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Category: AM-NC

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Government visitor sees work of city’s Family Hubs

    Source: City of Coventry

    A leading Government official paid a visit to Coventry to see the work of the city’s Family Hub Offer and how they are helping parents, children and families across the city.

    Justin Russell, Director General for Families Group at the Department for Education, and Natalie Downing lead for the national Family Hubs programme, attended the Harmony Family Hub in Hillfields on Wednesday (22 January).

    They were able to see a range of services that the Hub offers children, young people and adults through partnership with other agencies including Skills, Employment and Adult Education Services, Early Years, Hillfields Nursery school, Midwifery, Health Visiting, The Job shop, Haven and Early Help.

    They talked to parents and Family Hub staff, observed a ‘50 things to do before you’re 5 session’ and were shown around by Charneze St Juste, the Family hub co-ordinator who ensures that the hub is meeting the needs of its local residents.

    There was also an opportunity for a lengthy discussions about the work of Coventry’s Family Hub offer with Cllr Patricia Seaman, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People at Coventry City Council, and Jane Moffat, the Council’s Operational Lead ~ Early Help.

    The Harmony Hub is one of eight around the city that offer local support to residents.

    They help to join up the planning and delivery of family services; build connections between families, practitioners, services and providers; and put relationships at the heart of family support.

    The Family Hubs offer support to families with children of all ages up to 19 years (and up to 24 for those with a SEND), with services including learning support, infant feeding and parent/child relationships support.

    Coventry has helped to pioneer the use of Family Hubs and has also been recognised as a trailblazer in the national Family Hub and Start for Life Programme.

    The Family Hub and Start for Life Programme was announced by the Government as a way of delivering improvements to support for babies, children, young people, parents, and carers.

    Cllr Seaman said: “Our Family Hubs have been a fantastic success and have helped families and children across the city by bringing joined-up support right into the heart of communities.

    “We all know how important those first few months and years are in a child’s life, and how vital it is for parents to be able to get the support they need, and our Family Hubs are really making a difference.

    “The Hubs are vibrant, happy, caring centres and so many parents now know they can go there and find a friendly face and someone who will listen and give the help they need.”

    Jane Moffat added: “The Hubs bring a wide range of professionals and services together to provide a connected offer of help, support and care, and they are a lifeline to many parents and families and help them to build links and friendships in their communities.

    “This was our second visit now from Government teams to see some of that incredible work and we were delighted to show what is happening in Coventry and to showcase the work of the Family Hub and Start for Life offer and the impact of the work of Early Help to meet the needs of children, young people and their families.”

    Find out more about the work of the Family Hubs and how they could help your family.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI China: Spring Festival gala held in Houston

    Source: China State Council Information Office 3

    Themed “Dancing into the Year of the Snake,” the Greater Houston Spring Festival Gala was held Sunday night in the fourth largest U.S. city.

    “This gala conveys the auspiciousness and hope of the Year of the Snake to the world, promotes Chinese wisdom and the spirit of progress, and builds a bridge for cultural exchange between the East and the West,” the organizer said.

    The gala featured vibrant performances ranging from classical Chinese dances and traditional music to a Texas-style cowboy dance and popular songs.

    The night reached its peak when a singer and the audience joined together to sing “Go back home often,” with the crowd illuminating the hall with phone lights, celebrating the joy of the Chinese New Year.

    The event was organized by the Houston Chinese Civic Center.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Destruction of life and homes leaves people unable to return safely to Rafah Gaza

    Source: Médecins Sans Frontières –

    After 15 months of Israel’s war on Gaza, Palestine, and the implementation of the ceasefire on 19 January 2025, displaced Palestinians are attempting to return home to the southern city of Rafah. According to the United Nations, nearly 70 percent of all structures in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) continues to call for an immediate massive scale-up of humanitarian aid.

    “Health services, including the rest of humanitarian aid, and rebuilding of the city is needed for life to be able to come back to Rafah, but it’s still too dangerous for people to return in most areas,” says Pascale Coissard, MSF’s emergency coordinator support . “As we were going to visit the former MSF Shabboura clinic in Rafah, we saw a child playing with a shell in Mawasi area. Although we cannot hear the bombs anymore, there are still dangers.”

    People are trying to rebuild from the rubble. Rafah is destroyed, with homes, shops, streets and healthcare facilities in ruins and electricity and water systems damaged. The area is also unsafe due to scattered unexploded artillery in the remnants of buildings, which will take years to clean.

    An ambulances moves through the ruins of Rafah. Gaza, Palestine, 22 January 2025. 
    MSF

    In May 2024, Rafah had the largest concentration of displaced Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, with an estimated 1.5 million people living in tents and makeshift shelters. In these inhumane conditions, people faced disease outbreaks, malnutrition, and the psychological impact of being forcibly displaced multiple times.

    MSF teams working in Rafah had been providing basic healthcare and mental health support in the Shabboura clinic and supporting paediatric and maternity care in the Ministry of Health’s Emirati hospital. But were forced to close activities and evacuate the area after continuous bombings and evacuations orders from Israeli forces. The looming threat of a ground invasion by Israeli forces materialised on 6 May 2024.

    The military operations by Israeli forces led to the emptying of Rafah, mass destruction of the city, and to the closure of the Rafah crossing, which severely hindered the delivery of humanitarian aid into the entire Strip. Rafah was also the home to many MSF colleagues, who were forced to flee to other parts of the Gaza Strip.

    “It’s extremely difficult to come back to the same place that used to be full of life,” says Nadia Abo Mallouh, MSF medical coordinator support who used to work in the Emirati hospital. “We couldn’t even recognise the streets where Emirati hospital was. It’s sad seeing the hospital that used to bring life to earth totally empty, no signs of life, everything is destroyed.”

    As a result of destroyed infrastructure, healthcare and other basic services are lacking. Many people are trying to return to Rafah but are unable to, as they find their homes destroyed – sometimes their neighbourhoods are unrecognisable.  It will take a long time before people can safely return to Rafah.

    “Honestly, the sights [of Rafah] were horrifying; so much destruction,” says Hadi Abo-Eneen, and MSF watchmen who was displaced from Rafah city in May 2024 and visited the area after the ceasefire. “I kept walking, hoping to find something from my house. It was completely destroyed. It was a huge shock, because this was my whole life: my home. My family’s, wife’s and children’s memories are there. My belongings, clothes, dishes, my wedding memories: everything.”

    In the meantime, people continue surviving in makeshift tents mainly in the coastal area of Mawasi. There, they have no proper shelter, nor access to food and water and limited access to healthcare services. At the same time, Palestinians in the north of Gaza are facing similar conditions, after the recent brutal Israeli military siege, which left the area completely destroyed.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Norovirus, aka the winter vomiting bug, is on the rise – an infectious disease expert explains the best ways to stay safe

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By William Schaffner, Professor of preventive medicine, health policy, infectious diseses, Vanderbilt University

    Norovirus is accompanied by abdominal pain, diarrhea and explosive vomiting. Alla Bielikova/Moment via Getty Images

    The highly contagious norovirus – popularly known as “stomach flu” or the “winter vomiting bug” – is now surging through the U.S.. The number of outbreaks is up significantly over previous years, possibly due in part to a new strain of the virus. Outbreaks can occur after direct contact with someone who is infected. Food and household surfaces can also become contaminated.

    William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, discusses the symptoms of norovirus, how best to treat it, and the populations most vulnerable to this illness.

    Dr. William Schaffner discusses the norovirus.

    The Conversation has collaborated with SciLine to bring you highlights from the discussion that have been edited for brevity and clarity.

    What are the symptoms of a norovirus infection?

    William Schaffner: Norovirus is an intestinal virus that can make you very, very sick. It is indelicately called winter vomiting disease, and it begins suddenly, often with an explosive vomit that then repeats itself.

    Norovirus can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea at the same time, along with a fever. It will probably make you feel miserable for two or three days – but then everybody pretty much recovers.

    How should norovirus be treated?

    William Schaffner: The major problem norovirus causes is dehydration from all that vomiting and diarrhea. So you have to stay hydrated. Do this with little sips of clear liquids, because if you take too much, it’ll come right back up. Sports drinks are very good.

    Most people who get into trouble are either very young or older and more frail. They may have to go to the hospital to get rehydrated with an IV. When the occasional death occurs due to this dehydrating infection, it’s in those vulnerable populations.

    Why does norovirus tend to surge during the winter?

    William Schaffner: You can get it any time of the year, but there is a seasonal increase in the winter for reasons that scientists are not quite sure of. But people spend a lot of time indoors with each other in wintertime, so that makes it easier for the virus to get from one place to another. All that travel over the holidays, as well as family gatherings and parties, can spread the virus.

    How can people protect themselves from the norovirus?

    William Schaffner: The most important thing is good hand hygiene. Washing with soap and water works the best. Those hand hygiene gels and wipes – the hand sanitizers – that people tend to use aren’t as effective against norovirus, so just wash frequently with good old soap and water. And then, of course, avoid people who are sick.

    Also, remember that the virus can survive on environmental surfaces, like counters, doorknobs and tables. You don’t want to pick up those viruses on your fingers. If you get a little bit of virus on your fingertips and then touch your lips, you can get an infection because it just takes a small dose of the virus to make you sick.

    Who’s particularly vulnerable to norovirus?

    William Schaffner: The people who are more susceptible to catching it are those living in semi-enclosed or enclosed populations. For example, people in nursing homes, schools and prisons – essentially any circumstance where people are together for a long period of time.

    Another place where the virus can spread is cruise ships, which is why norovirus is also called the cruise ship virus. When people are confined on a ship for days and days, these outbreaks can run through most of the passengers.

    Interestingly enough – and this has never been well explained – the crew is usually less affected.

    But again, the most serious illness occurs in older, frail and immune-compromised people, or in the very young, where dehydration can be more serious.

    Where’s the research on developing a norovirus vaccine?

    William Schaffner: Norovirus has presented some scientific challenges. It’s actually rather difficult to grow in the laboratory, and so that has delayed the development of a vaccine. But researchers are working on it.

    Are there other infectious diseases going around right now?

    William Schaffner: Along with norovirus, respiratory viruses are still out there: influenza, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. They’re all perking up at the same time. It looks as though we’re having a very brisk winter viral season.

    Watch the full interview to hear more.

    SciLine is a free service based at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a nonprofit that helps journalists include scientific evidence and experts in their news stories.

    William Schaffner receives funding from the CDC-sponsored Emerging Infections Program Collaborative Agreement.

    – ref. Norovirus, aka the winter vomiting bug, is on the rise – an infectious disease expert explains the best ways to stay safe – https://theconversation.com/norovirus-aka-the-winter-vomiting-bug-is-on-the-rise-an-infectious-disease-expert-explains-the-best-ways-to-stay-safe-247667

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why does it hurt when you get a scrape? A neuroscientist explains the science of pain

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Yenisel Cruz-Almeida, Associate Professor & Associate Director, Pain Research & Intervention Center Of Excellence, University of Florida

    Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

    “How come you feel pain when you fall and get a scrape?” – Tillman, age 9, Asheville, North Carolina

    Nobody likes to feel pain, but it’s something every person will experience at some point in their life.

    But why is that?

    I am a neuroscientist, and my job is to research why and how people feel pain in order to help doctors understand how to treat it better.

    What is pain?

    To understand why people feel pain, it helps first to understand what pain is. Pain is the unpleasant sensation you feel when your body is experiencing harm, or thinks it is.

    Not everyone experiences pain the same way. Pain is a highly personal experience influenced by a variety of biological, psychological and social factors. For example, research has shown differences in the pain experiences of women and men, young and older people, and even across people from different cultures.

    It’s important for kids to communicate with a trusted adult if they’re experiencing pain.

    Danger signals

    A network of nerves similar to wires runs all through the human body, from the tips of your fingers and toes, through your back inside the spinal cord and up to your brain. Specialized pain receptors called nociceptors can be found at the end of the nerves on your skin, muscles, joints and internal organs.

    Each nociceptor is designed to activate its nerve if it detects a danger signal. One way scientists classify nociceptors is based on the type of danger signal that activates them.

    Mechanical nociceptors respond to physical damage, such as cuts or pressure, while thermal nociceptors react to extreme temperatures. Chemical nociceptors are triggered by chemicals that the body’s own tissues release when they are damaged. These receptors may also be triggered by external irritants, such as the chemical capsaicin, which gives chili peppers their heat. This is why eating spicy food can cause you pain.

    Finally, there are the nociceptors that are activated by a combination of various triggers. For example, one of these receptors in your skin could be activated by the poke of a sharp object, the cold of an ice pack, the heat from a mug of cocoa, a chemical burn from household bleach, or a combination of all three kinds of stimulation.

    Nerves run from various parts of the body through the spinal cord and up into the brain.
    Sebastian Kaulitzki/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

    How pain travels though the body

    When you fall and get a scrape, the mechanical nociceptors in your skin spring into action. As soon as you hit the ground, they activate an electrical signal that travels through the nearby nerves to the spinal cord and up to your brain. Your brain interprets these signals to locate the place in your body that is hurting and determine how intense the pain is.

    Your brain knows that a pain signal is an SOS message from your body that something isn’t right. So it activates multiple systems all at once to get you out of danger and help you survive.

    Your brain may call on other parts of your nervous system to release chemicals called endorphins that will reduce your pain. It may tell your endocrine system to release hormones that prepare your body to handle the stress of your fall by increasing your heart rate, for example. And it may order your immune system to send special immune cells to the site of your scrape to help manage swelling and heal your skin.

    As all of this is happening, your brain takes in information about where you are in the world so that you can respond accordingly. Do you need to move away from something hurting you? Did you fall in the middle of the road and now need to get out of the way of moving cars?

    Not only is your brain working to keep you safe in the moments after your fall, it also is looking ahead to how it can prevent this scenario from happening again. The pain signals from your fall activate parts of your brain called the hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex that process memory and emotions. They will help you remember how bad falling made you feel so that you will learn how to avoid it in the future.

    But why do we need to feel pain?

    As this example shows, pain is like a warning signal from your body. It helps protect you by telling you when something is wrong so that you can stop doing it and avoid getting hurt more.

    In fact, it’s a problem if you can’t feel pain. Some people have a genetic mutation that changes the way their nociceptors function and do not feel pain at all. This can be very dangerous, because they won’t know when they’re hurt.

