"A picture is worth a thousand words" is one of the dumbest aphorisms ever coined. Speaking as a former television producer, I'd say a picture takes a thousand words to explain. Take this much-circulated NASA satellite photo showing vast smoke plumes over the Amazon region:Combined with a report from the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research that says the agency had detected 39,194 fires in the region, a 77 percent jump up from the same period in 2018, that picture has launched alarmed headlines around the world."Amazon rainforest is burning at an unprecedented rate," CNN. The...…"A picture is worth a thousand words" is one of the dumbest aphorisms ever coined. Speaking as a former television producer, I'd say a picture takes a thousand words to explain. Take this much-circulated NASA satellite photo showing vast smoke plumes over the Amazon region:Combined with a report from the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research that says the agency had detected 39,194 fires in the region, a 77 percent jump up from the same period in 2018, that picture has launched alarmed headlines around the world."Amazon rainforest is burning at an unprecedented rate," CNN. The...WW…

The San Francisco–based company Just Eat grows in vats from real chicken muscle and fat cells; you can buy them at restaurants in Singapore. The Israeli startup Aleph Farms recently unveiled its . These nuggets and steaks are just the beginning, according to a new by researchers at the Dutch consultancy CE Delft.The report seeks to project how the cultivated meat industry will evolve over the coming decade. It specifically focuses on comparing the costs and of conventional and cultivated beef production.By 2030, the Dutch researchers project, the costs to produce a kilogram of cultivated...…The San Francisco–based company Just Eat grows in vats from real chicken muscle and fat cells; you can buy them at restaurants in Singapore. The Israeli startup Aleph Farms recently unveiled its . These nuggets and steaks are just the beginning, according to a new by researchers at the Dutch consultancy CE Delft.The report seeks to project how the cultivated meat industry will evolve over the coming decade. It specifically focuses on comparing the costs and of conventional and cultivated beef production.By 2030, the Dutch researchers project, the costs to produce a kilogram of cultivated...WW…

Nearly of COVID-19 vaccines have been distributed in the United States, and more than 143 million of those have been administered. More than 93 million U.S. residents have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and more than 51 million people have been fully vaccinated—including 5 million inoculated with the Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine. This means that slightly more than 28 percent of the American population has gotten at least one dose, and 15.5 percent are fully vaccinated."When Israel hit about 25 percent of their population vaccinated, that's when they started to...…Nearly of COVID-19 vaccines have been distributed in the United States, and more than 143 million of those have been administered. More than 93 million U.S. residents have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and more than 51 million people have been fully vaccinated—including 5 million inoculated with the Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine. This means that slightly more than 28 percent of the American population has gotten at least one dose, and 15.5 percent are fully vaccinated."When Israel hit about 25 percent of their population vaccinated, that's when they started to...WW…

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is , even after Congress canceled $16 billion in debt in 2017. This financial shortfall is largely because the program does not charge nearly enough in premiums to pay for the flood damage on the properties it insures. For decades, taxpayer bailouts of the NFIP have enabled people to live and build in flood-prone areas instead of bearing the risks themselves.In order to address this problem, the NFIP has been working on its new initiative, with the aim of charging premiums that more accurately...…The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is , even after Congress canceled $16 billion in debt in 2017. This financial shortfall is largely because the program does not charge nearly enough in premiums to pay for the flood damage on the properties it insures. For decades, taxpayer bailouts of the NFIP have enabled people to live and build in flood-prone areas instead of bearing the risks themselves.In order to address this problem, the NFIP has been working on its new initiative, with the aim of charging premiums that more accurately...WW…

The Chinese government has not been forthright about the origins of the novel coronavirus that sparked the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic. On January 5, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued an notification reporting that Chinese officials had alerted the agency to an outbreak of pneumonia of unknown cause in the city of Wuhan. The alert noted that "some patients were operating dealers or vendors in the Huanan Seafood market." The was that the virus most likely jumped from to humans (possibly via an intermediary species) at in Wuhan.about the market being the initial source of...…The Chinese government has not been forthright about the origins of the novel coronavirus that sparked the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic. On January 5, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued an notification reporting that Chinese officials had alerted the agency to an outbreak of pneumonia of unknown cause in the city of Wuhan. The alert noted that "some patients were operating dealers or vendors in the Huanan Seafood market." The was that the virus most likely jumped from to humans (possibly via an intermediary species) at in Wuhan.about the market being the initial source of...WW…

