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International News

Canada orders rail safety measures to reduce risk of wildfires

The order will require both Canadian National Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. to take precautions against wildfires, including reducing train speeds, according to a Transport Ministry statement.On Friday, Nationally, trains will have to run at reduced speeds when there is extreme fire risk and when the outdoor temperature is high. CN and CP will also be required to come up with a fire risk mitigation plan and consult with indigenous communities about fire hazards.

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Top WHO scientist flags ‘dangerous trend’ of mixing Covid-19 vaccines

Addressing a Covid-19 media briefing, Swaminathan said, “Really want to caution folks, because there is a tendency now for people in countries which enough availability of vaccines to voluntarily start thinking.”

“So it’s a little bit of a dangerous trend here where we’re in a data-free evidence-free zone as far as a mix and match there is limited data on mix and match. There are studies going on, we need to wait for that,” she added.

On the question of booster shots, WHO chief scientist said it will be a chaotic situation in countries if citizens start deciding when they should be taking a second, or a third, or a fourth dose.

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Billionaire Branson soars to space aboard Virgin Galactic flight

The Swiss-based investment bank UBS has estimated the potential value of the space tourism market reaching $3 billion annually by 2030. Proving rocket travel safe for the public is key.
Virgin Galactic’s CEO Michael Colglazier.said 600 wealthy would-be citizen astronauts have also booked reservations, priced at around $250,000 per ticket for the exhilaration of supersonic flight, weightlessness and the spectacle of spaceflight.

British billionaire Richard Branson has said he aims ultimately to lower the price to around $40,000 per seat as the company ramps up service, achieving greater economies of scale. Colglazier said he envisions eventually building a large enough fleet to accommodate roughly 400 flights annually at the spaceport.

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AXA introduces “LoveAssure Critical Illness Protection” Series in Hong Kong

According to the data from the Food and Health Bureau and the Hong Kong Hospital Authority, it is estimated that for people aged 65 or above, there is a worrying 5-8% chance of getting dementia and the prevalence of dementia doubles with every 5-year increment after age 65. Due to the irreversible nature of dementia and the heavy dependence on support services, the cost of care and the burden on caregivers will keep growing with an ageing population and increase of dementia cases.
Moreover, despite the improved cancer survival rate due to advancements in medical technology, cancer recurrence rate is still high, for example, colorectal and ovarian cancer recurrence rate can reach as high as 50% and 80% respectively2.

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Germany declares first-ever “cyber-catastrophe”

Hackers knocked out the IT operations of the municipality of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, on Tuesday, a spokesperson confirmed to Reuters on Saturday.The rural district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, with a population of 157,000, is for the time being unable to pay out welfare benefits. Its consequent catastrophe declaration is a formal step that allows it to call for federal help.

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Virus variants threaten global recovery, G20 warns

Differences in vaccination levels between the world’s rich and poor remain vast.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called the divergence a “moral outrage” that also undermines wider efforts to tame the spread of the virus.While some of the wealthiest countries have now given over two-thirds of their citizens at least one shot of vaccine, that figure falls to well below 5% for many African nations.

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