    Ultimately, feeling that scrape and the pain sensation from it helps keep you safe from harm.

    Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to CuriousKidsUS@theconversation.com. Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live.

    And since curiosity has no age limit – adults, let us know what you’re wondering, too. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.

    Yenisel Cruz-Almeida receives funding from the National Institutes of Health. She is an Associate Editor at the Journal of Pain and serves as Treasurer on the US Association for the Study of Pain.

    – ref. Why does it hurt when you get a scrape? A neuroscientist explains the science of pain – https://theconversation.com/why-does-it-hurt-when-you-get-a-scrape-a-neuroscientist-explains-the-science-of-pain-238499

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why government can’t make America ‘healthier’ by micromanaging groceries purchased with SNAP benefits

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Benjamin Chrisinger, Assistant Professor of Community Health, Tufts University

    More than 41 million Americans use SNAP benefits to buy groceries. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

    President Donald Trump’s pick for director of the Health and Human Services Department, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has announced a bold plan. He wants to “Make America Healthy Again.”

    Kennedy’s strategy has gotten a lot of attention for its oddities, such as his opposition to vaccine mandates and support for raw milk. But it includes some concepts that many public health experts consider sensible, such as calling for a stronger focus on chronic disease prevention and seeking more restrictions on prescription drug advertising aimed at consumers.

    But he’s also demanding a ban on junk food from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Banning junk food from SNAP is something that has divided public health experts for years.

    As public health researchers, we’ve devoted our careers to helping reduce chronic diseases. We agree with Kennedy that a healthy diet and sound nutrition are important ways to improve the nation’s health. We also know from our own research that safety net programs, including SNAP benefits – which are still sometimes called food stamps – are staving off hunger and food insecurity for millions of Americans.

    And we’re certain that adding to the restrictions that already limit access to SNAP benefits do little to make Americans healthier.

    What is SNAP?

    Over 42.1 million Americans, about 13% of all families, receive SNAP benefits. More than 1 in 4 of the households enrolled in the program include someone who is earning at least some income.

    More than 4 in 5 families getting SNAP benefits include a child, someone over 65 or someone with a disability. These benefits are distributed on a monthly basis through an electronic benefits transfer card that looks and works like a credit or debit card and can be used at supermarkets and other approved retailers. The federal government has spent more than US$110 billion annually on this program in recent years.

    Benefits help get food on the table but typically don’t cover everything a family needs to eat. The average monthly benefit is $195 per person.

    Americans who earn less than 130% of the poverty line are eligible for SNAP. In the 2025 fiscal year, a family of three can’t make more than $2,152 a month in net income or have assets of more than $4,500 if a household includes someone over 60, and $3,000 if it doesn’t.

    Adults without children or disabilities can’t get these benefits for more than three months every three years unless they meet the program’s work requirements by being employed or spending at least 20 hours weekly in a training program. People who are on strike and foreigners living in the U.S. without authorization are ineligible. People with prior drug-related felony convictions are federally banned from SNAP for life, but states can waive this rule. This program is federally funded but administered by the states, which have some leeway in determining eligibility.

    People enrolled in SNAP already face some restrictions on what they can buy with their benefits. They can’t use SNAP to purchase premade or restaurant meals, alcohol, tobacco, or things such as diapers, vitamins and toilet paper.

    Why restrict SNAP?

    Since SNAP is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Kennedy would have very little power to change SNAP’s rules should the Senate approve his nomination following the controversial politician’s upcoming confirmation hearing on Jan. 29, 2025.

    Still, we’re concerned that his support for new restrictions could help sway the authorities who would be responsible for such a policy change.

    Proposals to ban particular foods from SNAP have been floated many times by state legislators and members of Congress over the years.

    These bills have generally been designed to exclude supposedly luxury items, such as steak and seafood, or aimed at barring purchases from a different supermarket aisle: candy, soda and other junk foods.

    States can’t make this kind of modification without the USDA’s authorization. And so far, the USDA has rebuffed calls for it to allow such measures. Even without the agency’s support, Congress can make changes to these policies in the Farm Bill, which could in the future force the USDA to allow these restrictions in states that ask for them.

    The Trump administration, including Kennedy, has signaled its interest in these kinds of restrictions.

    Why SNAP restrictions won’t make America healthier

    While improving the American diet is a worthy goal, research that we and other scholars have done makes it clear that adding new restrictions to SNAP will do little to help us become a healthier nation.

    First, many studies have found that nearly all Americans could eat healthier.

    The rich and the poor alike consume unhealthy food in the U.S.

    Studies show that while lower-income Americans often spend more of their food budget on unhealthy stuff than more affluent people do, families in the middle and at the top of the income ladder still purchase lots of junk food.

    Unsurprisingly, those purchases reflect what we’re eating: Americans at all income levels have diets that don’t satisfy federal dietary guidelines. Spotlighting the poor food choices of SNAP participants would be a distraction from these facts and would risk further stigmatizing a successful anti-hunger program.

    Maintaining a good diet is not cheap or straightforward, especially on a low income. The poorest communities have far more inexpensive fast-food chains and dollar stores than their wealthier neighbors, as well as more ads for unhealthy products. Even when they get SNAP benefits, many Americans still struggle to make ends meet, and studies show how this negatively affects the quality of their diets.

    Another reason SNAP restrictions wouldn’t make America healthier is that diet is just one of many contributors to chronic diseases. Your level of physical activity, exposure to pollution, stress and genetics, among other things, shape your risk of getting heart disease, diabetes or other chronic diseases.

    Flexible but don’t cover all needs

    SNAP benefits are fairly flexible, covering just about anything people might want to eat, even if they have dietary restrictions due to their culture or health conditions. The program helps Americans afford most of their basic necessities, although it fails to pay for all the groceries most people who rely on the program need to buy in the course of a month.

    SNAP’s main function is preventing the worst effects of hunger and food insecurity for the more than 41 million people relying on it.

    There are other ways for the government to help make Americans healthier besides the imposition of stigmatizing restrictions on SNAP. For example, it can create matching programs for SNAP dollars spent on fruits and vegetables, which would give retailers incentives to offer more produce and make it easier for people who get SNAP benefits to buy more healthy food. The USDA has begun to support this kind of effort in several states.

    Benjamin Chrisinger receives funding from The Research Innovation and Development Grants in Economics (RIDGE) Partnership.

    Danielle Krobath does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Why government can’t make America ‘healthier’ by micromanaging groceries purchased with SNAP benefits – https://theconversation.com/why-government-cant-make-america-healthier-by-micromanaging-groceries-purchased-with-snap-benefits-246462

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minister for Foreign Affairs visits Colombia

    Source: Government of Sweden

    Minister for Foreign Affairs visits Colombia – Government.se

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    Press release from Ministry for Foreign Affairs

    Published

    On 28–29 January, Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard will visit Colombia. The visit will include meetings with Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro and Minister of Foreign Affairs Luis Gilberto Murillo. A business delegation comprising around 20 Swedish companies, with a focus on mining and energy, will take part in the visit.

    “I look forward to deepening relations between our countries on this visit. Sweden and Colombia enjoy broad cooperation on green transition, gender equality and human rights. There is also extensive trade between our two countries, and strong Swedish business interests in areas including mining and energy,” says Ms Malmer Stenergard.

    The visit to Colombia is a follow-up to President Petro’s visit to Sweden in mid-2024. As part of the trip, Ms Malmer Stenergard will visit the department of Chocó on Colombia’s Pacific coast, where she will meet with UN bodies, civil society organisations and public authorities working with peace issues, humanitarian assistance to victims of the armed conflict in Colombia, and women’s empowerment and participation in the peace process. 

    Press contact

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Statement by President Meloni on Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz

    Source: Government of Italy (English)

    Eighty years ago, the horror of the Shoah was revealed to the world in all its terrifying force.

    On 27 January 1945, the gates of Auschwitz were torn down and, with them, the wall which had prevented the world from clearly seeing the Nazis’ abominable plan to persecute and exterminate the Jewish people crumbled too.

    Men, women, children and elderly people ripped from their homes, forced to leave everything behind, and taken to death camps, where they were killed just because they were Jewish. The premeditated brutality of that plan makes the Shoah a tragedy unparalleled in history. 

    The plan carried out by Hitler’s regime also had the complicity of the fascist regime in Italy, with its disgraceful racial laws and involvement in rounding up and deporting people.

    There were many Righteous who bravely stood up against that abyss, and did not hesitate to disobey and risk their own lives in order to save thousands of innocent people.

    Today, we commemorate Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember the names and surnames of the victims and we revive the memory of what happened, also through the first-hand accounts of survivors and their descendants. Living witnesses to a horrific chapter of our past, to whom we extend our gratitude once again, for it is above all thanks to them that today we know what happened. Sami Modiano said: “I am alive to bear witness. There was a bigger plan for me, and I will keep on remembering for as long as I live”. This is an extraordinary lesson, and one we must embrace in order to cultivate remembrance and increasingly raise awareness among the younger generations.

    Anti-Semitism was not defeated when the gates of Auschwitz were pulled down. It is a scourge that survived the Holocaust and has taken on different forms, spreading through new means and channels. Combatting anti-Semitism in all its forms, old and new, is a priority for this Government. 

    We have never wavered in this commitment and we intend to pursue it with strength and determination, also by developing a new national strategy for the fight against anti-Semitism, a detailed and scenario-based document that establishes concrete goals and actions to counter a despicable phenomenon that has no place in our societies.

    [Courtesy translation]

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Portsmouth City Council reveals a bold new look for park and ride with easier ways to pay

    Source: City of Portsmouth

    Portsmouth City Council has unveiled an exciting new design for its park and ride service, showcasing eye-catching blue and pink double-decker buses. Working with operator First Bus Solent, the council has introduced improved ticketing options to provide a more convenient travel experience. The refreshed service now makes it easier for both visitors and commuters to purchase tickets, simplifying travel into the city for work or leisure.

    Located just off junction 1 of the M275, Portsmouth Park and Ride provides a less stressful alternative to city driving which allows passengers to avoid a great deal of traffic and enjoy a smoother, more relaxing ride into the heart of Portsmouth. By helping to reduce traffic congestion in the city, the park and ride service plays a crucial role in enhancing air quality, while providing an affordable and efficient way to commute and explore Portsmouth.

    The PR1 route runs every 15 minutes and quickly connects passengers in minutes to key destinations, such as Portsmouth International Port, city centre for Guildhall and Commercial Road shopping, and The Hard Interchange, for Historic Dockyard, Gunwharf Quays and onward travel.

    Day visitors can take advantage of unlimited travel on the park and ride route for just £4, allowing them to explore the city throughout the day. More regular users can opt for flexible fares, including smartcards and flexipasses, starting at only £2 per day. All ticket choices offer great value for money for up to five passengers.

    As part of the council’s renewed contract with First Bus Solent for the next five years, the new-look buses maintain Euro 6 high environmental standards, supporting Portsmouth’s vision to be a green city where people live heathy and active lives. Customers can relax on board with comfortable, high-backed seating, USB charging, next-stop announcements, and high visibility, white-on-black destination displays.

    Alongside the refreshed branding, passengers will benefit from improved ticketing options. Tickets can now be purchased via the First Bus app, RingGo app, or directly from the bus driver by cash, card, or contactless payment. Smartcard holders can top up online or through the First Bus app, ensuring a more seamless and flexible travel experience. As part of the rebrand, the council will shortly launch a new website, providing a one-stop-shop where customers can learn more about routes, fares, ticketing and other useful information about the service.

    Cllr Peter Candlish, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “The new look and enhanced ticketing options for park and ride make sustainable and affordable travel into the city easier and more accessible for everyone.

    “With the refreshed branding, I’m sure these park and ride buses are set to become a recognisable feature in our city and a key part of the Council’s overall plan to reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality, as we work towards a greener, healthier and better-connected future for everyone.”

    For more information on Portsmouth Park and Ride, including routes, ticket options, and timetables, visit https://parkandride.portsmouth.gov.uk

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: From a war zone to new diabetes diagnostics and treatments A University of Aberdeen diabetes expert will share the incredible journey which took her from a teenager fleeing war-torn Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1994 to becoming the first female Regius Chair of Physiology – a position appointed directly by the King – three decades later.

    Source: University of Aberdeen

    Professor Mirela DelibegovicA University of Aberdeen diabetes expert will share the incredible journey which took her from a teenager fleeing war-torn Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1994 to becoming the first female Regius Chair of Physiology – a position appointed directly by the King – three decades later.
    Professor Mirela Delibegovic will host a Founders’ Week Lecture to celebrate the 530th anniversary of the creation of the University.
    At the free event on Wednesday February 12 she will share with the audience how her early life inspired her research journey and details of her ground-breaking work following in the footsteps of another Aberdeen diabetes pioneer, credited with saving millions of lives.
    Professor Delibegovic came to the UK on a scholarship from George Heriot’s School in Edinburgh, where her potential as a scientist was encouraged.  She went on to study pharmacology at the University of Edinburgh, for a PhD in biochemistry at the University of Dundee and then undertook a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School in Boston.
    Her initial interest in diabetes research was fuelled by a family history and prevalence of Type 2 diabetes in Bosnia and Herzegovina – and she was determined to play her part in understanding why our bodies stop responding to the effects of our own hormone, insulin.
    She now leads the Aberdeen Cardiovascular and Diabetes Centre exploring how diabetes, obesity, heart disease and ageing are woven together and in 2024 her successful research career was recognised when she was appointed by the King as the first female Regius Chair of Physiology.
    Her work follows in the footsteps of previous Aberdeen Regius Chair of Physiology, JJR Macleod, who led the Toronto team credited with the discovery of insulin.
    Professor Delibogovic said: “Thanks to the team led by Professor Macleod, people living with type 1 diabetes, who do not produce insulin, have been able to inject it for more than a century.
    “But it wasn’t until the early 1980s that the receptor through which insulin works was identified and this is crucial knowledge for type 2 diabetes, where the body produces insulin but it doesn’t do its job.
    “We are trying to understand if we can use the targets post insulin receptor, to improve patients’ lives either through treatment or through earlier intervention.”
    The lecture forms part of the University of Aberdeen’s Founders’ Week celebrations which will also include a discovery day of family fun on Monday February 10 with tours of the Old Aberdeen campus, visits to the Zoology Museum, and STEM activities for all ages delivered by TechFest. The University’s Professor Gordon Noble will also speak at a Café Sci event in Aberdeen Art Gallery on Tuesday February 11 about his research into Pictish kingdoms in north-east Scotland.
    The week pays tribute to Aberdeen’s historic origins as an ancient University and provides an opportunity to highlight the important role the institution continues to play in education and research.
    Professor Delibegovic collaborates with researchers worldwide and from a range of different disciplines with the aim of turning the findings made at the laboratory bench into diagnostic tools, medicines and other interventions.
    “Understanding what causes insulin resistance and finding ways to postpone or even reverse these conditions is crucial to our future health,” she said.
    “My hope is that the research we are doing now will lead to simple, achievable and affordable therapies that tackle diabetes and its complications in the future.”
    The Founders’ Week inaugural lecture takes place at the Suttie Centre, Foresterhill on February 12 from 6pm to 7.15pm. It will include a question and answer session and will be followed by a reception.
    Entry is free but places should be reserved by visiting https://www.abdn.ac.uk/events/21867/

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Return of The Big Apprenticeship Event this February

    Source: Northern Ireland City of Armagh

    Launching The Big Apprenticeship Event for 2025 is SRC CEO Lee Campbell and the Deputy Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon, Councillor Kyle Savage.