President Joe Biden on January 27 to conjure "a carbon pollution–free electricity sector" into existence "no later than 2035." What would that involve?According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the U.S. electric power sector of electricity in 2019. Of that, 38.4 percent was produced from natural gas, 23.4 percent from coal, 19.6 percent from nuclear, 7.1 percent from wind, 7.0 percent from hydropower, 1.7 percent from solar power, and 2.8 percent from miscellaneous sources.How many power generation units to generate that electricity? The country has 668 coal-fired units...…President Joe Biden on January 27 to conjure "a carbon pollution–free electricity sector" into existence "no later than 2035." What would that involve?According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the U.S. electric power sector of electricity in 2019. Of that, 38.4 percent was produced from natural gas, 23.4 percent from coal, 19.6 percent from nuclear, 7.1 percent from wind, 7.0 percent from hydropower, 1.7 percent from solar power, and 2.8 percent from miscellaneous sources.How many power generation units to generate that electricity? The country has 668 coal-fired units...WW…

The U.S. government declared back in November that it was ready and able to distribute the first week after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued emergency use authorization for Pfizer/BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine and 40 million doses before the end of the year. That would be enough of the two-dose vaccine to inoculate 20 million Americans by January. That was then, this is now. Officials in are that the shipments of the vaccine they expected next are now on hold.In a statement, Pfizer  rumors that there is a shortfall in doses for its vaccine due to production delays. "Pfizer...…The U.S. government declared back in November that it was ready and able to distribute the first week after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued emergency use authorization for Pfizer/BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine and 40 million doses before the end of the year. That would be enough of the two-dose vaccine to inoculate 20 million Americans by January. That was then, this is now. Officials in are that the shipments of the vaccine they expected next are now on hold.In a statement, Pfizer  rumors that there is a shortfall in doses for its vaccine due to production delays. "Pfizer...WW…

Rolling afflicted as many as 2 million California residents last week as a heat wave gripped the Golden State. (It's apparently up for now.) At the center of the problem is that power demand peaks as overheated people turn up their air conditioning in the late afternoon just as solar power supplies cut off as the sun goes down. In addition, output from California's wind farms was erratic. Currently, about 33 percent of California's electricity comes from renewable sources as mandated by state law. Until this summer, California utilities and grid operators were able to purchase extra...…Rolling afflicted as many as 2 million California residents last week as a heat wave gripped the Golden State. (It's apparently up for now.) At the center of the problem is that power demand peaks as overheated people turn up their air conditioning in the late afternoon just as solar power supplies cut off as the sun goes down. In addition, output from California's wind farms was erratic. Currently, about 33 percent of California's electricity comes from renewable sources as mandated by state law. Until this summer, California utilities and grid operators were able to purchase extra...WW…

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Swedish government's chief epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, that his relatively permissive approach to controlling the spread of the coronavirus was aimed at achieving .Unlike most other rich countries—including its Nordic neighbors Denmark, Norway, and Finland—Sweden did not institute a strict lockdown. The government did, in late March, ban public gatherings of , including at theaters and sporting events. But the country decided to let most bars, restaurants, primary schools, and retail shops stay open. were closed, and people were urged to...…At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Swedish government's chief epidemiologist, Anders Tegnell, that his relatively permissive approach to controlling the spread of the coronavirus was aimed at achieving .Unlike most other rich countries—including its Nordic neighbors Denmark, Norway, and Finland—Sweden did not institute a strict lockdown. The government did, in late March, ban public gatherings of , including at theaters and sporting events. But the country decided to let most bars, restaurants, primary schools, and retail shops stay open. were closed, and people were urged to...WW…