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☆ Omicron boosters probably aren't very effective against mild Covid illness, but will likely prevent hospitalizations, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The new omicron Covid boosters probably aren't very effective at preventing Covid infections and mild illness, but they will likely help keep the elderly and other vulnerable groups out of the hospital this winter, experts say. For seniors, the booster was 19% effective at preventing mild illness when administered as their fourth dose, compared to the unvaccinated. It was 23% effective against mild illness when given as their fifth dose. Though the vaccine's effectiveness against mild illness was low, people who received the boosters were better off than those who did not. Moore said people at higher risk from Covid have every reason to get a booster since it modestly increases protection.

People who got the updated booster shots after two or more shots of the original vaccine were compared to another group of people who received only two or more doses of the original vaccine. The updated booster shots performed better in preventing infections in all adult age groups, with higher vaccine efficacy seen in people who waited longer before getting the updated booster, the CDC found. He noted that studies have shown longer intervals between Covid vaccine doses can lead to higher antibody levels. Previous Covid infections may be underreported, the agency said, and low uptake of the updated boosters could have affected the results. New subvariants BQ.1.1 and BQ.1 are on the rise in the U.S., she said, and it’s unclear how the updated boosters will perform against those strains.

☆ Updated boosters add limited protection against Covid-19 illness, first real-world study shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Brenda Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The new study found that the updated boosters work about like the original boosters. Compared with people who were unvaccinated, adults 18 to 49 who had gotten bivalent boosters were 43% less likely to get sick with a Covid-19 infection. The relative vaccine effectiveness showed the added protection people might expect on top of whatever protection they had left after previous vaccine doses. So overall, the updated boosters got them to around 50% effectiveness against symptomatic infection. According to CDC data, roughly two-thirds of Americans have completed at least their primary series of Covid-19 vaccines.

☆ These currencies have tanked this year — and one is down over 75% against the dollar
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The cedi hit a fresh record low against the dollar on Wednesday last week, at one stage hitting the 14.24 mark before recovering slightly. In second place is the Cuban peso, which is down 56.36% against the dollar, behind only the Zimbabwean dollar, which has lost a staggering 76.74% of its value against the dollar since January. A man holds Zimbabwean Dollar Bond Notes Dan Kitwood | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesHanke said last week that Zimbabwe's "economic death spiral just keeps spinning." Similar to Ghana, authorities in Zimbabwe have attempted to support the local currency and fight inflation by cracking down on Zimbabwean dollar payments. EgyptThe Egyptian pound last week slumped to a fresh low against the dollar, sliding to 24.42, making its way onto Hanke's list of the top 10 worst-performing currencies of 2022.watch now

☆ Midterm elections live updates: Pennsylvania races, New Hampshire Senate race too early to call
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Brandy Zadrozny | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Sahil-Kapur-Headshot.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +109 min

Share this -Link copiedWisconsin Senate and governor's races too early to call It is too early to call the Senate and gubernatorial races in Wisconsin, according to NBC News. Share this -Link copiedNew Hampshire Senate race too early to call The Senate race in New Hampshire is too early to call, according to NBC News. Share this -Link copiedPennsylvania Senate and governor races are too early to call After polls closed at 8 p.m. While Maricopa County election officials initially categorized the problem as a “hiccup,” it took hours before a solution was identified early Tuesday afternoon. In Columbus County, election officials allegedly were harassed by an “observer following one-stop workers” and photographing or filming the workers, it said.

While Maricopa County election officials initially categorized the problem as a “hiccup,” it took hours before a solution was identified early Tuesday afternoon. According to the poll, 46% of voters said their family’s financial situation is worse than it was two years ago. Civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union and the NAACP, filed a similar complaint Friday against state election officials. The app and portal had been down for part of the morning and the state's election hotline also briefly experienced issues. In Columbus County, election officials allegedly were harassed by an “observer following one-stop workers” and photographing or filming the workers, it said.

While Maricopa County election officials initially categorized the problem as a "hiccup," it took hours before a solution was identified early Tuesday afternoon. An adjucation board reviews ballots at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center on Tuesday in Phoenix. John Moore / Getty ImagesIn 2020, Joe Biden won Maricopa County by about 6,000 of the more than 2 million votes cast there. When Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema won her seat in 2018, she did so with 50% of the statewide vote, including the 51% she took in Maricopa County. Maricopa County election officials responded that the tweet was inaccurate and "all voters are being served."

By the end of Election Day, approximately 21,000 total interviews will be conducted. Civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union and the NAACP, filed a similar complaint Friday against state election officials. The app and portal had been down for part of the morning and the state's election hotline also briefly experienced issues. In Columbus County, election officials allegedly were harassed by an “observer following one-stop workers” and photographing or filming the workers, it said. Share this -Link copiedSunny weather in most battleground states on Election Day It’s a bright and sunny Election Day in many battleground states!

Pfizer-BioNTech's updated booster shot generates a stronger immune response against the omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 compared with the original Covid vaccine, the companies said in a release Friday. Pfizer's original vaccine formula, which was first administered to older adults in December 2020, was designed to target the original coronavirus strain. The updated booster shot is designed to target the original virus strain, as well as BA.4 and BA.5, in a single shot. Two independent studies posted online late last month suggested that the updated shots do not offer better protection against the new omicron subvariants than the original vaccines do. The new findings may hint that the updated booster is better than the original vaccine, but not by much, said John Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medical College.