    Southern Regional College’s Big Apprenticeship Event returns this February to Craigavon’s Civic Centre on Thursday 6th February from 5:00pm to 7:30pm. The Big Apprenticeship Event is a one stop shop for those seeking to start a new apprenticeship course from level 2 to level 5 from September 2025. The event seeks to match potential apprentices with employers, with over 40 employers and support organisations expected to attend both the Newry and Craigavon events. College staff will also be present discussing course modules, entry requirements and assessments.

    Also returning to the event this year are student ambassadors from various programmes of study, giving a first-hand account of what it is like being an apprentice and sharing their incredible journeys and giving the low-down on the reality of studying whilst being an apprentice. Employers, support organisations, lecturing staff and student ambassadors alike will be answering questions from attendees.

    Now in its 7th year the Big Apprenticeship Event, delivered in partnership with Armagh City Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council and the ABC Labour Market Partnership, this event provides opportunities to young people and adult returners alike to develop skills and gain relevant experience with recruiting employers.

    Apprenticeships and higher level apprenticeships are flexible career pathways providing the chance to earn a salary while pursuing qualifications. With course fees funded by the Department for the Economy, now has never been a better time to start an apprenticeship or higher level apprenticeship at Southern Regional College.

    Apprenticeships are offered at level 2 and 3 at Southern Regional College in over 30 areas ranging from business, children’s care, construction, engineering, hairdressing & barbering, hospitality & food manufacturing to motor vehicles.

    Higher Level Apprenticeships provide participants with recognised foundation and honour degrees, referred to as level 5 and 6 qualifications in 20 subject areas. This ranges from accounting, business, finance and marketing, computing, construction, engineering, science, sports & exercise and tourism, hospitality & events management.

    The College has successfully run Higher Level Apprenticeship programmes of study for 10 years, providing over 1,200 people with jobs since the inception of the programme. This year could be attendees’ opportunity to add a degree and a new source of employment to their accomplishments.

    Lee Campbell, Principal & CEO of Southern Regional College commented:

    “We are delighted to once again host The Big Apprenticeship Event in our local communities.  The event provides attendees the unique opportunity to start conversations and directly engage with a wide and varied range of employers.

    “Attendees will have the opportunity to gather information on the various programmes of study and gain an understanding of the benefits of studying an apprenticeship.  Apprenticeships offer value by combining hands on vocational training, equipping individuals with the skills and experience currently in demand by employers.

    “Whether you are a school leaver, a career changer, or someone seeking professional development, this event promises to deliver a wealth of knowledge and inspiration to help you shape your future.”

    Deputy Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon, Councillor Kyle Savage added:

    “ABC Council is delighted to support the return of the Big Apprenticeship event on Thursday 6th February in Craigavon Civic & Conference Centre. Apprenticeships and higher level Apprenticeships have the opportunity to transform the lives of individuals, families and communities, connecting local people with local career pathways in forward-thinking local businesses, sparking partnerships that drive innovation and strengthen our economy.

    “Apprenticeships and higher level Apprenticeships are not just a win for individuals who have the opportunity to earn while they learn, but they are also a win for local business and our Borough as a whole as we work collectively to nurture a pipeline of skilled individuals to strengthen the local economy both now and into the future.”

    With many career opportunities available, attendees are encouraged to make their way to their closest Big Apprenticeship Event.  Free tickets are now available to book using the registration link https://src-big-apprenticeship-event-2025.eventbrite.co.uk

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The Polytechnic University honored the memory of the victims of the Leningrad blockade

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University – Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University –

    On January 27, the Day of the Complete Liberation of Leningrad from the Siege, the Polytechnic University held the event “Polytechnic. Siege. Leningrad”. The leaders, employees and students of SPbPU, as well as graduates and veterans of the university, gathered at the Monument to the Fallen Polytechnicians to remember those who defended our city, who gave their lives for the victory in the Great Patriotic War.

    The residents of besieged Leningrad demonstrated unprecedented fortitude. Despite the fact that they suffered enormous hardships, these people stood firm. Our task is to perform our actions based on the gratitude we feel for the generation that defended the city. I am sure that it is the unity of spirit that will help us overcome any difficulties and cope with any tasks, – the first vice-rector of SPbPU Vitaly Sergeev opened the memorial event.

    The event participants remembered the heroes who fought bravely at the front and steadfastly endured the hardships of life in the besieged city. 300 students and teachers of the Polytechnic Institute fought in the 3rd Frunze Division of the Leningrad People’s Militia Army. They were part of one of the companies of the Vyborg Regiment. In August 1941, the militia prevented the creation of a second blockade ring in the Olonetsky direction in Karelia. The institute continued scientific work aimed at solving wartime problems.

    During the Great Patriotic War, the Polytechnic University helped the city and the country. And now, during the special military operation, the university provides assistance to various units, including mine. Polytechnicians provide camouflage nets, high-cross-country vehicles, special devices, and help civilians, said SVO participant Kirill Chernykh. He presented letters of gratitude to the SPbPU workforce for their assistance and to the volunteers who weave camouflage nets.

    Milana Yukhnevich, Chairperson of the Military History Club “Our Polytechnic”, spoke on behalf of the younger generation. Students of the Natural Science Lyceum Lev Tyukov and Rodion Kurskiyev, as well as third-year college student Daria Brovkina, recited poems.

    The siege took more than a million lives, the Great Patriotic War took millions of lives, but time, of course, took even more lives. Unfortunately, there are no more veterans left who came to our memorial events just a few years ago. We must carry the baton of memory, preserve it and gather every year so as not to forget the terrible years of the siege and the war. So that, as today, we honor the memory of those who did not live to see this moment, – shared the leading specialist of the SPbPU History Museum Artem Solovyov.

    The rally ended with a minute of silence in memory of all those who died during the blockade and the laying of flowers at the Monument to the Fallen Polytechnicians.

    Photo archive

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Province Reaches Deal with Crown Attorneys

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    The Province has reached a new four-year agreement with the Nova Scotia Crown Attorneys’ Association, which represents 126 Crown attorneys working in the Nova Scotia Public Prosecution Service.

    “I thank the association, the negotiating teams and all Crown attorneys for the important work they do every day on behalf of Nova Scotians,” said Justice Minister Becky Druhan. “We came to the table in good faith, and I am pleased that we were able to reach an agreement.”

    The contract includes:

    • economic increases of three per cent on April 1, 2023; 0.5 per cent on March 31, 2024; three per cent on April 1, 2024, two per cent on April 1, 2025, and two per cent on April 1, 2026
    • a classification adjustment for all Crown attorneys
    • an on-call compensation adjustment
    • removing the restricted senior Crown counsel classification
    • enhancements to equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility language and efficiencies in the hiring process.

    The contract runs from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2027.

    Quotes:

    “The Nova Scotia Crown Attorneys’ Association welcomes this new employment agreement as an important investment in the province’s justice system. On behalf of all Nova Scotia’s Crown attorneys, who work every day to ensure justice for vulnerable victims of crime, I want to extend our appreciation to the Province for its commitment to recruiting and retaining the dedicated professionals Nova Scotians deserve.”
    — Brian Cox, President, Nova Scotia Crown Attorneys’ Association

    Quick Facts:

    • including the Crown attorneys agreement, more than 300 settlements have been reached through the collective bargaining process since 2021
    • the agreement was reached with the support of a conciliator

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: Second patient transferred point to point to Hong Kong for treatment by direct cross-boundary ambulance transfer in GBA

    Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

    Second patient transferred point to point to Hong Kong for treatment by direct cross-boundary ambulance transfer in GBA
    Second patient transferred point to point to Hong Kong for treatment by direct cross-boundary ambulance transfer in GBA
    ******************************************************************************************

    The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:     The Hospital Authority (HA) announced today (January 27) that Tuen Mun Hospital (TMH) received the second patient under the Pilot Scheme for Direct Cross-boundary Ambulance Transfer in the Greater Bay Area (Pilot Scheme) yesterday afternoon. The patient was transferred to Hong Kong for treatment by a point-to-point cross-boundary ambulance. The HA expresses sincere gratitude to various units in Guangdong and Hong Kong for their proactive co-ordination and collaboration, which enabled the smooth point-to-point transfer of the patient to Hong Kong.     A patient was previously admitted to the University of Hong Kong-Shenzhen Hospital (HKU-SZH). After thorough assessment and discussion with patient and family by the medical team, it was decided to transfer the patient back to Hong Kong for ongoing treatment. The patient departed from the HKU-SZH at 2.00pm yesterday and arrived at TMH before 3.00pm, where he is currently receiving treatment and is in stable condition.     The spokesperson for the HA stated that upon receiving notification, TMH promptly communicated with the medical team in Shenzhen to understand the patient’s clinical situation and prepare for admitting the patient. The HA expresses heartfelt thanks to all parties involved for their substantial co-ordination and co-operation, ensuring that the patient was swiftly transported directly point to point to Hong Kong for treatment under the care of medical personnel. Without the handover of patients between ambulances at boundary control points, the direct transport not only minimise the risks posed to patients during transfers and improve the patients’ chances of recovery, but also exemplifies that the close collaboration and development of quality healthcare co-operation in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) supports Hong Kong patients residing in the GBA.     The spokesperson emphasised that the Pilot Scheme has a mechanism in place to avoid abuse while ensuring the safety of cross-boundary transfer. Doctors at the sending hospital will assess the clinical diagnosis and condition of the patients to determine the necessity for cross-boundary inter-hospital transfer for continuous treatment or recovery services. In general, taking patients safety into consideration, the Pilot Scheme will only facilitate the transfer of emergency patients who have clinical needs, are unable to cross the boundary independently, and whose clinical conditions are stable. Patients who are clinically unstable cannot participate in the scheme. The medical teams from both regions will jointly evaluate cases, exchange information, and co-ordinate to decide whether to initiate the transfer mechanism, ensuring that both the patients and their family are informed of the relevant arrangements and the risks involved in the transfer.     The study on the provision of land-based cross-boundary transfers for non-emergency and non-critically ill patients and the exploration of rolling out a pilot co-operation scheme for cross-boundary referrals of patients between designated public hospitals were put forward in the Outline Development Plan for the GBA. The Chief Executive also put forward in his 2023 Policy Address the initiative to explore cross-boundary ambulance transfer arrangements between hospitals in the GBA. Under the staunch support and guidance of various national ministries as well as the concerted efforts of the government departments of Hong Kong, Guangdong and Macao, the Pilot Scheme was set for official launch on November 30 last year. The first patient was transferred point to point from Shenzhen to Hong Kong for treatment by direct cross-boundary ambulance on January 10 this year.

     
    Ends/Monday, January 27, 2025Issued at HKT 21:35

    NNNN

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Harbour Grace — Dangerous driver stopped by Harbour Grace RCMP using spike belt, man arrested

    Source: Royal Canadian Mounted Police

    After fleeing from Harbour Grace RCMP in a dangerous manner a number of times on January 24, 2025, 38-year-old Shawn Clarke was arrested. Police used a spike belt to successfully bring the vehicle he was operating to a stop.

    Shortly after 10:00 a.m. on Friday, in recognizing a Transit van that fled from police earlier in the week, Harbour Grace RCMP attempted to stop what officers believed to be the same van on High Road South in Carbonear. The van failed to stop for police and fled in a dangerous manner. In the interests of public safety, police did not pursue the vehicle.

    A short time later, the van was located by police on Cathedral Street in Harbour Grace. Police again attempted to stop the van. The driver fled from police in a dangerous manner and officers did not pursue.

    After this, the vehicle was further located by police on Barrack’s Road in Bay Roberts and on Main Road in Shearstown. The driver continued to flee from police and drive dangerously.

    A short time later, a spike belt was successfully deployed by Harbour Grace RCMP on Picketts Road in Shearstown, which brought the vehicle to a stop. Clarke exited the van and was arrested without further incident.

    Clarke is charged with the following criminal offences:

    • Flight from police – multiple counts
    • Dangerous operation – multiple counts
    • Failure to comply with a probation order

    He attended court on Friday, was remanded into custody and will appear in court again today.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI China: Chinese premier urges work to ensure safe passenger transport, smooth logistics during holiday

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Chinese premier urges work to ensure safe passenger transport, smooth logistics during holiday

    Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, inspects Ministry of Transport work for the Spring Festival travel rush in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 27, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]

    BEIJING, Jan. 27 — Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Monday emphasized the need to safeguard safe, smooth travel for the public during the Spring Festival travel rush, as well as the efficient operations of transport logistics.

    Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks when inspecting Ministry of Transport work for the holiday travel season.

    The Spring Festival travel season is a time when happy journeys are made for families to come together, and this year’s travel rush is expected to hit a record high number of such journeys, posing another test for the country’s transport system, Li said.

    He urged smooth, efficient passenger transport based on the scientific analysis of passenger flow patterns. Adjustments should be made to increase the number of train services, optimize schedules, and extend operating hours, allowing travelers to reach their destinations in a timely manner, Li said.

