those leading Germany. Since 2018, the federal government has had a strategy in place aimed at cultivating the use of artificial intelligence at home, backed up by similar efforts on the EU level. Mobility, health care, the digitalization of industry and manufacturing, environmental sustainability and, of course, the coronavirus pandemic were some of the key areas considered in a progress update published last December by Germany's government. The country sees major potential for the integration of AI technologies in these areas, but has identified several hurdles that need to be overcome first.

Germany has long contributed to academic research on the topic of artificial intelligence. But in such a dynamic field, the country needs to do more to stand out globally, the government and experts in the field agree.

For one, to become attractive to international AI talent, Germany will have to improve its reputation in the realm of tech and innovation. In 2019, over 50% of AI job vacancies in Germany either could not be filled or were filled later than wished or with less desirable candidates. Germany has already been grappling with a shortage of skilled labor. Expertise in AI specifically will be even harder to come by.

"Talent is very important both for industry and academia, for both of us," Antonio Krüger, CEO and director of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), told DW. "And we need to provide environments that are very attractive to these kinds of people."

Upgrading the SMEs

The government also wants to encourage the use of AI technology by Germany's all-important small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The so-called Mittelstand, which generates around a third of the total turnover of German companies, according to the Federation of German Industries (BDI), has been slow to take up the use of AI, despite government efforts. A recent study from the Economy Ministry showed that only around 6% of companies surveyed said they used AI technology.

"It will be crucial that developments in AI can be utilized by these smaller companies," said Krüger. "This means having good interfaces, having good tools, and good cloud infrastructure for AI. And which enables these small- and medium-sized enterprises to put AI into their products and to enhance their product with digital services that rely on AI techniques."

Such developments will rely on Germany making greater strides on digitalization, an area where it has notoriously fallen behind countries like China and the United States.

Germany also wants to use AI to fight the spread of the coronavirus. As part of its coronavirus stimulus package, the federal government has promised to increase its spending on AI from €3 billion ($3.54 billion) to €5 billion by 2025. Most of the funds will be used to develop supercomputing technology in Germany.

"AI can assist in the management of pandemics, for example in pandemic forecasting, monitoring and modeling the course of the epidemic or the effectiveness of different measures, and in research, inter alia in developing vaccines," wrote the authors of the government's strategy update.

Coordinating medical data for these purposes will be particularly difficult in Germany, however, where personal data is largely decentralized and highly protected.

"This, I think, is one of the major hurdles in this respect," said Krüger. "This has been identified. So it's something that we know in Germany, and we are starting slowly to change it. But it's taking too long." He hasn't called for less regulation, however, but instead for greater unification of systems.

AI relies on vast amounts of data to learn and become more effective. The question of when and where to use AI technologies and the data they need will be another puzzle to figure out.

For its part, the federal government wants "to ensure that all stakeholders in the field of AI honor their individual responsibility to respect human rights." AI technology should also be energy- and resource-efficient and contribute to environmental conservation.

Voting on the future of AI

In the upcoming federal election on September 26, AI is on the ballot as well. Most of Germany's five major parties have devoted sections of their party platforms to the topic.

While Germany's right-of-center parties have stressed the importance of AI for preserving Germany's position as an economic powerhouse and industry leader, the left-of-center parties have drawn more attention to its dangers. Used carelessly, they say, the technology has the potential to entrench discriminatory patterns or end up violating the data protection standards that German society holds so dear.

All parties have, however, acknowledged the importance of AI, albeit with different points of emphasis: public sector goods provision for the center-left Social Democrats; ecological and climate monitoring and forecasting for the Greens; industrial competitiveness for the conservative Christian Democrats and the neoliberal Free Democrats.

A likely compromise could take the form of increased funding in the short term while regulatory issues are hashed out.

Let's talk about sex — in space

It's naturally part of every human space exploration but remains taboo. Here's what we do and don’t know about cosmic sex.



Better hold on to each other: Sex in space will be more difficult than on Earth because of microgravity.

German astronaut Matthias Maurer breezes through interviews, rarely missing a beat when he answers journalists' questions around his upcoming six-month trip to the International Space Station (ISS). But one topic throws even Maurer off momentarily: sex drive in space.