☆ An Oath Keeper thought the Electoral College was a place where politicians 'went to get educated,' defense lawyer says at trial
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( C. Ryan Barber | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Defense lawyers argued at trial the Oath Keepers were a community-minded service group. In their month-long case, federal prosecutors presented text messages and other evidence detailing the Oath Keepers' planning ahead of January 6. Rhodes is standing trial alongside Harrelson and three other Oath Keepers members — Jessica Watkins, Kelly Meggs, and Thomas Caldwell — on charges related to January 6. In another opening statement Thursday, a defense lawyer for Oath Keepers member Kelly Meggs argued that the group was providing security on January 6. "The testimony in this case will show the Oath Keepers chose community involvement, disaster recovery, security, personal security," Woodward said.

The British bank made a profit before tax of 2 billion pounds ($2.3 billion) in July-September, up from 1.9 billion a year ago and above analyst forecasts. European rival Deutsche Bank said fixed income trading revenues rose 38%. Barclays' advisory fees including merger and acquisitions (M&A) fell 45% in the third quarter to 533 million pounds. Despite the higher loan loss charge - including 381 million pounds taken in the quarter - Barclays' chief financial officer Anna Cross told reporters this had been taken ahead of time. Barclays said the net loss arising from the error over the year to date was 600 million pounds.

☆ The US Army is spending $353 million on a suitcase-size weapon that can 'hear' enemy tanks and fire armor-piercing slugs at them
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The US Army is working on a new landmines designed to attack the thinner armor on the top of tanks. The Army recently awarded a contract for production of the XM204, a "wide area top-attack munition." The Army sees the weapon as a way to restrict an enemy's room to maneuver its armored vehicles. Instead, XM204 is described as a "wide area top-attack munition" or a "terrain-shaping obstacle." US ArmyThe Army envisions the weapon as a way to channel the movement of enemy forces.

☆ Pfizer-BioNTech releases first human results on updated booster, citing an increase in antibodies
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Berkeley-Lovelace-Jr.Jpg | Berkeley Lovelace Jr. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

The results are based on blood samples taken from adults one week after they received the updated booster. The FDA also authorized Moderna's updated booster based on similarly limited data. The FDA authorized the updated shots based on studies in mice — plus human trial results from a similar booster that targets the original omicron strain, called BA.1. At the time, Dr. Peter Marks, the FDA's top vaccine regulator, said the agency hoped the updated vaccines will provide stronger protection against symptomatic disease than the older vaccines. Moderna didn't immediately respond to a request for comment about when it will release new data on its updated booster.

☆ Ancient bodies of 'vampires' were buried with rocks in their mouths to stop them returning from the dead
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-15 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Many people thought this could be stopped by putting a stone or brick in the mouths, experts said. 'Vampires' were thought to eat their way out of the grave, unless something hard stopped them. These body were not completely dead and were captured by some demonic influence," said Borrini, describing the old beliefs. This one was buried in a child cemetery on the site of the Poggio Gramignano ancient Roman villa in Teverina, Italy. Borrini defines a "vampire" as a dead person rising from the dead as a body.

☆ Archeologists discovered a 17th-century Polish 'vampire' with a sickle across its neck meant to prevent a return from the dead
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-04 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A female "vampire" skeleton was found in a 17th-century Polish graveyard. It was found restrained to prevent the dead woman from returning from the grave. The skeleton had a sickle laying across the throat and a padlock on its big toe. Professor Dariusz Poliński from Nicolaus Copernicus University headed up the archaeological dig that led to the discovery of the skeleton, the Daily Mail reported Friday. Later on, as the lore evolved, people believed that vampires were rising from the dead and strangling people the night.

☆ The night the Lord of the Skies got away
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-22 | by ( Noah Hurowitz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +38 min

It was May 1985, and Ramirez had only been with the Border Patrol for two and a half years. But he also knew that at the end of that road, just before the international port of entry, was a Border Patrol station. The Lord of the SkiesWithin a decade of that traffic stop, Amado would be the most significant drug trafficker in Mexico. It's the border," Ford told me recently when I reached him by phone. Ford and Amado didn't make a deal that night, but Ford said they agreed to "something tentative."

☆ One millionaire landlord was behind half of Milwaukee's evictions during Covid lockdowns last June. Here's the story of how corporate landlords helped drive the evictions crisis
▼ + stars: | 2021-03-26 | by ( Abigail Higgins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +23 min

Corporate landlords in cities like Milwaukee helped drive an evictions crisis during the pandemic. Corporate landlords, which own almost 50% of rental properties, are more likely to evict, advocates say. Before the 2008 recession, corporate landlords owned 20% of rental properties; today, it's nearing a whopping 50%. Since the Center for Disease Control's evictions moratorium took effect last September, evictions by corporate landlords have actually been steadily increasing. There is no national database of evictions, and evictions are only tracked at the level of the country's more than 3,000 counties.

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