    China has recently experienced widespread rain, snow and cold weather, significantly impacting transport, he noted, calling for work to monitor weather changes, provide forecast and warning information through multiple channels, and stay prepared to respond to emergencies to minimize the impact of severe weather on public travel.

    After he was briefed on foreign trade and express logistics services at ports during the holiday travel rush, Li said that efficient port cargo transportation is a significant advantage for China’s foreign trade, and that it is important to maintain effective port logistics to ensure the timely delivery of overseas orders during the holiday.

    He highlighted the country’s smooth logistics network, urging express delivery firms to allocate labor and transport resources effectively to meet the basic delivery service needs of the public.

    Efforts should be made to ensure the supply of essential materials during the peak travel period, such as food, coal for electricity and heating, and holiday necessities, he said.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI China: Xi sends Chinese New Year card in return to friends in U.S. state of Iowa

    Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

    Xi sends Chinese New Year card in return to friends in U.S. state of Iowa

    BEIJING, Jan. 27 — Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday sent a Chinese New Year card in return to friends in the U.S. state of Iowa, saying that China and the United States share extensive common interests and broad space for cooperation and can become partners and friends.

    Xi said in the reply card that the warm reception he received when he visited the beautiful state of Iowa 40 years ago is still fresh in his memory.

    China and the United States can achieve mutual success and common prosperity for the benefit of both countries and the world at large, Xi said.

    The Chinese president expressed his hope that the two peoples will pay more visits to each other and have more exchanges, jointly write new stories of friendship between the two peoples, and make new contributions to the development of China-U.S. relations.

    Earlier, 58 people from Iowa, including friends Luca Berrone, Gary Dvorchak and Sarah Lande, former U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad and his wife, former President of the World Food Prize Foundation Kenneth Quinn, as well as representatives of teachers, students and parents from Iowa who participated in the initiative of inviting 50,000 young Americans to China for exchange and study for a five-year period, jointly sent a Chinese New Year card to President Xi.

    In the card, they recalled Xi’s first visit to Iowa in 1985 and extended New Year greetings to President Xi in the Year of the Snake.

    The representatives of teachers, students and parents thanked Xi for putting forward the “50,000 in Five Years” initiative, shared their feelings about visiting China, and expressed their expectations to visit China again.

    MIL OSI China News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why neglecting your brain health can make it harder to achieve physical goals

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian, Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology, University of Cambridge

    SofikoS/Shutterstock

    Our cognition and mental wellbeing are crucial factors for our quality of life and put us in a good position to contribute to society. Ultimately, it can be near impossible to achieve physical goals and demanding life challenges if our brain health is not optimal.

    Yet most of us appear to be more concerned with physical health than brain health. According to the YouGov website the most popular New Year’s resolutions in the UK in 2024 were doing more exercise, saving money, losing weight and dieting – with about 20% reporting they were failing some resolutions only just six days into the year. A large study of approximately 1,000 participants showed that mental health only featured in about 5% of resolutions.

    It’s easy to monitor your physical health using mobile devices and wearable technology to preserve physical health throughout your life. It may be more unclear, however, how to improve and monitor brain health and mental wellbeing. In our new book Brain Boost: Healthy Habits for a Happier Life, we draw on research to offer practical tips.

    A number of factors contribute to our happiness in life, including genetics, our social and physical environment, cognition and our behaviour, such as lifestyle choices. Studies have shown that good cognitive function is related to better wellbeing and happiness.

    Interestingly, according to the 2024 World Happiness Report all five Nordic countries – Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden – are in the top 10 happiest countries. The UK and the US, however, do not feature in the top 10.

    In the UK, the YouGov website has been tracking mood states and while it reports that happiness is the most commonly expressed emotion, only 45% of people feel it. Ideally this number should be much higher.

    In addition, feeling stressed and frustrated are the next top emotions with 40% and 35% of people having these feelings respectively. Disappointingly, optimism is also low, for example, only 23% of 18-24 year-olds and over 75-year-olds feel optimistic on average, and 17% of 45-54 year-olds.

    Happiness and wellbeing in general reduces the effects of stress and promotes health and longevity.

    Nurturing your brain

    In our book, we draw on the latest scientific evidence, including our own, to highlight seven essential lifestyle factors that improve our brain health, cognition and wellbeing. We demonstrate how simple — and often surprising —adjustments to our daily habits can enhance brain fitness, boost cognition, and promote overall wellbeing.

    We suggest small incremental steps to improving lifestyle habits and ensuring these fit within our daily activities, as well as being enjoyable and pleasurable. In this way, we can ensure, that unlike New Year’s resolutions that we give up within six days, we can maintain these throughout life. This puts us in a better position to achieve physical challenges in the future.

    These lifestyle factors include exercise, diet, sleep, social interactions, kindness, mindfulness and learning, and knowing how to get the best out of work. For example, exercise is an “all-rounder”, as it can boost our physical health but also our brain health, cognition and mood. In fact, studies have shown that exercise can increase the size of our hippocampus, which is critical for learning and memory.

    Similarly, sleeping the optimal number of hours each night can improve our immune system, brain structure and mental wellbeing. Our own study showed that sleeping 7-8 hours per night in middle to older adulthood was associated with better brain structure, cognition, such as processing speed and memory, and mental health.

    Staying socially connected also plays an important role in our brain health. We have shown that being socially isolated in older adults is associated with a 26% increased risk of dementia. Whereas, having the optimal number of friends in adolescence, about five, is linked with better brain structure, cognition, educational attainment and wellbeing.

    Learning new things is also essential to keep the neural circuits in our brain functioning at their best level for as long as possible. We need to challenge ourselves mentally to keep our brains active – just as we need to do physical exercise to keep our bodies fit.

    This builds cognitive reserve and helps us in times of stress. We can also keep our brains active in a number of ways, for example, by learning a new language or how to play a musical instrument or you can read an educational book about something that interests you.

    Keeping our bodies healthy is incredibly important. But we need to also nurture our brains if we want to be happy, mentally sharp and well protected against diseases such as dementia.

    Embracing these simple strategies to prioritise our brain health and wellbeing is essential for a happier and more fulfilling life. Ultimately, lifestyle choices play a significant role in reducing stress and promoting resilience, creativity and overall quality of life.

    Barbara Jacquelyn Sahakian receives funding from the Wellcome Trust and the Lundbeck Foundation. Her research work is conducted within the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) Mental Health and Neurodegeneration Themes. She consults for Cambridge Cognition.

    Christelle Langley receives funding from the Wellcome Trust. Her research work is conducted within the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) Mental Health and Neurodegeneration Themes.

    – ref. Why neglecting your brain health can make it harder to achieve physical goals – https://theconversation.com/why-neglecting-your-brain-health-can-make-it-harder-to-achieve-physical-goals-248043

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Understanding paranormal beliefs and conspiracy theories isn’t just about misinformation – this course unpacks the history

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jeb Card, Associate Teaching Professor of Anthropology, Miami University

    The ‘black mailbox’ along Highway 375 near Rachel, Nev., a traditional spot for UFO hunters to meet and search the skies near Area 51. AP Photo/John Locher

    Uncommon Courses is an occasional series from The Conversation U.S. highlighting unconventional approaches to teaching.

    Title of course:

    “Investigating the Paranormal”

    What prompted the idea for the course?

    My training and professional work have been in Mesoamerican archaeology, but I’ve had a lifelong fascination with paranormal concepts. In fact, I considered studying the UFO community for my doctoral research in cultural anthropology.

    I eventually fused these two interests in my book “Spooky Archaeology: Myth and the Science of the Past,” which examines why archaeology shows up so much in ideas about the mysterious and weird. Most people are familiar with pop culture characters like Indiana Jones seeking magical artifacts. Perhaps less immediately obvious is just how common archaeological topics are in paranormal and conspiracy culture.

    The popularity of paranormal ideas – from television shows and thousands of podcasts to UFOs on the front page of The New York Times and in government investigations – made it clear that a course on paranormal culture would be an excellent way for students to get a taste of social science research.

    What does the course explore?

    The material begins with premodern ideas of magic, myth and metaphysics. The narrative that “Western” societies tell of the development of the modern world is that the Enlightenment cast off supernatural thinking in favor of science. The historical reality, however, is not so simple.

    As science based on observation of material evidence emerged in the 17th through 19th centuries, so did a paranormal worldview: theories about a nonmaterial or hidden reality beyond the mundane, from monsters to psychic powers. Some of these ideas were tied to older religious notions of the sacred or strange but not divine phenomena. Others were new – particularly those suggesting the hidden existence of prehistoric extinct creatures or lost cities.

    In either case, the key element was that proponents of these ideas often tried to support their existence with the kind of evidence used in science, though their “proofs” fell short of scientific standards. In other words, the paranormal is in conflict with the knowledge and worldview of modernity but also attempts to use the concepts of modernity to oppose it.

    The class examines how this tension produced 20th century “-ologies” like parapsychology, which examines evidence for consciousness beyond matter, and cryptozoology, which searches the ends of the Earth for creatures tied to the mythic past. We also learn about UFOlogy, whose proponents have collected alleged contacts with technology and beings from beyond this world ever since the Cold War, as great earthly powers filled the skies with secretive hi-tech aircraft and spaceships.

    As the class concludes, we examine how the “-ologies” declined after the Cold War, alongside the cultural capital of science, whose height of public respect was in the mid-20th century. Since then, proving the existence of paranormal things to institutional scientists has become less important in paranormal communities than promoting them to a broader public.

    Why is this course relevant now?

    Beyond public interest in paranormal topics, the paranormal is entwined with sociocultural forces that have dramatically increased the role of conspiracy rhetoric in the United States and elsewhere. At their core, both types of belief claim to have figured out some kind of supposedly hidden knowledge.

    Furthermore, the conspiracy theories that are now commonplace in American political discourse are more rooted in paranormal ideas than in previous decades. Conspiracy theories about the JFK assassination or even 9/11 were still largely within the materialist realm. People argued that “the truth” had been covered up, but their arguments did not rely on metaphysical ideas. Today, major conspiracy theories involve secret cabals, mystical symbols and code words, demonic forces and extraterrestrial entities.

    What’s a critical lesson from the course?

    Evidence must be interrogated on its own, regardless of whether it fits your perspective. I find time and again that students have a hard time approaching evidence without bias, whether that bias is conscious or not: “knowing” that something must be true, or must be absurd.

    One person apparently makes a death bed confession of faking a famous Loch Ness Monster photo, pleasing skeptics. Another claims to have seen a Bigfoot at close range, pleasing believers. Without further evidence, both are stories: no more, no less.

    The issue isn’t to draw an equivalence between the bigger concepts. Not all narratives are equally well-founded. But students learn how to collect evidence, rather than simply rely on their gut sense of what is plausible or not.

    What will the course prepare students to do?

    This course is meant to help students discern useful and reliable information about claims and events, separating them from irrelevant or inaccurate narratives or sources. The goal is not just “critical thinking” aimed at combating disinformation, though that is part of what they should learn. Students practice evaluating evidence but also develop an approach for analyzing and understanding phenomena behind it: how factors like history, culture and institutions of authority, such as science and government, shape what people trust and what they believe.

    Jeb Card does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Understanding paranormal beliefs and conspiracy theories isn’t just about misinformation – this course unpacks the history – https://theconversation.com/understanding-paranormal-beliefs-and-conspiracy-theories-isnt-just-about-misinformation-this-course-unpacks-the-history-242007

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Assad’s fall opens window for Syrian refugees to head home − but for many, it won’t be an easy decision

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Kelsey Norman, Fellow for the Middle East, Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University

    For more than a decade, Syrians have been the world’s largest refugee population.

    More than 6 million Syrians have fled the country since 2011, when an uprising against the regime of Bashar Assad transformed into a 13-year civil war. Most ended up in neighboring countries such as Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt, while a sizable minority wound up in Europe. But the overthrow of the Assad regime in late 2024 by opposition forces led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has seemingly opened a window for their return, and tens of thousands of former refugees have since made the decision to go back to their homeland.

    How many and who decides to go back, and the circumstances under which they reintegrate into Syrian society, will have enormous implications for both Syria and the countries they resettled in. It also provides an opportunity for migration scholars like ourselves to better understand what happens when refugees finally return home.

    Previous research has shown that Syrian refugees who are trying to decide whether to return are motivated more by conditions in Syria than by policy decisions where they’ve resettled. But individual experiences also play an important role. Counterintuitively, refugees who have been exposed to violence during the Syrian civil war are actually more tolerant of and better at assessing the risk of returning to Syria, research has shown.

    But such research was conducted while Assad was still in power, and it has only been several weeks since Assad fell. As a result, it’s unclear how many Syrians will decide to go back. After all, the current government is transitional, and the country is not fully unified.

    The risk of return

    In the month after Assad’s fall, about 125,000 Syrians headed home, primarily from Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon. But for the majority of those yet to return, important questions and considerations remain.

    First and foremost, what will governance look like under the transitional government? So far, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s rule under Ahmed al-Sharaa has suggested the group will embrace inclusivity toward Syria’s diverse array of ethnic and religious minorities. Even so, some observers worry about the group’s prior connections to militant Islamist groups, including al-Qaida.

    Similarly, initial fears about restrictions on women’s participation in public life have mostly been assuaged, despite the transitional government appointing only two women to office.

    Syrians debating whether to return home must also confront the economic devastation wrought by years of war, government mismanagement and corruption, and international sanctions placed on the Assad regime.

    Sanctions blocking the entry of medications and equipment, along with Assad’s bombing of infrastructure throughout the war, have crippled the country’s medical system.

    In 2024, 16.7 million Syrians – more than half the country’s population – were in need of essential humanitarian assistance, even as very little was available. In early 2025, the U.S. announced that it was extending a partial, six-month reprieve of sanctions to allow humanitarian groups to provide basic services such as water, sanitation and electricity.

    But rebuilding the country’s infrastructure will take much longer, and Syrian refugees will have to weigh whether they are better off remaining in their host countries. This is especially true for those who have worked to build new lives over a long period in exile from Syria.

    The caretaker Syrian government will also have to address the issue of property restitution. Many individuals may want to return home only if they indeed have a home to return to. And the policy of forced property transfers and the settlement by Alawite and minority groups allied to the Assad regime in former Sunni areas vacated during the war complicates the issue.