"We haven't talked about this, because it's a professional environment," he replied to DW's question on whether astronauts exchange insights on how to handle their desires.

Thanks to commercial space flights, more people are entering the cosmos than ever before. Just this past week,SpaceX launched four tourists through the Earth's orbit. Ten years from now, the first crew of astronauts will likely set off on a mission to Mars that could last multiple years.

Sexuality is intrinsic to human nature and inevitably factors into space missions. But while space science is progressing, our understanding of sex in space is still basic.

NASA, the US's National Aeronautics and Space Administration, insists that no humans have had sex in space, and American astronauts famously avoid the topic. The few experiments that have been conducted on space sex focused on animals, not humans.

"We need to know more about sexuality in space if we are serious about long-duration space flights. Sexuality is very possibly going to be a part of that," Paul Root Wolpe, who spent 15 years as a senior bioethicist at NASA, tells DW.

German astronaut Matthias Maurer told DW that there is no official training on sexuality in space

Sex in space matters

Addressing sexuality in space isn't just important because it's what's on everyone's mind. Asked by DW whether sexuality is part of an astronaut's training, Matthias Maurer replied: "No, but maybe it should be.”

"If we look at sexual health as a core component of health, it's important to understand the conditions we are putting individuals in," Saralyn Mark, former senior medical adviser to NASA, tells DW.

Sex and masturbation are linked to physical and mental health — that doesn't change in space.

Ejaculation is essential for men to avoid the risk of bacteria building up in their prostate, and orgasms have been shown to relieve stress and anxiety as well as improve sleep quality, which likely helps during a high-pressure space mission.

Has it already happened?

We can only speculate, but it seems likely that sex in space has already happened. There are two space missions that jump out as candidates for the first cosmic coitus.

In 1982, Russian cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya, only the second-ever woman in space, joined the Soyuz T-7 space mission for eight days. Two male colleagues were already on board when she arrived, making it the first co-ed space mission.

In his book, Höllenritt durch Raum und Zeit (A hellride through time and space), German astronaut Ulrich Walter notes that, according to the team's doctor, Oleg Georgievich Gazenko, the flight was planned with a sexual encounter in mind.

The second mission in question took place in 1992, when NASA's Space Shuttle Endeavor was launched with a married couple on board. Mark Lee and Jan Davis, both astronauts, met at NASA. They married in secret a year before lift-off. Their joint flight to space was practically their honeymoon.

Svetlana Savitskaya and her colleagues Anatoly Berezovoi and Valentin Lebedev made up the world's first mixed-sex space crew

How is it different from here on Earth?

So, we can assume that sex in space is a reality. But how is it different to ours on Earth? Let's start with the basics: sex drive.

The little publicly available information that we have indicates that being in space leads to reduced libido, at least at first.

That's because microgravity, the weightlessness astronauts experience in space, causes hormonal changes, like decreases in estrogen. Low estrogen levels have been linked to a drop in sex drive.

Unfortunately, most of what we know about hormones in space comes only from tests on men. That's because only 11.5% of astronauts are female, and the relatively few women who have been to space opted to go on birth control beforehand to avoid menstruation. This makes it tricky to disentangle artificial hormonal changes from those caused by space flight.

Another factor in cosmic sex drive is a change in astronauts' internal clock.

"When you're going around the planet right now, every 90 minutes, your circadian rhythms are altered and that alters everything, including your sex hormones and probably your libido," Mark says.

The science also matches astronaut Walter's on-site experience. In his book, he writes that, during his short 10-day stay in space, he had no libido.

But there's hope: According to Walter, astronauts' sex drive does readjust after a few weeks in space.

Astronauts and arousal

While our knowledge of sex drive is still fuzzy, we have a much clearer picture on whether humans can get physically aroused in space.

Microgravity causes blood flow to reverse its course and move upwards, towards the head and chest, instead of circulating in the lower half of the body. The internet abounds with speculation on whether this prevents men from getting erections in space.

When asked whether space boners are viable, Mark gave a clear answer: "Yes, microgravity does not affect that path."

Root Wolpe agrees: "There is no reason why it should be biologically impossible."