    Continued welcome in Europe?

    Since the start of the civil war, approximately 1.3 million Syrians have sought protection in Europe, the majority of them arriving in 2015 and 2016 and settling in countries such as Germany and Sweden. As of December 2023, 780,000 individuals still held refugee status and subsidiary protection – an additional form of international protection – with the remainder having received either long-term residency or citizenship.

    Syria’s 13-year civil war reduced many homes to rubble.
    Ercin Erturk/Anadolu via Getty Images

    Subsidiary protection was granted to those who didn’t meet the stringent requirements for refugee status under the Geneva Conventions – which requires a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group – but “would face a real risk of suffering serious harm” if returned to their countries of origin.

    Recognition rates for Syrians have remained consistently high between 2015 and 2023, but the breakdown between subsidiary protection and refugee status has fluctuated over the years, with 81% receiving refugee status in 2015 versus 68% receiving subsidiary protection in 2023.

    For Syrians in the EU who hold refugee status or subsidiary protection, as well as for those with pending asylum claims, the future is very uncertain. In accordance with the Geneva Conventions, EU law allows governments to revoke, end or refuse to renew their status if the reason to offer protection has ceased, which many countries believe is the case after Assad’s fall.

    Since then, at least 12 European countries have suspended asylum applications of Syrian nationals. Some nations, such as Austria, have threatened to implement a program of “orderly return and deportation.”

    Conditions in Turkey and Lebanon

    A much larger number of Syrians obtained protection in neighboring countries, namely Turkey (2.9 million), Lebanon (755,000) and Jordan (611,000), though estimates of unregistered Syrians are much higher. In Turkey, which hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees, Syrians are afforded only temporary protection status.

    In theory, this status allows them access to work, health care and education. But in practice, Syrian refugees in Turkey have not always been able to enjoy these rights. Coupled with anti-immigrant sentiments worsened by the 2023 earthquake and presidential election, life has remained difficult for many.

    And while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has publicly stated that Syrians should return home according to their own timeline, his previous scapegoating of the refugee population indicates that he may ultimately like to see them returned – especially as many in Turkey now believe Syrian refugees have no reason to stay in the country.

    Syrians in Lebanon, which hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees per capita, face even greater economic and legal challenges. The country is not a signatory to the Geneva Conventions, and its stringent domestic asylum law has granted residency to only 17% of the more than a million Syrians who live in the country.

    Lebanon has been pressuring Syrian refugees to leave the country for years through policies of marginalization and forced deportation, which have intensified in recent months with a government scheme to deport Syrians not registered with the United Nations. As of 2023, 84% of Syrian families were living in extreme poverty. Their vulnerability was exacerbated by the recent conflict between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon, which led 425,000 Syrians to escape war once again and return to Syria even though conditions at the time were not safe.

    Testing the water

    Offering go-and-see visits – whereby one member of a family is allowed to return to a home country to evaluate the situation and subsequently permitted to reenter the host country without losing their legal status – is the norm in many refugee situations. The policy is being used at present for Ukrainians in Europe and was used in the past for Bosnian and South Sudanese refugees.

    The same policy could serve Syrian refugees now – indeed, Turkey recently implemented such a plan. But above all, we believe returns to Syria should be voluntary, not forced. Getting the conditions right for returning refugees will have enormous implications for rebuilding the country and keeping the peace – or not – in the years to come.

    The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Assad’s fall opens window for Syrian refugees to head home − but for many, it won’t be an easy decision – https://theconversation.com/assads-fall-opens-window-for-syrian-refugees-to-head-home-but-for-many-it-wont-be-an-easy-decision-247051

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: I study democracy worldwide − here’s how Texas is eroding human rights, free expression and civil liberties

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Katie Scofield, Assistant Instructional Professor in Political Science, Texas A&M University-San Antonio

    Everything is bigger in Texas, except maybe its democracy. Luis Diaz Devesa/Moment via Getty

    While concerns about the future of American democracy dominate headlines worldwide, millions of Texans are already seeing a rapid decline in democratic standards.

    In December 2024, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued a New York doctor for prescribing abortion-inducing medications to a woman in Collin County, Texas, alleging that the shipment violated Texas’ near-total ban on abortion.

    Two months earlier, Paxton’s office had sued to block a federal rule protecting women’s out-of-state medical records from criminal investigation. And in 2022, it sued the Biden administration over federal guidelines requiring doctors to perform abortions in emergency situations.

    Paxton’s lawsuits – alongside the state’s restrictive abortion policies – raise troubling questions about individual privacy and women’s bodily autonomy in Texas, where I live and teach. And they’re indicative of a broader problem. As my research on democracy and human rights shows, the state government is becoming increasingly antidemocratic.

    Scholars examine a number of factors to determine the health of a democracy. Elections must be free and fair. There should be freedom of expression and belief, multiple competitive political parties and minimal corruption. A democratic government must also respect individual freedom.

    On many of these metrics, I believe Texas falls short.

    Are Texas elections free and fair?

    Texas has some of the most restrictive voting laws in the United States, including strict voter ID laws, stringent limits on mail-in and absentee ballots and no online voter registration.

    Republicans, who passed each of these policies, claim their concern is a democratic one – election integrity. Yet, when Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick offered a US$25,000 reward to anyone who could prove voter fraud in the 2020 election, it led to just one arrest.

    The Texas Legislature nonetheless pledged to pass an even more restrictive voting bill in 2021, referencing “purity of the ballot box,” an old Jim Crow phrase. Democratic lawmakers ended up fleeing the state to paralyze the state assembly and keep the most egregious parts of the bill from passing.

    Healthy democracies also have robust competition between multiple parties so that voters have real choices at the polls.

    Yet since its current constitution was written in 1876, Texas has effectively been a one-party state governed by conservatives. No Democrat has won statewide office since 1994 – the longest Democrats have been locked out of statewide office in any state.

    Money in politics

    Texas puts no limits on individual campaign contributions to the governor, one of just 12 U.S. states that lacks this common anti-corruption measure.

    This has allowed Texas’ current governor, Greg Abbott, who has been in office since 2015, to raise vast sums of money. In the 2022 Texas gubernatorial race – the most expensive in the state’s history at $212 million – Abbott outspent his Democratic opponent by almost $50 million. In 2018, he had 90 times more cash on hand than his Democratic opponent.

    Texas’ lack of effective campaign finance regulations has given big donors access to power in the form of gubernatorial appointments.

    An in-depth investigation by The Texas Tribune in 2022 revealed that 27 of the 41 members of the governor’s COVID-19 task force were campaign donors who had collectively paid $6 million toward the governor’s reelection. Many were business owners who had a vested interest in reopening the state.

    Freedom of expression

    Texas is also at the center of a national struggle over academic freedom, a key component of free expression.

    Texas passed a law in 2023 requiring public universities to close their diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, offices, depriving the most vulnerable student communities of resources such as scholarships, mental health programs and career workshops.

    The Texas Senate is considering expanding this legislation to prohibit “DEI curriculum and course content.”

    The mere threat appears to be squelching freedom of thought and intellectual exploration in Texas universities already. The University of North Texas in November started editing course titles and syllabi to remove identity-based topics.

    On Jan. 14, Abbott threatened to fire the president of Texas A&M University – a part of my university system – if faculty attended an academic conference showcasing the work of Black, Latino and Indigenous scholars.

    Human rights at the border

    Abbott’s campaign to control the U.S.-Mexico border has raised concerns among human rights groups about civil rights in the state.

    In March of 2021, Abbott declared a state of emergency in counties on the Texas border, allowing him to deploy the Texas National Guard there. The initiative, Operation Lone Star, was supposed to stop migrants from crossing the border outside official government checkpoints.

    Since border enforcement is a federal authority, however, the troops have mostly enforced state laws on trespassing or drugs and weapons possession. Guardsmen have also participated in busing migrants to Democratic-run cities such as New York and Chicago and built razor-wire barriers in the Rio Grande.

    The result is an $11 billion policing program that has largely targeted Latino American citizens – not immigrants. Fully 96% of those arrested on trespassing charges are Latino, and 75% of those facing court proceedings for that and other crimes as a result of Operation Lone Star are U.S. citizens.

    Gov. Greg Abbott, left, and Donald Trump greet Texas National Guard troops in Edinburg, Texas, on Nov. 19, 2023.
    Michael Gonzalez/Getty Images

    Women’s freedoms

    Finally, women’s right to bodily autonomy is under threat in Texas, which has one of the country’s most restrictive abortion laws.

    At least three women have died as a result of doctors being afraid to treat their miscarriages. Overall, maternal mortality rates have increased by 56% since the ban was imposed in 2021. Scary statistics haven’t stopped the state’s plans to tighten its ban.

    The 2025 Texas legislative session began with Republican legislators having prefiled several bills aimed at ending abortion by mail services, including one that would reclassify common abortion pills as controlled substances like Valium or Ambien. Doctors warn that this reclassification could also make it harder for them to disperse these medications quickly in life-threatening emergencies.

    And a handful of rural Texas counties have made it illegal to transport women seeking out-of-state abortions on their roads.

    As Texas goes, so goes the nation?

    The question of whether a government is democratic is often not black or white. It should be viewed on a sliding scale.

    Freedom House, a nonpartisan international democracy watchdog, ranks countries on a 100-point scale based on the factors I mentioned earlier, among others, and labels countries as “free,” “partly-free” and “not free.”

    The freest country in 2024, Finland, had a score of 100. The U.S. has been sliding down the rankings, receiving a score of 83 in 2024 – down from 94 in 2010. It’s still solidly in the “free” category, but U.S. democracy looks less like Germany’s and more like Romania’s. The antidemocratic policy changes made in Texas and a handful of other states contribute to this slide.

    Freedom House doesn’t rank states, but if it did, Texas would likely still rate as a “free” democracy. There is space for dissent, opposition and free speech. Democratic politicians have occasional political victories.

    But Texas is decidedly less democratic than the U.S. at large. Democracy here is not lost, but I fear Texas is in danger of becoming only “partly-free.”

    Katie Scofield does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. I study democracy worldwide − here’s how Texas is eroding human rights, free expression and civil liberties – https://theconversation.com/i-study-democracy-worldwide-heres-how-texas-is-eroding-human-rights-free-expression-and-civil-liberties-246936

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: ‘Sorry, I didn’t get that’: AI misunderstands some people’s words more than others

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Roberto Rey Agudo, Research Assistant Professor of Spanish and Portuguese, Dartmouth College

    Speech recognition systems are less accurate for women and Black people, among other demographics. Jacob Wackerhausen/iStock via Getty Images

    The idea of a humanlike artificial intelligence assistant that you can speak with has been alive in many people’s imaginations since the release of “Her,” Spike Jonze’s 2013 film about a man who falls in love with a Siri-like AI named Samantha. Over the course of the film, the protagonist grapples with the ways in which Samantha, real as she may seem, is not and never will be human.

    Twelve years on, this is no longer the stuff of science fiction. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and digital assistants like Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa help people get driving directions, make grocery lists, and plenty else. But just like Samantha, automatic speech recognition systems still cannot do everything that a human listener can.

    You have probably had the frustrating experience of calling your bank or utility company and needing to repeat yourself so that the digital customer service bot on the other line can understand you. Maybe you’ve dictated a note on your phone, only to spend time editing garbled words.

    Linguistics and computer science researchers have shown that these systems work worse for some people than for others. They tend to make more errors if you have a non-native or a regional accent, are Black, speak in African American Vernacular English, code-switch, if you are a woman, are old, are too young or have a speech impediment.

    Tin ear

    Unlike you or me, automatic speech recognition systems are not what researchers call “sympathetic listeners.” Instead of trying to understand you by taking in other useful clues like intonation or facial gestures, they simply give up. Or they take a probabilistic guess, a move that can sometimes result in an error.

    As companies and public agencies increasingly adopt automatic speech recognition tools in order to cut costs, people have little choice but to interact with them. But the more that these systems come into use in critical fields, ranging from emergency first responders and health care to education and law enforcement, the more likely there will be grave consequences when they fail to recognize what people say.

    Imagine sometime in the near future you’ve been hurt in a car crash. You dial 911 to call for help, but instead of being connected to a human dispatcher, you get a bot that’s designed to weed out nonemergency calls. It takes you several rounds to be understood, wasting time and raising your anxiety level at the worst moment.

    What causes this kind of error to occur? Some of the inequalities that result from these systems are baked into the reams of linguistic data that developers use to build large language models. Developers train artificial intelligence systems to understand and mimic human language by feeding them vast quantities of text and audio files containing real human speech. But whose speech are they feeding them?

    If a system scores high accuracy rates when speaking with affluent white Americans in their mid-30s, it is reasonable to guess that it was trained using plenty of audio recordings of people who fit this profile.

    With rigorous data collection from a diverse range of sources, AI developers could reduce these errors. But to build AI systems that can understand the infinite variations in human speech arising from things like gender, age, race, first vs. second language, socioeconomic status, ability and plenty else, requires significant resources and time.

    ‘Proper’ English

    For people who do not speak English – which is to say, most people around the world – the challenges are even greater. Most of the world’s largest generative AI systems were built in English, and they work far better in English than in any other language. On paper, AI has lots of civic potential for translation and increasing people’s access to information in different languages, but for now, most languages have a smaller digital footprint, making it difficult for them to power large language models.

    Even within languages well-served by large language models, like English and Spanish, your experience varies depending on which dialect of the language you speak.

    Right now, most speech recognition systems and generative AI chatbots reflect the linguistic biases of the datasets they are trained on. They echo prescriptive, sometimes prejudiced notions of “correctness” in speech.

    In fact, AI has been proved to “flatten” linguistic diversity. There are now AI startup companies that offer to erase the accents of their users, drawing on the assumption that their primary clientele would be customer service providers with call centers in foreign countries like India or the Philippines. The offering perpetuates the notion that some accents are less valid than others.

    Human connection

    AI will presumably get better at processing language, accounting for variables like accents, code-switching and the like. In the U.S., public services are obligated under federal law to guarantee equitable access to services regardless of what language a person speaks. But it is not clear whether that alone will be enough incentive for the tech industry to move toward eliminating linguistic inequities.

    Many people might prefer to talk to a real person when asking questions about a bill or medical issue, or at least to have the ability to opt out of interacting with automated systems when seeking key services. That is not to say that miscommunication never happens in interpersonal communication, but when you speak to a real person, they are primed to be a sympathetic listener.

    With AI, at least for now, it either works or it doesn’t. If the system can process what you say, you are good to go. If it cannot, the onus is on you to make yourself understood.

    Roberto Rey Agudo does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. ‘Sorry, I didn’t get that’: AI misunderstands some people’s words more than others – https://theconversation.com/sorry-i-didnt-get-that-ai-misunderstands-some-peoples-words-more-than-others-239281

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How does raw water compare to tap water? A microbiologist explains why the risks outweigh the benefits

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Bill Sullivan, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University

    Water that comes straight from natural sources, dubbed “raw water,” is gaining popularity. Raw water advocates reject public water supplies, including tap water, because they don’t enjoy the taste or believe it’s unsafe and depleted of vital minerals.

    On the surface, raw water might seem alluring – the natural surroundings may look beautiful, and the water may look clean and taste refreshing. But unlike tap or commercially bottled water, raw water is not evaluated for safety. This leaves the people who drink it vulnerable to infectious microbes or potentially other toxic contaminants.

    I’m a microbiology researcher studying infectious diseases. From a public health perspective, clarifying misconceptions about tap water and the health hazards of raw water can protect consumers and curtail the spread of infectious diseases.

    A short history of public drinking water

    Archaeological evidence suggests that humans have long associated dirty water with negative health outcomes. As early as 1500 BCE, ancient Egyptians added a binding agent to their water to clump contaminants together for easy removal.

    Two major developments in the mid-1800s showed why impure water is dangerous. First, physician John Snow traced a deadly cholera outbreak to contaminated water from London’s Broad Street pump. Second, Louis Pasteur advanced the germ theory of disease, which postulated that microbes can cause illness. Pasteur established that consumable liquids like raw water and milk can harbor disease-causing pathogens.

    Physician John Snow’s 1854 map of cholera cases in London, highlighted in black, clustered around a contaminated pump.
    John Snow/Wellcome Collection

    These discoveries paved the way for large-scale infrastructure projects in the 20th century to ensure the public water supply is safe.

    Today, the process of cleaning water begins with the same steps employed by the ancient Egyptians, followed by extensive filtration to get rid of debris as well as most germs and chemicals. Chlorine is added to kill lingering pathogens, including those that may reside in the service pipes carrying the water to the faucet. Beginning in the 1940s, a small amount of fluoride was added as an inexpensive, safe and effective means to improve dental health.

    The cleanliness and fluoridation of the water supply has dramatically reduced infectious disease and cavities, and has been heralded as one of the 20th century’s greatest public health achievements.

    Is raw water healthier than tap water?

    People who champion raw water claim it has health benefits, such as essential minerals and beneficial bacteria called probiotics, that are stripped from tap water. Let’s unpack each of these claims.

    Water dissolves bits of soil and rock at its source; therefore, its mineral content depends on the local geology. Areas with a lot of limestone, like the Midwest, have water that is higher in calcium. Water from deeper in the ground may have higher mineral content since it passes through more rock on its way to the surface.

    The mineral content of water largely depends on its source and location.
    Sergii Zyskо/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    The idea that tap water is depleted of essential minerals is not true, as these nutrients are too small to be excluded by the filtration process. Test kits can determine the mineral content of your water, and if you find it lacking, mineral supplements can be added. Experts suggest, however, that most minerals you need come from your diet, not water.

    Some also claim that raw water contains probiotics that are removed from tap water. The amount of probiotics in water would also vary by location, and the notion that health-promoting bacteria reside in raw water has not been proved.

    There are no studies associating raw water with any health benefit. Anecdotal claims about smoother skin or increased energy are likely to be placebo effects. Even the idea that raw water tastes better might be more psychological than physiological – a 2018 study showed that most people preferred tap water over bottled water in a blind taste test.

    Risks of drinking raw water

    Raw water carries the risk of serious gastrointestinal infection from a wide variety of pathogens.

    Water-borne viruses include rotavirus and norovirus, which cause rapid-onset diarrhea and vomiting, and hepatitis A, which infects the liver. Bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella, or parasites like Cryptosporidium and Giardia, also cause severe diarrhea that can lead to dangerous levels of dehydration. Toxoplasma gondii can also lurk in raw water and can cause miscarriage or birth defects if consumed during pregnancy.

    Tap water undergoes several treatment steps before it reaches your faucet.
    CDC

    Carriers of diarrheal infections can transmit them to others if they swim in public pools or fail to properly wash their hands before touching others or preparing food. Norovirus is particularly durable and can survive on surfaces for days, increasing chances of it infecting someone else.

    Raw water can also contain algae that release toxins causing abdominal issues and damage to the brain and nervous system.

    Cholera, dysentery and typhoid fever are no longer health burdens in the U.S. thanks to a robust water treatment system. But areas of the world lacking this privilege suffer high child mortality and widespread diarrheal diseases.

    How safe is tap water in the US?

    Tap water in the U.S. is among the safest to drink in the world. The Biden administration took steps to further improve it, including funding to replace lead pipes and new rules to monitor forever chemicals like perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, which have been linked to cancer and developmental disorders.

    Importantly, raw water is not necessarily free from lead, arsenic, pesticides or industrial contaminants. Raw water sources are not reliably monitored by experts, so it is difficult to say which ones pose less risk. In addition, the water may be acceptably safe one day, but not on another. For example, soil runoff from a storm could introduce new germs or pollutants into the area.

    The Environmental Protection Agency routinely screens for nearly 100 contaminants to ensure tap water is safe. In contrast, raw water remains untested, unregulated and untreated, leaving its safety to drink in question. In terms of risks and benefits, there are no demonstrated health benefits from drinking raw water, but clear evidence that you may be exposing yourself to harmful infectious and toxic contaminants.

    Bill Sullivan receives funding from the National Institutes of Health.

    – ref. How does raw water compare to tap water? A microbiologist explains why the risks outweigh the benefits – https://theconversation.com/how-does-raw-water-compare-to-tap-water-a-microbiologist-explains-why-the-risks-outweigh-the-benefits-246866

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murray, Schumer, Murphy, Kim Lead 46 Senators in Introducing Resolution Condemning Pardons of Individuals Found Guilty of Assaulting Capitol Police Officers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray

    Resolution comes after Trump pardons 1,500 Jan 6 insurrectionists—including those convicted of violently assaulted police officers

    Murray will seek unanimous consent to pass the resolution this week

    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Chris Murphy (D-CT), and Andy Kim (D-NJ) will lead a group of 46 senators in introducing a new resolution condemning the pardons of individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers. The resolution follows the move by President Trump, on the first day of his second term, to grant full, complete, and unconditional pardons to over 1,500 people charged with committing crimes in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and to commute the sentences of 14 others, including leaders of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, far-right militias. Among those pardoned by Trump were 169 people who pled guilty to assaulting police officers on January 6th.  During the siege of the Capitol that day, over 80 U.S. Capitol Police Officers were assaulted, as well as over 60 officers from the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.

    The senators’ resolution, Condemning the pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police Officers, simply states: “Resolved, That the Senate disapproves of any pardons for individuals who were found guilty of assaulting Capitol Police officers.” This week, Senator Murray will seek unanimous consent on the Senate floor to pass the resolution.

    In addition to Murray, Schumer, Murphy, and Kim, Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Angus King (I-ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR) also cosponsored the resolution. In total, 46 senators signed onto the resolution. A PDF of the resolution is HERE.


    “I refuse to allow President Trump to rewrite what happened on January 6th—armed insurrectionists, incited by Trump himself, broke into the U.S. Capitol and violently assaulted Capitol Police officers in their attempt to overthrow a free and fair election,”     said Senator Murray. “Insurrectionists cracked the ribs of police officers and smashed spinal disks. Donald Trump’s pardons are a wholesale endorsement of political violence—as long as it serves Donald Trump. Affirming that U.S. Senators condemn unconditional pardons for people who were found guilty of violently assaulting Capitol Police officers should be the easiest thing in the world. If Republicans care even the tiniest bit about law enforcement, they should be outraged by these pardons. I hope and expect my Republican colleagues will allow this very simple resolution to pass as a show of support for the officers who put their lives on the line to keep senators safe.”

    “The people who invaded the Capitol on January 6th, whether they committed violence or not, broke the law and attempted to thwart democracy. What they did is a serious crime. There’s no gray area here,” said Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. “Donald Trump’s made it clear he’s more interested in rewarding lawbreakers and pardoning lawless rioters who attacked police officers and invaded the Capitol, than standing up for law and order. Senate Republicans who experienced the same mayhem on January 6 should join us in condemning this dangerous signal to lawbreakers, so we can make clear that political violence of any kind is unacceptable.”

    “Trump’s pardons of January 6th rioters who viciously assaulted law enforcement officers send a dangerous message: if you’re willing to commit violence in his name, there are no consequences,” said Senator Murphy. “This endorsement of political violence not only undermines our justice system, but it also makes our nation less safe and emboldens those who would attack our democracy.”

    “On January 6th 2021, we witnessed an attack against our sacred Capitol and a brutal assault on police officers upholding their sworn duty. It is shameful for President Trump to issue the pardons and exalt political violence. We all resoundingly condemned the assassination attempts on Trump only to see him bless the violence against a different branch of government. Never should political violence be acceptable,” said Senator Kim.  

    “President Trump’s blanket pardons of armed insurrectionists, who were convicted by juries of everyday Americans, is the ultimate disrespect for police officers who were brutally assaulted on January 6,” said Senator Blumenthal. “These sickening pardons are a clear endorsement of political violence and discredit justice and the rule of law. I urge my Republican colleagues who were protected that terrible day—and who now stay silent—to join in condemning the violence that occurred and standing with the officers who put their lives on the line for their safety.”

    “By attacking law enforcement and trying to block the peaceful transfer of power, the people being pardoned did serious damage to our Capitol and democracy. Some of them attacked and hurt police officers, all received their day in court and were convicted of their crimes. These pardons are a mistake that I strongly disagree with,” said Senator Cantwell.

    “By putting hundreds of violent criminals back on the streets as one of his first acts back in office, President Trump is sending a clear message: it’s open season on law enforcement officers, as long as you’re committing a crime he approves of,” said Senator Coons, co-chair of the Senate Law Enforcement Caucus. “I pray that none of these criminals go on to commit further acts of violence, but President Trump’s pardons have made our police officers and our streets less safe.”

    “President Trump is pardoning violent criminals who assaulted police officers and attempted to overturn a fair and free election,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “This is an insult to law enforcement across the country and an endorsement of political violence. The very least my Republican colleagues can do to back law enforcement is to support this resolution.”

    “On day one in office—after years of pushing the false narrative that Democrats are ‘soft on crime’ and Republicans truly ‘back the blue’— Donald Trump pardoned over 1,500 violent insurrectionists who assaulted law enforcement officers and stormed our nation’s Capitol in an effort to overturn a free and fair election,” said Senator Duckworth. “Not only are these pardons a gross endorsement of political violence, they’re also an insult to the heroic law enforcement officers who defended our democracy and those who died as a result of that fateful day. If Republicans really cared about upholding democracy and the rule of law, then they’d join us in supporting this simple resolution to condemn President Trump’s pardons.”

    “On January 6, 2021, a mob of Trump-inspired insurrectionists  descended on the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn a free and fair election, wielding unspeakable violence against law enforcement officers.  A ‘full, complete, and unconditional’ pardon dishonors the lives of the five law enforcement officers who died as a result of this day, as well as those who are left with life-altering injuries inflicted by these thugs,” said Senator Durbin.  “This resolution ensures that what truly happened that day – the violent, egregious assault on law enforcement officers and the undermining of a Constitutional proceeding – will not be forgotten, even if President Trump has tried to absolve insurrectionists of their crimes.”

    “I was on the House floor, preparing myself and my colleagues for the mob to overrun the Capitol. President Trump’s pardons of these rioters, many of whom attacked policemen—my friends—is a gross misuse of power,” said Senator Gallego. “We must support law enforcement, not the ones who attacked them and tried to take our democracy.”

    “These criminals used flagpoles, fire extinguishers and bear spray to assault the police securing the Capitol on January 6. No one who assaults a police officer should be given a ‘get out of jail free card’ from the President,” said Senator Heinrich.

    “Instead of focusing on steps to strengthen our economy, lower costs, or make communities safer, Donald Trump’s day one priority was pardoning over 1,500 people who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021 in an attempt to overturn an election, including those convicted of assaulting police officers,” said Senator Kaine. “These deeply offensive pardons are a slap in the face of the law enforcement community—including five Virginians who died after protecting the Capitol that day—the Constitution, the rule of law, and our democracy. I’m joining together with my colleagues to introduce legislation to formally condemn these shameful pardons.”

    “We will never forget the truth of what happened on January 6: A violent mob attacked our democracy, our Capitol, and the brave men and women of the Capitol Police who were defending it, ” said Senator Klobuchar. “These officers deserve our respect, not the release and pardoning of those who assaulted them. Over the last four years, I have led hearings to examine the events leading up to the attack and have worked with Democrats and Republicans to ensure Capitol Police officers have our full support moving forward. The release of and pardons for those who assaulted them is simply wrong.”

    “The pardons that President Trump granted to insurrectionists who desecrated our Capitol and threatened our democracy on January 6 are not only condemnable – they are disrespectful of the law enforcement who show up every day to protect and serve us. When Republicans say they ‘back the blue,’ they are lauding the very violent criminals who left our officers back and blue on that day. Anyone who supports these pardons is supporting crime and violence,” said Senator Markey. 

    “I condemn in the strongest terms President Trump’s disgraceful pardon of more than 1,000 criminals, many of them violent, who overran the U.S. Capitol, desecrated the seat of our democracy, and assaulted law enforcement in their failed attempt to prevent the peaceful transfer of power,” Senator Ossoff said.

    “President Trump’s decision to pardon the people who attacked the U.S. Capitol and violently assaulted law enforcement officers, in an effort to overturn a free and fair election, is a clear abuse of power. A President’s allies should never receive special treatment when they’ve committed serious, violent crimes – crimes intended to undermine our democracy. To give these attackers a clean slate not only undermines the rule of law, it emboldens their extreme ideological views and it further erodes Americans’ trust in our government,” said Senator Peters.