Ron Garan, an American astronaut who went to space twice, was asked whether erections are possible in space on an Ask Me Anything Reddit thread.

"I know of nothing that happens to the human body on Earth that can't happen in space," he answered.

For women, arousal in space is possible as well but getting wet feels physically different than on planet Earth. In zero gravity, liquids collect at their point of origin, meaning they form a blob at the spot where they are secreted, instead of flowing freely.


Astronauts Mark Lee and Jan Davis spent their honeymoon aboard a space shuttle

Velcro and dolphin sex

So much for the biological basics. Now we are left with speculating about the act itself. One thing is certain: Sex in space is a far more exhausting endeavor than here on Earth.

In zero gravity, Newton's third law, which states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, makes thrusting against each other a real challenge.

"We don't realize how much gravity assists us in the act of intercourse," Wolpe says. "Sex involves pressure. In space, without any counterforce, you end up constantly trying to push your partner away from you."

But where there's a will, there's a way.

In an interview with German public broadcaster NDR, Walter suggested that astronauts could adopt a method employed by dolphins in the ocean, where a third party holds the other two together to prevent them from drifting.

Wolpe has another idea: "Everything on the walls of the space station is covered in Velcro, so you could take advantage of that by velcroing one partner to the wall. You have to get creative in this space."

SPACE TOURISM: OUT OF REACH FOR MOST EARTHLINGS

An unbeatable record

Dennis Tito was and always will be the first civilian to travel to space. Tito had been a NASA engineer before turning to finance. He had always dreamed of a trip to space and is said to have paid $20 million to have his dream come true. It was hard convincing the big space agencies, but on April 28, 2001, Tito took a ride on a Soyuz rocket and spent six days at the International Space Station.

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Denouncing Texas law, Uma Thurman reveals she had abortion as a teen

Issued on: 22/09/2021 - 

US actress Uma Thurman, in a newspaper column expressing opposition to a new Texas law restricting abortion, revealed that she had an abortion while in her teens

 Angela Weiss AFP/File

Washington (AFP)

American actress Uma Thurman, in a newspaper column expressing opposition to a near-total ban on abortion in Texas, revealed Wednesday that she had an abortion as a teenager.

"It has been my darkest secret until now," the 51-year-old Hollywood star said in the op-ed published in The Washington Post.

"The abortion I had as a teenager was the hardest decision of my life, one that caused me anguish then and that saddens me even now, but it was the path to the life full of joy and love that I have experienced," she wrote.

The actress, who was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in the 1994 film "Pulp Fiction," said the Texas abortion law, which went into force on September 1, "is a staging ground for a human rights crisis for American women."

"This law is yet another discriminatory tool against those who are economically disadvantaged," she said. "Women and children of wealthy families retain all the choices in the world, and face little risk."

The "Texas Heartbeat Act" bans abortion once a heartbeat can be detected, which usually occurs at six weeks -- before many women even know they are pregnant. It makes no exceptions for rape or incest.

The bill passed by Republican lawmakers in Texas, the country's second-largest state, allows members of the public to sue doctors who perform abortions after six weeks or anyone who facilitates the procedure.

Thurman said she was "grief-stricken" over a law that "pits citizen against citizen, creating new vigilantes who will prey on these disadvantaged women, denying them the choice not to have children they are not equipped to care for."

Recounting her own experience, Thurman said she was "accidentally impregnated by a much older man" while living in Europe in her late teens.

She said she discussed her options with her parents and "we decided as a family that I couldn't go through with the pregnancy, and agreed that termination was the right choice.

"My heart was broken nonetheless," she said.

She had the abortion in Cologne, Germany. "It hurt terribly, but I didn't complain," she said. "I had internalized so much shame that I felt I deserved the pain."

Thurman, who has three children, said "choosing not to keep that early pregnancy allowed me to grow up and become the mother I wanted and needed to be."

She said she was sharing her own experience "in the hope of drawing the flames of controversy away from the vulnerable women on whom this law will have an immediate effect."

The Justice Department has filed suit against Texas, arguing that the state law violates Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 case in which the US Supreme Court guaranteed the right to an abortion so long as the fetus is not viable outside the womb, which is usually not until the 22nd to 24th week of pregnancy.

© 2021 AFP