    “These pardons were a slap in the face of the Capitol Police who stand up everyday to protect members of Congress.  They have our back; we should have theirs.  Failing to condemn the pardons of the criminals who attacked the Capitol would be a shameful betrayal of these dedicated officers,” said Senator Reed.

    “It’s unconscionable that one of President Trump’s first actions in office was to pardon criminals who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021,” said Senator Rosen. “A number of these convicted felons attacked police officers and injured them. It should not be a partisan issue to fully condemn these actions and President Trump’s pardons.”

    “Pardoning those who were convicted of assaulting police officers who were doing their duty during the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol is reckless and dangerous,” said Senator Shaheen. “No elected official, especially the President of the United States, should ever do anything that would justify, condone or excuse politically motivated violence. I hope all my colleagues will join us in supporting this resolution to condemn pardons for those found guilty of assaulting police officers on January 6, 2021.”

    “President Trump’s day one agenda was letting violent criminals who beat police officers out of prison. These are people who planned an insurrection, assaulted police officers with metal batons, fire extinguishers, wooden planks, and even admitted to these crimes and pled guilty in court. The brave Capitol Police officers who put themselves in danger to protect our democracy deserve better. We can’t let what actually happened on January 6th, 2021 be rewritten and whitewashed,” said Senator Smith.

    “On January 6, many rioters attacked our Capitol and assaulted, bludgeoned, and bloodied Capitol Police officers and officers from the District of Columbia. Donald Trump’s pardons of these convicted criminals are sickening – they are a gross insult to the brave officers who did their duty and a betrayal of all of law enforcement. I urge our Republican colleagues to join us in sending a simple message: celebrating criminals convicted of beating police officers is unacceptable,” said Senator Van Hollen.

    According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, approximately 1,572 defendants have been federally charged with crimes associated with the attack of the U.S. Capitol on January 6th. This includes approximately 598 charged with assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement agents or officers or obstructing those officers during a civil disorder, including approximately 171 defendants charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer. As proven in Court, the weapons used and carried on Capitol grounds during the January 6th attack include firearms; OC spray; tasers; edged weapons, including a sword, axes, hatchets, and knives; and makeshift weapons, such as destroyed office furniture, fencing, bike racks, stolen riot shields, baseball bats, hockey sticks, flagpoles, PVC piping, and reinforced knuckle gloves.

    Among others, the individuals who assaulted law enforcement officers and were granted full, unconditional pardons by President Trump this week include:

    • Taylor James Johnatakis, of Kingston, Washington, was convicted of three felonies in November 2023, including assaulting officers. Prosecutors said that he “coordinated a violent assault on a line of police officers defending” the Capitol and that video shows he “used a metal barricade to attack officers head on and grabbed one officer to prevent him from defending himself against other attacking rioters.”
    • Julian Khater, who assaulted a U.S. police office—Brian Sicknick—and later pled guilty to assaulting a police officer with a dangerous weapon.
    • Robert Palmer, who attacked police with a fire extinguisher, a wooden plank, and a pole.
    • Tyler Bradley Dykes of Bluffton, South Carolina, who was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison for stealing a police riot shield and twice using it against officers. He pleaded guilty to two felony counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding officers.
    • Devlyn Thompson, who hit a police officer with a metal baton.
    • Andrew Taake, of Houston, Texas, who was sentenced to a little more than six years for assaulting law enforcement officers with bear spray and a metal whip.
    • Christopher Quaglin, who federal prosecutors said “viciously assaulted numerous officers” and was one of the most violent rioters, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison.
    • David Dempsey, who, according to prosecutors, “was one of the most violent rioters,” and received 20 years in prison. Prosecutors also said Dempsey had a “very significant history of arrests and convictions” prior to the January 6th attack.
    • Daniel Rodriguez, of Fontana, California, who plunged a stun gun into the neck of Washington Police Officer Michael Fanone multiple times.
    • Ryan Nichols, of Longview, Texas, who assaulted officers with pepper spray, and later on Jan. 6, at his hotel room, he called for additional violence.
    • Howard Richardson, of King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, who struck a police officer three times with a flagpole, hard enough to break the flagpole.
    • Robert Sanford, from Chester, Pennsylvania, who hit two police officers in the head with a fire extinguisher and threw a traffic cone at another officer.
    • Jonathan Munafo, of Albany, New York, who punched a police officer, stole the officer’s riot shield, and struck a Capitol office window with two poles.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warren, McGovern, Lawmakers Blast Trump’s Inaction on High Egg Prices

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Massachusetts – Elizabeth Warren
    January 27, 2025
    Lawmakers lay out six executive actions that could lower costs.
    “We urge you to make good on your campaign promise to lower food prices for American families.”
    Text of Letter (PDF)
    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Representative Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) led 19 of their colleagues, writing to President Donald Trump, pushing him to take meaningful steps to lower the prices of eggs and other groceries—a problem he largely ignored during his entire first week in office. 
    During his campaign for president, Mr. Trump repeatedly promised he would lower food prices “immediately” if elected. Trump even told the press, “I won on groceries.” But during his first week, he instead focused on attempting to end birthright citizenship, firing inspectors general, and pardoning January 6 attackers, including those who assaulted Capitol police officers. 
    “Your sole action on costs was an executive order that contained only the barest mention of food prices and not a single specific policy to reduce them,” wrote the lawmakers. “You have tools you can use to lower grocery costs and crack down on corporate profiteering, and we write to ask if you will commit to using those tools to make good on your promises to the American people.”
    “To make food more affordable, you should look to the dominant food and grocery companies that have made record profits on the backs of working families who have had to pay higher prices,” continued the lawmakers. 
    For example, last year a Kroger executive admitted in federal court that the company raised the price of eggs and milk “significantly higher than the cost of inflation” in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, a federal court found that the country’s largest egg producers had engaged in a price-fixing conspiracy in the mid-2000s as well. Now, egg producers and grocery stores may leverage the current avian flu outbreak as an opportunity to further constrain supply or hike up egg prices to increase profits.
    “If you are indeed committed to lowering food prices, we stand ready to work with you,” wrote the lawmakers. 
    The lawmakers laid out six recommendations for executive actions to lower prices by encouraging competition and fighting price-gouging at each level of the food supply chain:
    Encourage the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to prohibit exclusionary contracting by dominant firms in the food industry, making it harder for major retailers and food brands to shut out smaller suppliers and drive up prices at smaller stores.
    Encourage the FTC to issue guidance on potential violations of the Robinson Patman Act and Section 5 of the FTC Act within the food industry and take enforcement action where merited. 
    Work with the USDA to increase the number of government contract recipients that are very small businesses and to ensure that government contracting considers the long-term costs of food sector consolidation. 
    Help the Department of Justice (DOJ) and FTC scrutinize, and where appropriate, block mergers and acquisitions in the food and agricultural sectors.
    Encourage the DOJ to prosecute actors in the agricultural and food sectors for price-fixing and other anticompetitive behavior.
    Direct the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and FTC to form a joint task force to investigate food price manipulation throughout the supply chain. 
    “Americans are looking to you to lower food prices. Instead of working to lower their grocery bills, however, you have used the first week of your administration on attempting to end birthright citizenship, pardoning individuals who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, and renaming a mountain,” concluded the lawmakers. “We urge you to make good on your campaign promise to lower food prices for American families.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Trump has rejected the Paris agreement again, but game theory shows how other countries can still lead by example

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Renaud Foucart, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster University

    petrmalinak/Shutterstock

    It came as a surprise to nobody that one of Donald Trump’s first acts on his return to the White House was to sign an executive order withdrawing the US from the Paris agreement on climate change.

    Almost 200 other countries will remain part of the deal designed to stem global warming. So how will they fare without the participation of one of the biggest polluters on the planet?

    The exit of the US encapsulates a tricky issue when it comes to international efforts to tackle climate change. Any effort to decrease the use of fossil fuels is individual, while any benefits are universal.

    And since 1997, the main approach to tackle climate change multilaterally has been through UN-backed summits known as “Cops” (Conference of the Parties) where countries gather and promise each other to cut their emissions.

    Richer countries, which polluted more in the past and created most of the accumulated CO2 in the atmosphere, have also committed to helping poorer countries develop economically while emitting less, to the tune of US$300 billion (£244 billion) a year by 2035.

    But while plenty of effort goes in to organising the largest possible coalition of countries, in the end, everything is based on good faith and promises. There is no mechanism by which countries which fail to live up to agreements are punished.

    So when national politics or budgetary constraints come into play, climate commitments can be left by the wayside. A project to tax pollution may be cancelled or campaigners may succeed in blocking plans.

    Yet there are benefits to be had from leading by example and cutting emissions without any guarantee that others will do the same. This is partly because humans have a tendency towards what’s known as “conditional cooperation”. People who fail to cooperate when they have to do it at the same time as others are much more likely to join in if they observe previous cooperation.

    For this reason, research I recently published with colleagues on game theory (the mathematical study of strategic interactions), suggests that the best thing for advanced economies to do is keep on cutting their own emissions.

    Because without efforts from rich countries to pursue a path towards mitigating global warming, there is no hope the others will follow. In that case, even a small wealthy country (like the UK) matters in demonstrating an unambiguous commitment to tackling climate change.

    Carbon cooperation

    Beyond encouraging further cooperation, a strong climate policy in the form of carbon taxes is also the most powerful way to punish those who do not take part in the global effort.

    Both the US (under Biden) and the EU have developed their own versions of a tool called a “carbon border adjustment mechanism” which means exporters from countries that do not tax emissions (or tax them less less heavily) need to pay the domestic carbon tax instead.

    Consider for instance a Chinese company exporting a container to the UK. If Chinese manufacturers have already paid a carbon tax worth £100 to the Chinese government for the product in the container, but the UK’s carbon tax would have been £200, the border tax is the difference between the two, £100.

    But if the Chinese government increases its domestic carbon tax to the UK level or above, the tax from the border adjustment mechanism drops to zero.

    This approach has influenced many countries to start their own carbon tax, because it is better to get tax receipts at home than to send them elsewhere. But again, it helps to lead by example. To influence others with border taxes, you need to implement your own system first.

    Cop out?

    Despite all of this apparent cooperation, and widespread concern about the impact of climate change, the latest Cop summit in Azerbaijan, held in November 2024, was considered by many to be a disappointment.

    But there is also some good news, which suggests that efforts are heading in the right direction. The latest data for example, shows that the EU is not far away from its 2030 target. Greenhouse gas emissions are already 37% below what they were in 1990 level. In the UK, the figure is 42%.

    In China, emissions might have apparently already peaked, earlier than expected. Even in the US, emissions are decreasing.

    Looking back at the scenarios that led to the first UN climate summit in Kyoto, not everything is bright. The world is unlikely to avoid global temperatures raising to more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

    So maybe we shouldn’t rely too much on future summits to make the next environmental breakthrough. The path forward could be more likely to come from technical solutions like carbon taxes and border adjustment mechanisms. And perhaps the best way to convince the rest of the world to cut their emissions is not to give them lectures and conferences – but to lead by example.

    Renaud Foucart does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Trump has rejected the Paris agreement again, but game theory shows how other countries can still lead by example – https://theconversation.com/trump-has-rejected-the-paris-agreement-again-but-game-theory-shows-how-other-countries-can-still-lead-by-example-246818

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Exercise does increase calorie burn – but probably not as much as you might hope

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Dylan Thompson, Professor of Human Physiology, University of Bath

    Exercise can still be a benefit if you’re trying to lose weight or get fit. Green Elk/ Shutterstock

    It’s generally accepted that exercise is a key element of losing weight. But this long-held view has been called into question in recent years – with no shortage of articles and podcasts claiming it’s a myth that exercise increases your metabolism and helps you burn calories after you work out.

    The central tenet of these reports is that the amount of calories we burn each day is somehow constrained. This hypothesis was first proposed in 2012 by the evolutionary anthropologist Herman Pontzer. He posited that as you increase your daily energy expenditure (calories burned) through physical activity, your body will find ways to cut back on energy expended on other biological processes – such as your resting metabolism. This leaves your overall daily energy expenditure unchanged.

    This theory has since been popularised in Pontzer’s 2021 book Burn, in which he theorises that “we burn calories within a very narrow range: nearly 3,000 calories per day, no matter our activity level”.

    Building on this, Pontzer suggests that, “The bottom line is that your daily (physical) activity levels have almost no bearing on the number of calories that you burn each day.”

    But before you pack away your running shoes, let’s look at what the research shows us. The most rigorous and robust evidence available on the topic actually shows that exercise does increase energy expenditure – though perhaps not as much as we might expect.

    Exercise and energy expenditure

    The evidence Pontzer used to support his hypothesis came from observational studies that compared energy expenditure in different populations around the world. In an observational study, researchers only take measurements and make comparisons between groups without actually introducing any changes.

    The most eye-catching of the studies Pontzer used to support his hypothesis was research on the Hadza tribe – one of the last remaining hunter-gatherer groups in Africa. Hunter-gatherers are assumed to be highly active in order to survive. But the study observed that the Hadza expended no more energy than the average Westerner did each day.

    We reviewed the constrained energy expenditure hypothesis in 2023. We concluded that Pontzer’s theory raises some interesting questions. However, it’s generally not very convincing due to flaws in the nature of the evidence.

    Indeed, Pontzer’s own observational data shows that daily energy expenditure can vary by more than 1,000 calories per day in a group of older people. This directly contradicts his suggestion that it’s fixed at 3,000 calories a day for everyone.

    The effects of exercise on calorie burn may be more modest than we might hope, however.
    Dean Drobot/ Shutterstock

    When we look at data from randomised controlled trials, we can clearly see that exercise does have an effect on energy expenditure.

    Randomised controlled trials allow researchers to establish cause and effect from a specific treatment or intervention. They allow groups of people to be fairly compared with just one variable manipulated at a time.

    Trials show that a structured, supervised exercise programme done up to five times a week for six and ten months increases daily energy expenditure. These effects were shown in both young and middle-aged men and women.

    This research clearly shows that physical activity does increase how many calories you burn each day.

    Modest increase

    It’s important to note that these trials do report, however, that the increases in daily energy expenditure were not always as big as expected. Put simply, burning 600 calories in the gym will not necessarily increase your daily energy expenditure by the same amount.

    However, a more-modest-than-expected increase in energy expenditure is a far cry from bold statements that exercise does not increase daily energy expenditure at all. The exact number is difficult to estimate though, as it varies a lot between people.

    As we discuss in our review, there are many possible reasons why exercise does not increase energy expenditure by as much as would be expected. Some factors might include physical activity substitution (when your new workout substitutes for physical activity you would normally have done at that time – so you might only end up burning a few calories more than you normally would have) and behavioural compensation (doing less activity later in the day after a morning workout).

    This also highlights a common misunderstanding about the magnitude of exercise’s effects. Exercise can feel hard – so people might reasonably expect a large return on their investment. But five hours of exercise a week is only about 4% of our typical waking time. So this will only go so far in shifting the dial upwards in terms of how many calories we burn through physical activity.

    Part of the misunderstanding about changes in energy expenditure and potential weight loss through exercise is perhaps related to unrealistic expectations about how many calories we burn when working out.

    So, despite what you might have heard or read, the strongest evidence from robust trials clearly demonstrates that exercise can increase daily energy expenditure. Though this might not be as much as you expect or hope.

    Dylan Thompson receives funding from BBSRC, NIHR, and Heart Research UK. He has previously had funding from MRC, BHF, and Unilever. He is a Fellow of The Physiological Society and the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences.

    Javier Gonzalez receives funding from BSRC, MRC, British Heart Foundation, Clasado Biosciences, Lucozade Ribena Suntory, ARLA Foods Ingredients, Cosun Nutrition Center, Innocent Drinks and the Fruit Juice Science Centre; is a (non-exec) scientific advisory board member to ZOE; and has completed paid consultancy for 6d Sports Nutrition, Science in Sport, The Dairy Council, PepsiCo, Violicom Medical, Tour Racing Ltd., and SVGC. For a full list of disclosures see https://gonzalezjt1.wordpress.com/2024/03/.

    – ref. Exercise does increase calorie burn – but probably not as much as you might hope – https://theconversation.com/exercise-does-increase-calorie-burn-but-probably-not-as-much-as-you-might-hope-247720

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Compendium of the Occult by Liz Williams is a rich and appealing history

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Martha McGill, Honorary Research Fellow, Historian of Supernatural Beliefs, University of Warwick

    In the fourth century BC, an unknown – but clearly disgruntled – schemer from the Greek city of Antioch had a curse tablet made. Inscribed on a thin piece of lead and deposited in a well, the tablet called for a “thunder-and-lightning-hurling” god to “strike, bind, bind together Babylas the greengrocer”.

    Around 1,400 years later, an Anglo-Saxon charm advised on how to protect a field. The secret was to take a piece of turf from each corner and anoint it with a mixture of oil, honey, yeast, milk from the animals on the land, pieces of the trees and plants on the land, and water consecrated to the god Thunor.

    In 17th-century England, the antiquarian Elias Ashmole hoped an astrological talisman would expel vermin from his house. Meanwhile, the diarist Samuel Pepys cured his upset stomach by purchasing a new hare’s foot. In 19th-century New Orleans, the Louisiana Creole woman Marie Laveau became famous for her healing, clairvoyance and work as a voodoo priestess, which she displayed in public gatherings at Congo Square.

    These are among the many fascinating snippets discussed in Liz Williams’s new book, Compendium of the Occult: Arcane Artefacts, Magic Rituals and Sacred Symbolism. Looking at western occult traditions from ancient times to the present day, the book explores how human societies have sought power, protection and insight from gods and stars, spells and amulets, sacred places and seductively enigmatic organisations.

    Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

    The book is made up of 65 short articles, grouped into six sections: the origins of western occultism; divination, rituals and rites; charms and talismans; curses and hexes; secret societies; and sites of significance.

    Many of the articles cover several centuries, meaning there is no scope for detailed analysis. However, Williams strikes an effective balance between general overview and colourful examples. She is sensitive to differences in perspective, noting the competing explanations for phenomena such as dowsing or Ouija boards.

    She also acknowledges the complexities of reconstructing past beliefs and practices from imperfect surviving evidence, although occasionally unreliable source material is not sufficiently interrogated. The book accepts too readily, for example, the questionable story that Louis XIV’s mistress Madame de Montespan arranged “black masses” in which she used the blood of babies to summon the devil.

    Magic and maladies

    Compendium of the Occult is handsomely bound, pleasingly laid out and beautifully illustrated. There are images of ancient clay tablets crisscrossed with incantations, witch bottles stuffed with nails and urine, voodoo dolls, mummies, skulls, books, statues, artworks and protective amulets in the shape of jaunty phalluses.

    The book accepts too readily that Louis XIV’s mistress Madame de Montespan used the blood of babies to summon the devil.
    Wiki Commons

    Some of the printing causes confusion, however. “Gold dots” on the timelines are difficult to see, as is the introduction’s small white text on black pages. The dating of some entries lacks obvious logic: “palmistry” is dated from the 5th to the 1st century BC, even though the article stretches to the 20th century, and other practices get the vaguer label “ancient times to the present day”. But these are minor quibbles.

    More significantly, the book’s geographical remit is limited. The introduction refers to occult traditions in “the west”, but Britain is a particular focal point. Williams discusses eight “sites of significance”, of which three (Glastonbury, Avebury and Stonehenge) can be found within a 75-mile span in England.

    She does cover ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia; there is an entry on voodoo; there are references to the influences of Arabic astrologers, and occasional mentions of practices in east Asia. But more engagement with occult traditions from beyond Europe, particularly in modern times, would have enhanced the volume and better justified the ambitious title.

    A 1660 illustration of Claudius Ptolemy’s geocentric model of the Universe, from Compendium of the Occult.
    Wikimedia Commons

    All the same, this is a rich and appealing book. Humankind’s inventiveness in conceptualising the workings of the world emerges with force. Much magic is underpinned by a belief that the everything is interwoven: the earth corresponds to the skies, the microcosm of the human body to the macrocosm of the universe.

    Williams quotes the physician and polymath Cornelius Agrippa (1486-1535), who described how a square inscribed with numbers, stamped on a silver plate at the right hour, could call on Jupiter to bring the owner wealth and peace. If printed on coral, it could destroy evil spells.

    Material objects, plants, numbers and heavenly bodies are drawn into a symbiotic relationship, and invested with the power to reshape human lives. Agrippa’s plates reflect an enduring desire to situate humankind in relation to the environment, and impose meaning and harmony on a chaotic cosmos.

    Martha McGill does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Compendium of the Occult by Liz Williams is a rich and appealing history – https://theconversation.com/compendium-of-the-occult-by-liz-williams-is-a-rich-and-appealing-history-246925

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Think your efforts to help the climate don’t matter? African philosophers disagree

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Patrick Effiong Ben, Doctoral Researcher in Applied Ethics and African Philosophy, University of Manchester

    PBXStudio/Shutterstock

    When I drive my car on weekends, I emit greenhouse gases – but not enough to change the global climate on my own. But when I, my neighbours and hundreds of millions of other people drive, fly, eat meat and embark on countless other activities that generate greenhouse gas emissions, we raise the Earth’s temperature.

    This is what we might call a collective harm problem, where the acts of many together lead to harmful outcomes, but no discrete act by any one person can solve it. Debates on how to fight climate change generally settle on the need for collective action ~ but does that make personal efforts inconsequential, even pointless?

    If a single pro-environment lifestyle change – like one person giving up their SUV or cutting out meat in favour of plant-based foods – will not turn the tide of global climate change on its own, it’s reasonable to feel there is little that “doing your bit” can achieve. This mindset is disempowering.

    Fortunately, it is not the only way of responding to the challenge. African philosophers have a different way of looking at it.

    Individual contributions are not pointless

    Studies assessing public willingness to contribute to climate action show that people will act even at a personal cost, given the right motivations. The urgent task for philosophers and environmentalists is to provide them with those motivations. This is where African philosophy is helpful.

    By African philosophy, I mean critical reflections on basic questions about the world – spanning the nature of knowledge, existence, morality, meaning and truth, from the perspective of African philosophers.

    I am a philosopher who studies the problem of what appear to be collectively insignificant individual actions. There is a concept from African philosophy that I think is helpful to understand this: “complementarity”.

    Complementarity denotes a relationship of interdependence among all entities – plants, animals, rivers, humans – in an interconnected community of living and non-living things. As a framework for understanding the world, it holds that everything within the human and non-human environment exists in a relationship of mutual dependence. Everything is connected to everything else. No entity can exist and flourish in isolation.

    Our meal choices don’t just affect us.
    Aleksandar Malivuk/Shutterstock

    To that extent, the flourishing of one person depends on and influences the flourishing of other things in the world – including other people and animals as companions, the plants and soil which provide food for survival, rivers and oceans that are a source of water, and the Sun which gives the energy that sustains life on Earth.

    Complementarity has been used by African philosophers like Jonathan Chimakonam, Aïda Terblanché-Greeff, Diana-Abasi Ibanga and Kevin Gary Behrens to develop environmental philosophies based on shared relationships. According to these philosophers, a view of the world based on complementarity neither foregrounds nor diminishes humans. Rather, it sketches a relationship of equals defined by the mutual participation of all.

    This thinking is averse to hierarchy. No individual can claim to have more value than another. Anything that exists serves as an important part of the environment and matters equally, whether alone or collectively. Complementarity holds that the relationships that unite individual things can extend to prove the value of every contribution, no matter its size.

    And so, complementarity rejects the argument that anything you do to help the climate is pointless. Driving my car is not an action that exists in isolation. My emissions are interconnected with other aspects of the environment.

    Similarly, individual climate-positive actions occur in relation to others taken globally, so it is a mistake to assume such actions are pointless. Rather, their relation to other actions makes them not just practically useful but necessary, to make a difference at the level of communities and globally.

    According to this African concept, the race to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is a complementary effort. And so, do not be discouraged from taking your own step in this direction.

    Patrick Effiong Ben receives funding from the AHRC North West Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership (NWCDTP).

    – ref. Think your efforts to help the climate don’t matter? African philosophers disagree – https://theconversation.com/think-your-efforts-to-help-the-climate-dont-matter-african-philosophers-disagree-247042

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: England’s maths teacher recruitment problem is set to worsen

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Neil Saunders, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics, City St George’s, University of London

    Ground Picture/Shutterstock

    Everyone should leave school with a solid understanding of maths. Decent mathematics literacy is a hugely important skill in many aspects of life. We need it when budgeting for a weekly shop, asking for a pay rise and completing a tax return.

    An interest and enjoyment in maths fostered at school can lead people to study the subject further. Mathematics graduates go on to professions in government, industry, software development and financial analytics, as well as many genres of engineering.

    In total, 13% of all employment in the UK is in professions that depend on mathematical sciences. A workforce that has been well taught in maths is crucial to a society’s prosperity.

    Building a workforce skilled in mathematics in England, however, will be difficult when there are not enough people qualified to teach the subject at school. Mathematics is a technical discipline. Quality teaching relies on its educators to have specific training: a university degree in maths.

    Research published in 2019 in Australia found that secondary school students achieved noticeably higher results when they were taught maths by teachers with a university degree majoring in maths than those “out-of-field” teachers.

    But in England, the Department of Education has an ongoing problem of under-recruitment of maths teachers. In the year 2023-24, recruitment in initial trainee maths teaching reached only 63% of its target. Research from 2018 found that less than half of maths teachers in state schools have a mathematics or other relevant degree.

    And maths achievement is declining. In the OECD’s programme for international student assessment (Pisa) tests, introduced in the year 2000, 15 year-olds in the UK are recording their lowest maths results since 2006.

    The longstanding failure to recruit enough maths graduates to become teachers is now set to be exacerbated by the changes in maths provision at universities. Maths degrees are becoming less accessible to the people who are likely to go on to become teachers.

    University options

    Over the previous decade, but particularly since the pandemic, Russell Group universities – research-intensive institutions that take students with the highest A-level grades — have increased their intake of students taking maths degrees.

    On the other hand, maths options are declining at lower-tariff universities and those that offer flexible study options.

    Birkbeck, University of London, no longer offers undergraduate degrees in maths as a single subject. Birkbeck is renowned for its provision of evening and part-time degree courses, which offers flexibility for students who may not be able to attend a traditional course or need to work while studying.

    Huddersfield has also discontinued its mathematics courses after reviewing its provision, and many other institutions are considering further cuts and redundancies.

    In 2011, lower-tariff institutions accounted for 13% of the market share of the intake of mathematics students. This dropped to just 4.5% in 2021, putting such institutions under severe pressure.

    Graduates of post-92 universities – former polytechnics and other recently established institutions, which often require lower grades for entry – are much more likely than their Russell Group counterparts to go into school teaching. A recent report by Professor Paul Wakeling, which was commissioned by the Campaign for Mathematical Sciences, analysed outcomes of mathematical degrees in the UK across the period 2017-18 to 2020-21.

    Over that period, it found that 17.4% of graduates from post-92 institutions went into the secondary teaching, compared with around 5.6% from Russell group universities.

    The accessibility of a degree will affect who enrols.
    VesnaArt/Shutterstock

    The closure of mathematics departments causes the phenomenon of “maths deserts”: large swaths of the country where access to mathematics degree study is limited. This particularly affects students from poorer backgrounds, who are more likely to be living at home during their degree and will attend their local university.

    This also affects the provision of school maths teachers. Graduates in mathematics from more disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to go into school teaching than graduates from more wealthy backgrounds.

    The decline in the availability of maths degrees at lower-tariff institutions is likely to be reducing the number of potential maths teachers – as well as severely reducing the diversity of people going into maths.

    The chronic shortage of specialist maths teachers is set to worsen. Universities around the country are under severe financial pressure, which is likely to lead to further cutting of courses and staff.

    This will only exacerbate the problem of teacher shortages – which is turn will lead to declining mathematical literacy in the community, as well as a lack of diversity in mathematics.

    Neil Saunders does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. England’s maths teacher recruitment problem is set to worsen – https://theconversation.com/englands-maths-teacher-recruitment-problem-is-set-to-worsen-246351

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –