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Category: Transport

  • MIL-OSI Global: The Panama Canal’s other conflict: Water security for the population and the global economy

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Karina Garcia, Researcher and Lecturer in Climate, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá

    The Panama Canal carries cargo ships between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, cutting weeks off shipping time. Danny Lehman/The Image Bank via Getty Images

    The Panama Canal is one of the most important waterways in the world, with about 7% of global trade passing through. It also relies heavily on rainfall. Without enough freshwater flowing in, the canal’s locks can’t raise and lower ships traveling between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Droughts mean fewer ships per day, and that can quickly affect Panama’s finances and economies around the world.

    But the same freshwater is also essential for Panama’s many other needs, including drinking water for about 2 million Panamanians, use by Indigenous people and farmers in the watershed, as well as hydropower.

    When the region experiences droughts, as it did in 2023-2024, the resulting water shortages can lead to increasing water conflicts.

    One of those conflicts involves a new dam the Panama Canal Authority plans to begin building in 2027. It would be designed to secure enough water to keep the canal, which contributes about 4.2% to the country’s gross domestic product,, operating into the future, but it would also submerge farming communities and displace over 2,000 people from their homes.

    The Panama Canal Authority plans to build a new dam and reservoir that would submerge the village of Limon and hundreds of homes in the region.
    AP Photo/Matias Delacroix

    This recent drought wasn’t an anomaly. As an academic who studies the effects of rising temperatures on water availability and sea level rise, I’m aware that as the climate warms, Panama will likely face more extremes, both long dry spells and also periods of too much rain. That will force more trade-offs between residential needs and the canal over water use.

    Complex engineering remade the landscape

    The Panama Canal was built over a century ago at the narrowest point of the country and in the heart of its population center. The route was historically used by the Spanish colonies and later for a rail line between the oceans.

    The idea of a canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans began as a French endeavor, led by architect Ferdinand D. Lesseps, designer of the Suez Canal in Egypt. After the French effort failed, the U.S. government signed a treaty with newly independent Panama in 1903 to take over the project.

    The U.S. acquired the rights to build and operate the Panama Canal in exchange for US$10 million and annual payments of $250,000. Later, the Torrijos-Carter Treaty in 1977 committed the U.S. to transfer the control of operations to Panama at the end of 1999.

    One week of shipping on the Panama Canal. Source: Maps.com using World Economic Forum data.

    The canal project was designed to take advantage of the region’s tropical climate and abundant average rainfall.

    It harnessed the water of the Chagres River basin to run three sets of locks – chambers that, filled with fresh water, act like elevators, lifting or lowering ships to compensate for the difference in water levels between the two oceans.

    To ensure enough water would be available for the locks, the canal’s designers changed the shapes of the region’s mountains and rivers to create a large watershed – over 1,325 square miles (3,435 square kilometers) – that drains toward the canal’s human-made lakes, Gatun and Alajuela.

    About 65% of the water that flows from the watershed today goes to operate the locks. The majority of that water is quickly lost to the oceans.

    Even the two newest locks, built in 2016, only reuse about 60% of water on each transit – 40% is flushed to avoid saltwater from the oceans intruding into the watershed.

    Threats to water security

    Panama’s wet tropical weather is predominantly influenced by its location near the equator, the trade winds and the oceans. Most of its rain falls during the wet season, from May to November. However, weather records show a drop in average precipitation starting around 1950.

    The driest years resulted in dangerously low water levels in Gatun Lake that made canal operations difficult, including in 1998, 2016 and most recently 2023-2024. El Niño weather patterns can mean particularly low rainfall.

    Water levels at Gatun Lake since 1965 show how low 2023 and 2024 were.
    EIA

    In December 2023, the Panama Canal Authority was forced to limit the number of daily transits to 22, compared with 36 to 38 usual crossings, because too little freshwater was available.

    To avoid steep financial losses, the Panama Canal Authority raised prices and auctioned transit opportunities to the highest bidders. Without those measures, the authority estimated it would lose $100 million a month from reduced ship traffic because of the water shortage.

    Ecosystems also need enough water, and changes in forest tree composition have become evident on Barro Colorado Island in Gatun Lake in response to rising temperatures and more frequent droughts.

    Climate change is also creating greater variability in rainfall. Too much rain can also be a problem for canal operations. In December 2010, the biggest storm on record caused landslides and $150 million in damage that interrupted transits on the canal.

    Sustaining Panama’s canal and its people

    Temporary measures for saving water have been already implemented. The Panama Canal Authority shortened the chamber size in some of its locks to use less water for smaller vessels and minimized direction changes.

    In January 2025, the authority approved plans to build the new dam on the Indio River to increase water available for the canal. The dam could solve some water concerns during drier periods for the canal.

    However, it also illustrates the country’s water conflicts. Once filled, the dam’s reservoir will submerge over 1,200 homes by some counts, and more people in the region will lose access to land and travel routes. The Panama Canal Authority promises that residents will be relocated, but some of those living in the region fear they will lose their livelihoods, along with the communities their families have lived in for generations.

    Panama Canal representatives explain to community members in El Jobo in 2024 how a planned dam on the Indio River would affect the future of their community.
    AP Photo/Matias Delacroix

    Residents across Panama, meanwhile, regularly hear media campaigns that encourage them to save water. An Environmental Economic Incentives Program promotes forest conservation and sustainable family agriculture to conserve water resources.

    The Panama Canal is a crucial part of international trade, and it will face more periods of water stress. I believe responding to those future changes, as well as market and societal demands, will require innovative solutions that respect ecosystem limits and the needs of the population.

    Karina Garcia 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. The Panama Canal’s other conflict: Water security for the population and the global economy – https://theconversation.com/the-panama-canals-other-conflict-water-security-for-the-population-and-the-global-economy-253100

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: As ‘right to die’ gains more acceptance, a scholar of Catholicism explains the position of the Catholic Church

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Mathew Schmalz, Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross

    In recent years, euthanasia and assisted death rates have risen worldwide. Cavan Images / Raffi Maghdessian via Getty images

    An individual’s “right to die” is becoming more accepted across the globe. Polls show that most Americans support allowing doctors to end a patient’s life upon their request. Assisted suicide is now permitted in 10 U.S. states and in Washington. In 2025,five more states are set to consider “right to die” legislation.

    The “right to die” can refer to several means of dying. In “euthanasia,” death can either be “voluntary” – when a physician administers lethal drugs with the patient’s consent – or “nonvoluntary,” without a person’s consent, as when a person is in a vegetative state. In such cases, consent is usually given by a legal guardian or relative.

    By contrast “assisted suicide” refers to a person being aided in ending their life by being given lethal drugs and then administering the dose themselves. This practice is sometimes called “assisted dying.” These terms make crucial distinctions between who carries out the final act of ending life.

    Worldwide, euthanasia and assisted death rates have risen in recent years.

    In 2023, almost 1 in 20 deaths in Canada were from assisted dying; in the Netherlands, the number reached 5.4% from assisted dying and euthanasia. The Netherlands has also legalized assisted dying related to mental disorders, not just terminal illnesses.

    In November 2024, an assisted dying bill passed the British parliament, with a similar bill now pending in Scotland. Assisted suicide and euthanasia are already legal in Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg, among other countries in Europe and Latin America.

    The right-to-die debate

    Advocates of a person’s right to die argue that individuals should make their own end-of-life decisions because it is their life – and their death. Advocates also maintain that euthanasia and assisted suicide not only prevent further suffering, but also safeguard an individual’s dignity by avoiding senseless pain and severely diminished quality of life.

    However, right-to-die advocates have critics; among the more forceful ones is the Roman Catholic Church. For example, speaking about the potential legalization of euthanasia in France in 2022, Pope Francis argued that euthanasia, in all its forms, only leads to “more killing.”

    But as a scholar of Catholic thought and practice, I also recognize that the Catholic position is a nuanced one. It opposes euthanasia and assisted dying, but it does not support extraordinary or disproportionate treatments when unavoidable death is close at hand.

    ‘A sin against God’

    Francis has called euthanasia and assisted suicide “a sin against God.” He also has linked euthanasia to abortion, saying, “you don’t play with life, not at the beginning, and not at the end.”

    The fullest, most recent explanation of the Catholic view on the right to die can be found in the 2020 Vatican letter “The Good Samaritan,” a title that refers to the biblical story of a stranger who was the only one to assist a man beaten and stripped by robbers.

    The parable of The Good Samaritan.
    David Teniers the Younger/ The Metropolitan Museum of Art

    Agreeing with many other Christian denominations, “The Good Samaritan” letter makes the point that our lives are not our own but belong to God. As God’s creations, we do not have the right to end our own lives. Euthanasia also involves a doctor actively killing their own patient. Euthanasia and assisted suicide thus violate the biblical commandment “thou shalt not kill.”

    Beyond this basic point, the letter maintains that euthanasia undermines society because the right to life is the basis of all other rights. Also, debates about “quality of life” can lead to the idea that “poor-quality” lives have no right to continue.

    A failure of love

    “The Good Samaritan” letter observes that human beings are joined together by compassion – a word that literally means “co-suffering.” In the letter’s words, which have been repeated by Francis many times, euthanasia is “false compassion” because it ignores the “spiritual and interpersonal aspects” of human life such as accompanying – or simply being with – someone in and through their suffering.

    Connected to this opposition to euthanasia and assisted suicide is a point that Francis often makes about “throwaway culture,” which “discards” the poor, needy and dependent. In Francis’ words, euthanasia is “a failure of love.”

    End-of-life care

    Given the Catholic church’s stand against assisted suicide and euthanasia, it might seem surprising that the church does allow refusing “overzealous” treatments that prolong suffering in the face of unavoidable death. Such procedures could include mechanical ventilation or dialysis, for example.

    Catholic ethics would point out that killing is a basic part of the act of assisted suicide and euthanasia. Killing is also the intent behind the action.

    But declining disproportionate treatment is not intended to kill the patient, although death is the foreseeable outcome. Death is the result of the disease, not the result of a method that actively ends the patient’s life. Also, even in terminal cases, normal care, such as providing nutrition and hydration, should be continued unless it causes additional pain.

    A difference that matters

    In the Catholic Church’s view, it matters that there is a difference between assisted suicide and euthanasia, on the one hand, and discontinuing disproportionate care, on the other. The difference lies in the nature of particular actions and the intent behind them.

    And the difference also matters in a broader sense. In the debate between right-to-die advocates and those who, like Francis, oppose them, there are very different understandings of how society should respond to those who suffer.

    Mathew Schmalz is a Roman Catholic and registered as an Independent.

    – ref. As ‘right to die’ gains more acceptance, a scholar of Catholicism explains the position of the Catholic Church – https://theconversation.com/as-right-to-die-gains-more-acceptance-a-scholar-of-catholicism-explains-the-position-of-the-catholic-church-146737

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Bird flu could be on the cusp of transmitting between humans − but there are ways to slow down viral evolution

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Ron Barrett, Professor of Anthropology, Macalester College

    Workers who are in frequent contact with potentially sick animals are at high risk of bird flu infection. Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images

    Disease forecasts are like weather forecasts: We cannot predict the finer details of a particular outbreak or a particular storm, but we can often identify when these threats are emerging and prepare accordingly.

    The viruses that cause avian influenza are potential threats to global health. Recent animal outbreaks from a subtype called H5N1 have been especially troubling to scientists. Although human infections from H5N1 have been relatively rare, there have been a little more than 900 known cases globally since 2003 – nearly 50% of these cases have been fatal – a mortality rate about 20 times higher than that of the 1918 flu pandemic. If the worst of these rare infections ever became common among people, the results could be devastating.

    Approaching potential disease threats from an anthropological perspective, my colleagues and I recently published a book called “Emerging Infections: Three Epidemiological Transitions from Prehistory to the Present” to examine the ways human behaviors have shaped the evolution of infectious diseases, beginning with their first major emergence in the Neolithic period and continuing for 10,000 years to the present day.

    Viewed from this deep time perspective, it becomes evident that H5N1 is displaying a common pattern of stepwise invasion from animal to human populations. Like many emerging viruses, H5N1 is making incremental evolutionary changes that could allow it to transmit between people. The periods between these evolutionary steps present opportunities to slow this process and possibly avert a global disaster.

    Spillover and viral chatter

    When a disease-causing pathogen such as a flu virus is already adapted to infect a particular animal species, it may eventually evolve the ability to infect a new species, such as humans, through a process called spillover.

    Spillover is a tricky enterprise. To be successful, the pathogen must have the right set of molecular “keys” compatible with the host’s molecular “locks” so it can break in and out of host cells and hijack their replication machinery. Because these locks often vary between species, the pathogen may have to try many different keys before it can infect an entirely new host species. For instance, the keys a virus successfully uses to infect chickens and ducks may not work on cattle and humans. And because new keys can be made only through random mutation, the odds of obtaining all the right ones are very slim.

    Given these evolutionary challenges, it is not surprising that pathogens often get stuck partway into the spillover process. A new variant of the pathogen might be transmissible from an animal only to a person who is either more susceptible due to preexisting illness or more likely to be infected because of extended exposure to the pathogen.

    Even then, the pathogen might not be able to break out of its human host and transmit to another person. This is the current situation with H5N1. For the past year, there have been many animal outbreaks in a variety of wild and domestic animals, especially among birds and cattle. But there have also been a small number of human cases, most of which have occurred among poultry and dairy workers who worked closely with large numbers of infected animals.

    Pathogen transmission can be modeled in three stages. In Stage 1, the pathogen can be transmitted only between nonhuman animals. In stage 2, the pathogen can also be transmitted to humans, but it is not yet adapted for human-to-human transmission. In Stage 3, the pathogen is fully capable of human-to-human transmission.
    Ron Barrett, CC BY-SA

    Epidemiologists call this situation viral chatter: when human infections occur only in small, sporadic outbreaks that appear like the chattering signals of coded radio communications – tiny bursts of unclear information that may add up to a very ominous message. In the case of viral chatter, the message would be a human pandemic.

    Sporadic, individual cases of H5N1 among people suggest that human-to-human transmission may likely occur at some point. But even so, no one knows how long or how many steps it would take for this to happen.

    Influenza viruses evolve rapidly. This is partly because two or more flu varieties can infect the same host simultaneously, allowing them to reshuffle their genetic material with one another to produce entirely new varieties.

    Genetic reshuffling – aka antigenic shift – between a highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza and a strain of human influenza could create a new strain that’s even more infectious among people.
    Eunsun Yoo/Biomolecules & Therapeutics, CC BY-NC

    These reshuffling events are more likely to occur when there is a diverse range of host species. So it is particularly concerning that H5N1 is known to have infected at least 450 different animal species. It may not be long before the viral chatter gives way to larger human epidemics.

    Reshaping the trajectory

    The good news is that people can take basic measures to slow down the evolution of H5N1 and potentially reduce the lethality of avian influenza should it ever become a common human infection. But governments and businesses will need to act.

    People can start by taking better care of food animals. The total weight of the world’s poultry is greater than all wild bird species combined. So it is not surprising that the geography of most H5N1 outbreaks track more closely with large-scale housing and international transfers of live poultry than with the nesting and migration patterns of wild aquatic birds. Reducing these agricultural practices could help curb the evolution and spread of H5N1.

    Large-scale commercial transport of domesticated animals is associated with the evolution and spread of new influenza varieties.
    ben/Flickr, CC BY-SA

    People can also take better care of themselves. At the individual level, most people can vaccinate against the common, seasonal influenza viruses that circulate every year. At first glance this practice may not seem connected to the emergence of avian influenza. But in addition to preventing seasonal illness, vaccination against common human varieties of the virus will reduce the odds of it mixing with avian varieties and giving them the traits they need for human-to-human transmission.

    At the population level, societies can work together to improve nutrition and sanitation in the world’s poorest populations. History has shown that better nutrition increases overall resistance to new infections, and better sanitation reduces how much and how often people are exposed to new pathogens. And in today’s interconnected world, the disease problems of any society will eventually spread to every society.

    For more than 10,000 years, human behaviors have shaped the evolutionary trajectories of infectious diseases. Knowing this, people can reshape these trajectories for the better.

    Ron Barrett 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. Bird flu could be on the cusp of transmitting between humans − but there are ways to slow down viral evolution – https://theconversation.com/bird-flu-could-be-on-the-cusp-of-transmitting-between-humans-but-there-are-ways-to-slow-down-viral-evolution-250232

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Measles can ravage the immune system and brain, causing long-term damage – a virologist explains

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Peter Kasson, Professor of Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology

    Measles infections send 1 in 5 people to the hospital. wildpixel/ iStock via Getty Images Plus

    The measles outbreak that began in west Texas in late January 2025 continues to grow, with 400 confirmed cases in Texas and more than 50 in New Mexico and Oklahoma as of March 28.

    Public health experts believe the numbers are much higher, however, and some worry about a bigger resurgence of the disease in the U.S. In the past two weeks, health officials have identified potential measles exposures in association with planes, trains and automobiles, including at Washington Dulles International Airport and on an Amtrak train from New York City to Washington, D.C. – as well as at health care facilities where the infected people sought medical attention.

    Measles infections can be extremely serious. So far in 2025, 14% of the people who got measles had to be hospitalized. Last year, that number was 40%. Measles can damage the lungs and immune system, and also inflict permanent brain damage. Three in 1,000 people who get the disease die. But because measles vaccination programs in the U.S. over the past 60 years have been highly successful, few Americans under 50 have experienced measles directly, making it easy to think of the infection as a mere childhood rash with fever.

    As a biologist who studies how viruses infect and kill cells and tissues, I believe it is important for people to understand how dangerous a measles infection can be.

    Underappreciated acute effects

    Measles is one of the most contagious diseases on the planet. One person who has it will infect nine out of 10 people nearby if those people are unvaccinated. A two-dose regimen of the vaccine, however, is 97% effective at preventing measles.

    When the measles virus infects a person, it binds to specific proteins on the surface of cells. It then inserts its genome and replicates, destroying the cells in the process. This first happens in the upper respiratory tract and the lungs, where the virus can damage the person’s ability to breathe well. In both places, the virus also infects immune cells that carry it to the lymph nodes, and from there, throughout the body.

    Measles can wipe out immune cells’ ability to recognize pathogens.

    What generally lands people with measles in the hospital is the disease’s effects on the lungs. As the virus destroys lung cells, patients can develop viral pneumonia, which is characterized by severe coughing and difficulty breathing. Measles pneumonia afflicts about 1 in 20 children who get measles and is the most common cause of death from measles in young children.

    The virus can directly invade the nervous system and also damage it by causing inflammation. Measles can cause acute brain damage in two different ways: a direct infection of the brain that occurs in roughly 1 in 1,000 people, or inflammation of the brain two to 30 days after infection that occurs with the same frequency. Children who survive these events can have permanent brain damage and impairments such as blindness and hearing loss.

    Yearslong consequences of infection

    An especially alarming but still poorly understood effect of measles infection is that it can reduce the immune system’s ability to recognize pathogens it has previously encountered. Researchers had long suspected that children who get the measles vaccine also tend to have better immunity to other diseases, but they were not sure why. A study published in 2019 found that having a measles infection destroyed between 11% and 75% of their antibodies, leaving them vulnerable to many of the infections to which they previously had immunity. This effect, called immune amnesia, lasts until people are reinfected or revaccinated against each disease their immune system forgot.

    Occasionally, the virus can lie undetected in the brain of a person who recovered from measles and reactivate typically seven to 10 years later. This condition, called subacute sclerosing panencephalitis, is a progressive dementia that is almost always fatal. It occurs in about 1 in 25,000 people who get measles but is about five times more common in babies infected with measles before age 1.

    Researchers long thought that such infections were caused by a special strain of measles, but more recent research suggests that the measles virus can acquire mutations that enable it to infect the brain during the course of the original infection.

    There is still much to learn about the measles virus. For example, researchers are exploring antibody therapies to treat severe measles. However, even if such treatments work, the best way to prevent the serious effects of measles is to avoid infection by getting vaccinated.

    Peter Kasson receives funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, and the Swedish Research Council for research on other emerging viruses.

    – ref. Measles can ravage the immune system and brain, causing long-term damage – a virologist explains – https://theconversation.com/measles-can-ravage-the-immune-system-and-brain-causing-long-term-damage-a-virologist-explains-252354

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Massive cuts to Health and Human Services’ workforce signal a dramatic shift in US health policy

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Simon F. Haeder, Associate Professor of Public Health, Texas A&M University

    The new plan will shrink the Health and Human Services workforce from more than 82,000 to 62,000 employees. Sarah Stierch via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY

    On March 27, 2025, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced plans to dramatically transform the department. HHS is the umbrella agency responsible for pandemic preparedness, biomedical research, food safety and many other health-related activities.

    In a video posted that afternoon, Kennedy said the cuts and reorganization to HHS aim to “streamline our agency” and “radically improve our quality of service” by eliminating rampant waste and inefficiency. “No American is going to be left behind,” the health secretary told the nation.

    As a scholar of U.S. health and public health policy, I have written about administrative burdens that prevent many Americans from accessing benefits to which they are entitled, including those provided by HHS, like Medicaid.

    Few experts would deny that the federal bureaucracy can be inefficient and siloed. This includes HHS, and calls to restructure the agency are nothing new

    Combined with previous reductions, these cuts may achieve some limited short-term savings. However, the proposed changes dramatically alter U.S. health policy and research, and they may endanger important benefits and protections for many Americans. They may also have severe consequences for scientific progress. And as some policy experts have suggested, the poorly targeted cuts may increase inefficiencies and waste down the line.

    Health and science in a big-budget agency

    HHS is tasked with providing a variety of public health and social services as well as fostering scientific advancement.

    Originally established as the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare in 1953, HHS has seen substantial growth and transformation over time. Today, HHS is home to 28 divisions. Some of these are well known to many Americans, such as the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Others, such as the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the Administration for Community Living, may fly under the radar for most people.

    HHS oversees Medicare, through which 68 million Americans, primarily adults age 65 and older, receive health insurance benefits.
    Richard Bailey/Corbis Documentary via Getty Images

    With an annual budget of roughly US$1.8 trillion, HHS is one of the largest federal spenders, accounting for more than 1 in 5 dollars of the federal budget.

    Under the Biden administration, HHS’s budget increased by almost 40%, with a 17% increase in staffing. However, 85% of that money is spent on 79 million Medicaid and 68 million Medicare beneficiaries. Put differently, most of HHS’ spending goes directly to many Americans in the form of health benefits.

    A new direction for Health and Human Services

    From a policy perspective, the changes initiated at HHS by the second-term Trump administration are far-reaching. They involve both staffing cuts and substantial reorganization.

    Prior to the March 27 announcement, the administration had already cut thousands of positions from HHS by letting go probationary employees and offering buyouts for employees to voluntarily leave.

    Now, HHS is slated to lose another 10,000 workers. The latest cuts focus most heavily on a handful of agencies. The FDA will lose an additional 3,500 employees, and the NIH will lose 1,200. The CDC, where cuts are steepest, will lose 2,400 positions.

    In all, the moves will reduce the HHS workforce by about 25%, from more than 82,000 to 62,000. These changes will provide savings of about $1.8 billion, or 0.1% of the HHS budget.

    Along with these cuts comes a major reorganization that will eliminate 13 out of 28 offices and agencies, close five of the 10 regional offices, reshuffle existing divisions and establish a new division called the Administration for a Healthy America.

    In his latest message, Kennedy noted that this HHS transformation would return the agency to its core mission: to “enhance the health and well-being of all Americans”. He also announced his intention to refocus HHS on his Make America Healthy Again priorities, which involve reducing chronic illness “by focusing on safe, wholesome food, clean water and the elimination of environmental toxins.”

    How HHS’ new reality will affect Americans

    Kennedy has said the HHS overhaul will not affect services to Americans. Given the magnitude of the cuts, this seems unlikely.

    HHS reaches into the lives of all Americans. Many have family members on Medicaid or Medicare, or know individuals with disabilities or those dealing with substance use disorder. Disasters may strike anywhere. Bird flu and measles outbreaks are unfolding in many parts of the country. Everyone relies on access to safe foods, drugs and vaccines.

    The plan to restructure HHS will trim its budget by 0.1%.

    In his announcement, the health secretary highlighted cuts to HHS support functions, such as information technology and human resources, as a way to reduce redundancies and inefficiencies. But scaling down and reorganizing these capacities will inevitably have implications for how well HHS employees will be able to fulfill their duties – at least temporarily. Kennedy acknowledged this as a “painful period” for HHS.

    However, large-scale reductions and reorganizations inevitably lead to more systemic disruptions, delays and denials. It seems implausible that Americans seeking access to health care, help with HIV prevention or early education benefits such as Head Start, which are also administered by HHS, will not be affected. This is particularly the case when conceived rapidly and without transparent long-term planning.

    These new cuts are also further exacerbated by the administration’s previous slashes to public health funding for state and local governments. Given the crucial functions of HHS – from health coverage for vulnerable populations to pandemic preparedness and response – the American Public Health Association predicts the cuts will result in a rise in rates of disease and death.

    Already, previous cuts at the FDA – the agency responsible for safe foods and drugs – have led to delays in product reviews.

    Overall, the likelihood of increasing access challenges for people seeking services or support as well as fewer protections and longer wait times seems high.

    A fundamental reshaping of American public health

    The HHS restructuring should be viewed in a broader context. Since coming to office, the Trump administration has aggressively sought to reshape the U.S. public health agenda. This has included vast cuts to research funding as well as funding for state and local governments. The most recent cuts at HHS fit into the mold of rolling back protections and reshaping science.

    The Trump administration has already announced plans to curtail the Affordable Care Act and roll back regulations that address everything from clean water to safe vaccines. State programs focused on health disparities have also been targeted.

    HHS-funded research has also been scaled back dramatically, with a long list of projects terminated in research areas touching on health disparities, women’s and LGBTQ-related health issues, COVID-19 and long COVID, vaccine hesitancy and more.

    The HHS reorganization also revamps two bodies within HHS, the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, that are instrumental in improving U.S. health care and providing policy research. This change further diminishes the likelihood that health policy will be based on scientific evidence and raises the risk for more politicized decision-making about health.

    More cuts are likely still to come. Medicaid, the program providing health coverage for low-income Americans, will be a particular target. The House of Representatives passed a budget resolution on Feb. 25 that allows up to $880 billion in cuts to the program.

    All told, plans already announced and those expected to emerge in the future dramatically alter U.S. health policy and roll back substantial protections for Americans.

    A vision for deregulation

    Regulation has emerged as the most prolific source of policymaking over the last five decades, particularly for health policy. Given its vast responsibilities, HHS is one of the federal government’s most prolific regulators. Vast cuts to the HHS workforce will likely curtail this capability, resulting in fewer regulatory protections for Americans.

    At the same time, with fewer experienced administrators on staff, industry influence over regulatory decisions will likely only grow stronger. HHS will simply lack the substance and procedural expertise to act independently. More industry influence and fewer independent regulators to counter it will also further reduce attention to disparities and underserved populations.

    Ultimately, the Trump administration’s efforts may lead to a vastly different federal health policy – with fewer benefits, services and protections – than what Americans have become accustomed to in modern times.

    Dr. Simon F. Haeder has previously received funding from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) .

    – ref. Massive cuts to Health and Human Services’ workforce signal a dramatic shift in US health policy – https://theconversation.com/massive-cuts-to-health-and-human-services-workforce-signal-a-dramatic-shift-in-us-health-policy-253316

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Doctor shortages have hobbled health care for decades − and the trend could be worsening

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Rochelle Walensky, Bayer Fellow in Health and Biotech, American Academy in Berlin, Senior Fellow in the Women and Public Policy Program, Harvard Kennedy School

    Specialists across numerous fields of medicine are in short supply. sudok1/iStock via Getty Images

    Americans are increasingly waiting weeks or even months to get an appointment to see a health care specialist.

    This delay comes at a time when the population of aging adults is rising dramatically. By 2050, the number of adults over 85 is expected to triple, which will intensify the strain on an already stretched health care system. We wrote about this worsening challenge and its implications for the health care workforce in a January 2025 report in the New England Journal of Medicine.

    We are health care scholars who are acutely aware of the severe shortfall of specialists in America’s health care system. One of us, Rochelle Walensky, witnessed the consequences of this shortage firsthand as the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from January 2020 to June 2023, during the critical early years of the pandemic.

    The COVID-19 pandemic brought the physician and overall health care workforce shortage to the forefront. Amid the excess daily deaths in the U.S. from COVID-19, many people died of potentially preventable deaths due to delayed care for heart attacks, deferred cancer screenings and overwhelmed emergency departments and intensive care units.

    Even before the pandemic, 80% of U.S. counties lacked a single infectious disease physician. Before going to the CDC, I – Dr. Walensky – was chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital. When COVID-19 hit our hospitals, we were in desperate need of more infectious disease expertise. I was just one of them.

    At the local level, these infectious disease-trained subspecialists provide essential services when it comes to preventing and controlling transmissible outbreaks, carrying out diagnostic testing, developing treatment guidelines, informing hospital capacity planning and offering resources for community outreach. Each of these experts plays a vital role at the bedside and in systems management toward effective clinical, hospital and community responses to infectious disease outbreaks.

    Uneven health care outcomes and access

    For decades, experts have warned of an impending decline in the physician workforce.

    Now, Americans across all regions, specialties and socioeconomic backgrounds are experiencing that decline firsthand or personally.

    The National Center for Health Workforce Analysis projects a national shortage of 140,000 physicians by 2036, with that shortfall spanning multiple specialties, including primary care, obstetrics, cardiology and geriatrics.

    However, some geographic areas in the country – especially some of those with the poorest health – are disproportionately affected. The brunt of the effect will be felt in rural areas: An estimated 56% shortage is predicted in nonmetro areas, versus only 6% in metro areas.

    States such as Massachusetts, New York and Maryland boast the highest density of physicians per 100,000 people, while states such as Idaho, Mississippi and Oklahoma rank among those with the lowest. And even in states with the highest physician density, demand may still overwhelm access.

    Although doctor shortages do not necessarily cause poor health outcomes, regions with fewer physicians tend to have lower life expectancy. The mean life expectancy in Mississippi is six years lower than that of Hawaii and more than four years below the national average. This underscores the substantial differences in health outcomes depending on where you live in the U.S.

    Notably, areas with fewer doctors also see higher rates of chronic conditions such as chronic pulmonary disease, diabetes and poor mental health. This crisis is further exacerbated by the aging baby boomer population, which places increasing demand on an already strained health care system due to rising rates – especially among those over 85 – of multiple chronic diseases, complex health care needs and the concurrent use of multiple medications.

    Rural areas have always had lower access to medical care compared with urban centers, and this divide could get far worse with the looming physician shortage.
    Chalabala/iStock via Getty Images Plus

    How the US reached this point

    Some of these workforce challenges stem from the unintended consequences of policy changes that were originally aimed at improving the rigor of medical education or curtailing a once-anticipated physician glut.

    For example, the 1910 Flexner Report was commissioned to restructure American medical education with the goals of standardizing curricula and improving quality. While the report succeeded at those goals, it was shortsighted in important ways. For instance, it recommended closing rather than strengthening 89 of the 155 existing medical schools at the time. This created medical school deserts that persist in some U.S. regions to this day.

    Additionally, the report further divided the study of medicine, focused on disease, from the study of public health, which is focused on health care systems, populations and society. This separation has led to siloed communication and data systems that continue to hinder coordinated responses to public health crises.

    Decades after the Flexner Report, in 1980, policymakers anticipated a physician oversupply based on medical school enrollment projections and government investments in the medical workforce. In response, funding constraints were introduced by Congress to limit residency and fellowship training slots available after medical school.

    But by the early 2000s, discussions shifted to concerns about physician shortages. Despite the calls for reforms to address the issues more than a decade ago, the funding and training constraints have remained largely unchanged. These have created a persistent bottleneck in postgraduate medical training that requires acts of Congress to reverse.

    Primary care doctors provide continuity for patients; without them, people tend to experience more complex health care needs and poorer outcomes.

    Forces shaping the physician bottleneck

    In the wake of the Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, states with restrictive abortion policies are now facing an emerging and troubling workforce challenge: It may get more difficult to recruit and retain tomorrow’s medical school grads.

    Research surveys suggest that 82% of future physicians, not just obstetricians, prefer to train and work in states that uphold abortion access. While it may seem obvious that obstetricians would want to avoid the increasing liabilities associated with the Dobbs decision, another point is less obvious: Most medical trainees are between the ages of 25 and 35, prime childbearing years, and may themselves want access to a full range of obstetric care.

    And given that 20% of physicians are married to other physicians and an additional 25% to other health professionals, marriage within the health care workforce may also play a substantial role. A physician choosing not to practice in one of the 14 states with limited abortion access, many of which already rank among the poorest in health outcomes and lowest in physician densities, may not only take their expertise but also their partner’s elsewhere.

    Shifting the trajectory

    The doctor shortage requires a combination of solutions, starting with addressing the high cost of medical education and training. Medical school enrollment has increased by only 10% over the past decade, far insufficient to address both the shortage today and the projected growth of the aging population needing care.

    In addition, many students carry large amounts of debt, which frequently limits who can pursue the profession. And existing scholarship and compensation programs have been only modestly effective in incentivizing providers to work in high-need areas.

    In our New England Journal of Medicine report, we laid out several specific strategies that could help address the shortages and the potential workforce crisis. For instance:

    Rather than the traditional medical education model – four years of broad medical training followed by three to seven years of residency – medical schools could offer more specialized training pathways. These streamlined programs would focus on the skills needed for specific medical specialties, potentially reducing training duration and costs.

    Reforming physician compensation could also help address imbalances in the health care system. Specialists and subspecialists typically earn substantially more than primary care doctors, despite the high demand for primary care. Raising primary care salaries and offering incentives, such as student loan forgiveness for physicians in high-need areas, could encourage more doctors to practice where they are needed most.

    Additionally, addressing physician burnout is crucial, particularly in primary care, where administrative burdens such as billing and charting contribute to stress and attrition. Reducing these burdens, potentially through novel AI-driven solutions, could allow doctors to focus more on patient care and less on paperwork.

    These are just an assortment of strategies we propose, and time is of the essence. One thing is certain: The U.S. urgently needs more doctors, and everyone’s health depends on it.

    Dr Rochelle P. Walensky is the Bayer Fellow in Health and Biotech, American Academy in Berlin. She reported receiving personal fees from Madryn Asset Management for serving as a senior policy advisor, Consonance Capital for serving as a senior advisory board member, and Doris Duke Foundation for serving as a trustee; consulting fees from Infectious Diseases Society of America; and nonfinancial support from The Carter Center for being a member of the board of directors outside the submitted work.

    Nicole McCann 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. Doctor shortages have hobbled health care for decades − and the trend could be worsening – https://theconversation.com/doctor-shortages-have-hobbled-health-care-for-decades-and-the-trend-could-be-worsening-251222

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans to El Salvador sparks legal questions likely to reach the Supreme Court

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Jennifer Selin, Associate Professor of Law, Arizona State University

    Prisoners stand in a cell as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a tour of the Terrorist Confinement Center in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 26, 2025. AP Photo/Alex Brandon

    A federal appeals court on March 26, 2025, upheld a temporary block on President Donald Trump’s deportation of hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants, including alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, to a maximum security prison in El Salvador.

    The court was skeptical of Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to defend the deportations. The act, passed in 1798, gives the president the power to detain and remove people from the United States in times of war.

    On March 28, Trump asked the Supreme Court for permission under the act to resume deporting Venezuelans to El Salvador while legal battles continue.

    Attorney General Pam Bondi previously said the deportations are necessary as part of “modern-day warfare” against narco-terrorists.

    Nanya Gupta, policy director of the American Immigration Council, is among experts who note that the Trump administration’s evidence against the migrants, which relied in part on the immigrants’ tattoos and deleted social media pictures, is “flimsy.”

    Those who are challenging Trump’s actions in court say the administration has violated constitutional principles of due process. That’s because it gave the migrants no opportunity to refute the government’s claims that they were gang members.

    But what is due process? And how does the government balance this important right against national security?

    As a constitutional law professor who studies government institutions, I recognize the delicate balance government must strike in protecting civil rights and liberties while allowing presidential administrations to preserve national security and foreign policy interests.

    Ultimately, the U.S. Constitution’s framers left it to the courts to determine this balance.

    Due process explained

    The phrase “due process of law” goes back to at least 1215. That’s when England’s Magna Carta established the principle that government is not above the law.

    This principle guided the framers of the U.S. Constitution. The Fifth Amendment and 14th Amendment, for example, prohibit federal and state governments from depriving people of their “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.”

    But what constitutes due process has varied over time.

    Government officials see the limits of their power from one lens. People affected by the exercise of that power view it differently.

    To combat this problem, the Constitution’s framers placed the judiciary in charge of determining what due process means and when people’s due process rights have been violated.

    Court decisions on the issue traditionally weigh the government’s interests in taking specific actions against claims that those actions violate people’s civil rights and liberties.

    Even when the law authorizes the president to detain people, historically the Supreme Court has held that those people should receive notice of the reason for their detention, and they should have a fair opportunity to rebut the government’s claims.

    When the high court, for example, heard cases about the rights of detainees held in Guantanamo Bay by President George W. Bush after 9/11, it ruled that principles of due process apply to noncitizens and even those whom the government designates as enemy combatants.

    One of the important considerations in legal analysis of the procedures the government must follow when depriving people of their liberty is the risk that the government will make a mistake in its decision-making.

    For example, some representatives of the deported Venezuelan migrants argue that they have been falsely accused of having ties to Tren de Aragua based on their country of origin and tattoos. They claim that without more investigation, including an opportunity for the migrants to present their evidence refuting the government’s claims, there is a large risk that government will mistakenly deport people.

    When can the president avoid due process?

    In some cases, the president can skirt traditional due process considerations in pursuit of broader policy concerns.

    As put by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in his initial order blocking the deportations, the president’s action in this area implicate “a host of complicated legal issues, including fundamental and sensitive questions about the often-circumscribed extent of judicial power in matters of foreign policy and national security.”

    Before Trump took executive action using the Alien Enemies Act, the measure had only been used three times – all during times of war.

    The act was part of a series of four laws passed in 1798 known as the Alien and Sedition Acts. These laws, among other things, gave the president the power to deport any noncitizen thought to be dangerous.

    A woman holds a sign during a rally on March 18, 2025, in Caracas, Venezuela, to protest the deportation from the U.S. of alleged members of a Venezuelan gang, who were transferred to an El Salvador prison.
    AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos

    President Thomas Jefferson allowed most of the acts to expire. But Jefferson and subsequent presidents kept in place the provisions that empowered the president to detain or deport noncitizens in times of war, “invasion” or “predatory incursion” by foreign powers.

    Today, the law authorizes the president to apprehend and remove people over the age of 14 that the administration determines to be “alien enemies.” However, it places procedural requirements on the president.

    Notably, the president’s ability to act requires a declared war against or an “invasion or predatory excursion” by a foreign nation. In such an event, the president must issue a proclamation saying he plans on using the act against perceived enemies.

    To justify the Venezuelan deportations, Trump issued a proclamation on March 15 claiming Tren de Aragua is perpetrating and threatening an invasion against the U.S.

    But the act also says people considered alien enemies must be given reasonable time to settle their affairs and voluntarily depart from the country. And it gives the courts power to regulate whether such persons even fall within the definition of “alien enemies.”

    The Venezuelan migrants claim Trump has violated these parts of the act.

    The current fight

    This is where things become complicated.

    All parties in the case acknowledge that the Alien Enemies Act grants the president authority to act. However, the argument is whether the government has given people the opportunity to challenge the government’s decision to classify them as “alien enemies.”

    Trump claims Tren de Aragua is a foreign terrorist organization engaged in warfare against the U.S. in the form of narco-terrorism – the use of drug trade to influence government operations.

    His administration argues that it doesn’t have to tell migrants it considers them alien enemies. And the administration says it’s not required to give them time to ask the courts to step in before they are deported.

    In a March 24 hearing on the issue, D.C. Circuit Court Judge Patricia A. Millet noted that during World War II, even the “Nazis got better treatment under the Alien Enemies Act.”

    The dispute has prompted international questions about the legality of the U.S. government’s deportation procedures and its treatment of the migrants.

    And Democratic members of Congress have called for an investigation into the administration’s deportation practices.

    The case will most likely head to the Supreme Court to determine what due process means and when the president can act in the name of national security to limit people’s due process rights. That’s just as the framers of the Constitution intended.

    Jennifer L. Selin has received funding and/or support for her research on the executive branch from the Administrative Conference of the United States. The views in this piece are those of the author and do not represent the position of the Administrative Conference or the federal government.

    – ref. Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans to El Salvador sparks legal questions likely to reach the Supreme Court – https://theconversation.com/trumps-use-of-the-alien-enemies-act-to-deport-venezuelans-to-el-salvador-sparks-legal-questions-likely-to-reach-the-supreme-court-253011

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Jets from powerful black holes can point astronomers toward where − and where not − to look for life in the universe

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By David Garofalo, Professor of Physics, Kennesaw State University

    Black holes, like the one in this illustration, can spray powerful jets. S. Dagnello (NRAO/AUI/NSF), CC BY-SA

    One of the most powerful objects in the universe is a radio quasar – a spinning black hole spraying out highly energetic particles. Come too close to one, and you’d get sucked in by its gravitational pull, or burn up from the intense heat surrounding it. But ironically, studying black holes and their jets can give researchers insight into where potentially habitable worlds might be in the universe.

    As an astrophysicist, I’ve spent two decades modeling how black holes spin, how that creates jets, and how they affect the environment of space around them.

    What are black holes?

    Black holes are massive, astrophysical objects that use gravity to pull surrounding objects into them. Active black holes have a pancake-shaped structure around them called an accretion disk, which contains hot, electrically charged gas.

    The plasma that makes up the accretion disk comes from farther out in the galaxy. When two galaxies collide and merge, gas is funneled into the central region of that merger. Some of that gas ends up getting close to the newly merged black hole and forms the accretion disk.

    There is one supermassive black hole at the heart of every massive galaxy.

    Black holes and their disks can rotate, and when they do, they drag space and time with them – a concept that’s mind-boggling and very hard to grasp conceptually. But black holes are important to study because they produce enormous amounts of energy that can influence galaxies.

    How energetic a black hole is depends on different factors, such as the mass of the black hole, whether it rotates rapidly, and whether lots of material falls onto it. Mergers fuel the most energetic black holes, but not all black holes are fed by gas from a merger. In spiral galaxies, for example, less gas tends to fall into the center, and the central black hole tends to have less energy.

    One of the ways they generate energy is through what scientists call “jets” of highly energetic particles. A black hole can pull in magnetic fields and energetic particles surrounding it, and then as the black hole rotates, the magnetic fields twist into a jet that sprays out highly energetic particles.

    Magnetic fields twist around the black hole as it rotates to store energy – kind of like when you pull and twist a rubber band. When you release the rubber band, it snaps forward. Similarly, the magnetic fields release their energy by producing these jets.

    The accretion disk around a black hole can form a jet of hot, energetic particles surrounded by magnetic field lines.
    NASA, ESA, and A. Feild (STScI), CC BY

    These jets can speed up or suppress the formation of stars in a galaxy, depending on how the energy is released into the black hole’s host galaxy.

    Rotating black holes

    Some black holes, however, rotate in a different direction than the accretion disk around them. This phenomenon is called counterrotation, and some studies my colleagues and I have conducted suggest that it’s a key feature governing the behavior of one of the most powerful kinds of objects in the universe: the radio quasar.

    Radio quasars are the subclass of black holes that produce the most powerful energy and jets.

    You can imagine the black hole as a rotating sphere, and the accretion disk as a disk with a hole in the center. The black hole sits in that center hole and rotates one way, while the accretion disk rotates the other way.

    This counterrotation forces the black hole to spin down and eventually up again in the other direction, called corotation. Imagine a basketball that spins one way, but you keep tapping it to rotate in the other. The tapping will spin the basketball down. If you continue to tap in the opposite direction, it will eventually spin up and rotate in the other direction. The accretion disk does the same thing.

    Since the jets tap into the black hole’s rotational energy, they are powerful only when the black hole is spinning rapidly. The change from counterrotation to corotation takes at least 100 million years. Many initially counterrotating black holes take billions of years to become rapidly spinning corotating black holes.

    So, these black holes would produce powerful jets both early and later in their lifetimes, with an interlude in the middle where the jets are either weak or nonexistent.

    When the black hole spins in counterrotation with respect to its accretion disk, that motion produces strong jets that push molecules in the surrounding gas close together, which leads to the formation of stars.

    But later, in corotation, the jet tilts. This tilt makes it so that the jet impinges directly on the gas, heating it up and inhibiting star formation. In addition to that, the jet also sprays X-rays across the galaxy. Cosmic X-rays are bad for life because they can harm organic tissue.

    For life to thrive, it most likely needs a planet with a habitable ecosystem, and clouds of hot gas saturated with X-rays don’t contain such planets. So, astronomers can instead look for galaxies without a tilted jet coming from its black hole. This idea is key to understanding where intelligence could potentially have emerged and matured in the universe.

    Black holes as a guide

    By early 2022, I had built a black hole model to use as a guide. It could point out environments with the right kind of black holes to produce the greatest number of planets without spraying them with X-rays. Life in such environments could emerge to its full potential.

    Looking at black holes and their role in star formation could help scientists predict when and where life was most likely to form.

    Where are such conditions present? The answer is low-density environments where galaxies had merged about 11 billion years ago.

    These environments had black holes whose powerful jets enhanced the rate of star formation, but they never experienced a bout of tilted jets in corotation. In short, my model suggested that theoretically, the most advanced extraterrestrial civilization would have likely emerged on the cosmic scene far away and billions of years ago.

    David Garofalo 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. Jets from powerful black holes can point astronomers toward where − and where not − to look for life in the universe – https://theconversation.com/jets-from-powerful-black-holes-can-point-astronomers-toward-where-and-where-not-to-look-for-life-in-the-universe-251560

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Why do dogs love to play with trash?

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Nancy Dreschel, Associate Teaching Professor of Small Animal Science, Penn State

    Dogs will be dogs. Raul Arboleda/AFP via Getty Images

    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.

    Why do dogs love to play with trash? – Sarah G٫ age 11٫ Seguin٫ Texas

    When I think about why dogs do something, I try to imagine what motivates them. What does a dog get out of playing with trash? As a veterinarian and a professor who teaches college students about companion animals, I believe there’s an easy answer: Garbage smells delicious and tastes good to dogs.

    Dogs have an amazing sense of smell. They have 300 million receptors for smell in their noses, while humans have only 6 million. People can make use of this sniffing ability to train dogs to detect illegal drugs, explosives and endangered species, and to help locate people lost in the woods.

    While you might not like how your trash smells, to your dog it is an appealing buffet brimming with apple cores, banana peels, meat scraps and stale bread. Even used napkins and paper towels are tempting to dogs, when they are smeared with and carry the smell of yesterday’s lunch.

    Because dogs can find trace amounts of explosives or a person buried under 6 feet (1.8 meters) of snow after an avalanche, they are certainly capable of locating last night’s pizza crust and chicken bones in the kitchen garbage can.

    Sometimes it’s hard to see what the attraction is. My Australian cattle dog mix, Sparky, loves to eat used tissues – gross, right?

    Even empty cans smell inviting to dogs. Trash cans in kitchens and bathrooms are often at their nose level, too, making for easy access. Add to that the fact that if the dog got into the garbage once and found something tasty, they will likely keep searching with the hope of being rewarded again.

    A Colombian police officer uses a drug-sniffing dog to search packages of flowers prior to export at El Dorado International Airport in Bogota on Feb. 5, 2025.
    Raul Arboleda/AFP via Getty Images

    Thrill of the hunt

    Searching and digging around for food is natural for dogs because it provides some of the thrill of the hunt, even if they just ate and aren’t hungry.

    The most successful prehistoric dogs ate the bones and scraps that humans left behind more than 10,000 years ago. Hanging around humans and their garbage was a way they could get plenty to eat. Even your pup today has some of those same old searching instincts.

    While our trash has changed from the days of hunting and gathering, the discarded paper napkins, plastic wrappers and food scraps we throw away all still smell like food to dogs. And this scavenging behavior is still hardwired in our pampered pets. Although it may look to us like they’re playing, our dogs’ sniffing out and tearing things up from the trash and tossing them around mimics what their ancestors did when they tugged on and tore up an animal carcass they had found.

    Many people take advantage of this instinct and use “snuffle mats” – cloth or paper where food is hidden – or puzzle feeding toys to keep their pups’ minds active. Having to hunt for and find their food helps them use their noses and sharpens their skills.

    Annoying or even dangerous

    While spreading trash all over the home may be natural for dogs, cleaning it up is no fun for the people they live with. And if your dog pokes its nose in a garbage can, it could be in danger. Eating plastic bags, string, chicken bones, chemicals or rotten food can cause blockages, diarrhea and poisoning. Commonly referred to as “garbage gut,” garbage poisoning can be life-threatening.

    I’ve treated dogs that cut their tongues and mouths on cans or broken glass. I once performed surgery to remove a corncob from the intestines of a dog that had eaten it a month earlier. He was certainly relieved when he woke up.

    How can you keep your dogs away from the trash?

    It can be hard to train a dog to leave garbage alone, especially if they have found a tasty morsel or two by raiding the trash can in the past. I recommend that you invest in a garbage can with a lid closed by a latch that they can’t open. If that fails, you can put garbage – especially food scraps – out of reach in a closet, cupboard or behind a closed door.

    My trash cans are all behind closed doors, and the bathroom doors are always shut, which also keeps my cat, Penny, from unrolling the toilet tissue. But that’s another story. Our kitchen trash is in a latched cupboard.

    No one knows exactly what goes through dogs’ minds. And yet looking at what motivates your canine companion and how dog behaviors have evolved may help explain why these animals do the things they do.

    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.

    Nancy Dreschel 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 do dogs love to play with trash? – https://theconversation.com/why-do-dogs-love-to-play-with-trash-247081

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Crystal Visions

    Source: US State of Connecticut

    In 2022, a multi-institutional team of American scientists traveled to Tokyo to take a spin on a high-powered X-ray laser. 

    Led by UConn chemistry assistant professor J. Nathan “Nate” Hohman, they hoped to use the machine’s unique capabilities to study new materials whose molecular structure had never been understood before. The team had been awarded 60 hours of highly coveted “beam time” on the SPring-8 Angstrom Compact free-electron LAser X-FEL laser (referred to as SACLA). 

    “They were going to let us squirt through the nozzle anything we wanted,” Hohman says, “as long as we told them the name of the chemical first.”

    The research team included five scientists working in chemical synthesis, X-ray crystallography, and AI-powered data interpretation – all prepared for the scientific equivalent of an ultramarathon. Once the machine powered on, they needed to work continuously until the 60 hours had elapsed.  

    “If we ran out of stuff to shoot, we were going to be wasting those precious photons,” Hohman explains. So, the team brought as many samples of new materials as they could.  

    David Moreau and a SACLA scientist working with the machine. (Courtesy of Phil MacDonald)

    Working in round-the-clock shifts, they carefully prepared their samples and loaded them into the machine. SACLA shot jets of their crystalline molecular samples into a chamber where they were struck by an intense beam of X-ray light.  

    Like prisms throwing rainbows, these crystal samples diffracted the light, each into its own signature pattern. By analyzing the light pattern, the scientists could determine the precise molecular makeup of the crystals they were studying. 

    By the end of their three-day journey with SACLA, the researchers had solved the structures of four materials – and have gone on to solve more than 50 in eight more experiments around the world over the last two years.  

    This scientific breakthrough is chronicled in the new short documentary “BEAMTIME: Crystal Hitters,” co-directed by Jonathan Turton and Phil MacDonald. 

    [embedded content]

    Small Scale, Huge Payoff

    High-profile projects like this are nothing new to Hohman, whose research has been sponsored by the US Department of Energy for its potential to unlock new, better sources of energy.  

    Hohman doesn’t work on the quantum technology side of things – using new materials to assemble devices like quantum computers and lasers – but the semiconductors he studies are integral to this process. 

    “Every new technology has a new material at its core,” he says. 

    Hohman’s specialty is self-assembly. His work revolves around understanding the geometry of molecules, planning how they crystallize, and using that to influence their properties. The materials he’s interested in tend to form crystals at the microscopic level, thousands of times smaller than grains of sand. 

    Understanding the structure of these crystals – what’s known as “solving” the crystal structure – is the key to understanding how these materials can be used in technological applications spanning energy production, quantum computing, and beyond.  

    A famous example of crystallography is Rosalind Franklin’s discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA. Since no microscope was powerful enough to allow her to literally see the double-helix, Franklin relied on X-ray crystallography to mathematically solve the structure. 

    For this project, Hohman deployed a unique approach called small-molecule serial femtosecond crystallography, or smSFX. 

    “Our collaboration led the first-ever use of serial crystallography to fully solve true unknown crystal structures of small-molecule systems,” Hohman says. “This solved a huge problem in our field – before, if you were making materials that formed small crystals, then you couldn’t easily solve the crystal structure.” 

    Before using this technique, Hohman jokes, “life with my tiny crystals was mostly just despair.” 

    The materials he was interested in studying – known as MOChas, or metal–organic chacogenolates – would form crystals that were simply too small to solve using conventional methods. They possessed interesting properties, like luminescence, that seemed potentially useful in applications like solar cells or LEDs; but without understanding their molecular structure, scientists couldn’t figure out how to harness these properties. 

    “You can control all the photonic, electronic, and quantum properties of systems synthetically in the laboratory by editing a molecule or changing the design of that molecule,” Hohman says. “But if you don’t know what the structure of something is, then all you have is a little pile of stuff that sort of glows when you shine a UV light on it.” 

    The team’s “big breakthrough” was using smSFX to solve the structures of very small molecules. They are hopeful that this will pave the way for developing new materials for green energy and climate change mitigation technologies. Some of the materials they solved show potential for applications like solar power and carbon sequestration.  

    More broadly, the smSFX technique could be used in future trials to analyze all manner of new materials, from quantum semiconductors to cancer treatments. 

    Hohman is now turning his focus to publishing the library of materials solved on this trip.  

    “The materials are really quite cutting-edge; it’s hard to say exactly what they will be used for,” Hohman says. “The scientific community, collectively, is just starting to discover this stuff.” But he notes that the materials his group has solved may offer “a lot of material advantages” for quantum information science. 

    The Tokyo Shift

    Clockwise from center: Vanessa Oklejas, Nate Hohman, Aaron Brewster, Maggie Willson, and Masha Aleksich share a meal in Tokyo. (Courtesy of Phil MacDonald)

    Hohman was joined on the 2022 trip to SACLA by colleagues from various institutions, including Aaron Brewster, Daniel Paley, and David Mittan-Moreau of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Elyse Schriber, a then-graduate student researcher in Hohman’s lab who is now a project scientist at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory; and Vanessa Oklejas, who has moved to a new role at Lockheed Martin. 

    Three current members of Hohman’s lab were also on the team: Maggie Willson, Patience Kotei, and Masha Aleksich, now third- and fourth-year doctoral students. 

    For Willson, who received her bachelor’s degree at the University of Central Oklahoma, it was her first time traveling out of the country. 

    “That whole trip was very surreal for me,” she says. “I had graduated the May before that trip, so I hadn’t even started grad school yet.” 

    As Hohman tells it, one of the first things he asked Willson to do after accepting her into his lab was “hop on a plane to Japan.” Thankfully, she rose to the occasion – and gained experience that proved pivotal in her career path. 

    “After this trip, I have done seven more of these experiments (in CA, the UK, and another in Japan) and have dedicated the majority of my work here in grad school to these types of crystallography experiments,” Willson says. “Before graduate school, I was planning on becoming a professor at a primarily undergraduate institution in order to focus on teaching, but I am now working towards a career at a synchrotron or an X-ray free electron laser in order to do these types of experiments for other research groups.” 

    For Kotei, who received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the Kwame Nkruma University of Science and Technology in Ghana, the trip was similarly propulsive. 

    “My graduate research primarily focuses on serial crystallography, and my visit to SACLA broadened my perspective on ultrafast dynamics and advanced structural characterization techniques,” says Kotei. “Experiencing world-class research infrastructure firsthand reinforced my motivation to pursue high-impact research. Currently, I am in discussions with leading scientists and experts at SACLA regarding potential research opportunities after completing my degree.” 

    Aleksich, a fourth-year chemistry PhD candidate specifically focusing on MOChas, credits the trip to Tokyo with shifting her goals and her understanding of herself as a scientist. 

    “Having the opportunity to conduct research at this level as a second-year graduate student really grew my confidence and took off any limitations I have had about the caliber of research I would be able to work on in my lifetime,” she says. “Growing up, of course I looked up to the greats like Marie Curie and Rosalind Franklin, but I figured that I was not qualified to truly advance the scientific field. But this experience showed me that if an idea is there, and it’s able to be well communicated, then people are interested in funding it. And for every one great scientist we remember, there were hundreds who helped along the way.” 

    “BEAMTIME: Crystal Hitters” is available to stream on YouTube.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: UK nuclear deterrent: the mutual defense agreement is at risk in a Trumpian age

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Becky Alexis-Martin, Peace Studies and International Development, University of Bradford

    Keir Starmer aboard one of the UK’s Vanguard class submarines. CC BY-NC-ND

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently boarded one of the UK’s four nuclear-armed submarines for a photo call as part of his attempts to demonstrate the UK’s defence capabilities as tensions with Russia continue.

    However, Starmer faces a problem. The submarine, and the rest of the UK’s nuclear fleet, is heavily reliant on the US as an operating partner. And at a time when the US becomes an increasingly unreliable partner under the leadership of an entirely transactional president, this is not ideal. The US can, if it chooses, effectively switch off the UK’s nuclear deterrent.

    British and US nuclear history is irrevocably interwoven. The US and UK cooperated on the Manhattan project, under the 1943 Quebec agreements and the 1944 Hyde Park aide memoire. This work generated the world’s first nuclear weapons, which were deployed on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

    It also led to the first rupture. In 1946, the US classified UK citizens as “foreign” and prevented them from engaging in secret nuclear work. Collaboration with the UK immediately ceased.

    The UK decided to develop its own arsenal of nuclear weapons. The successful detonation of the “Grapple Y” hydrogen bomb in April 1958 cemented its position as a thermonuclear power.

    In the meantime, however, Russia’s launch of the Sputnik satellite in 1957 had demonstrated the lethal reach of Soviet nuclear technology. This brought the US and UK back together as nuclear partners.

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    Talks on how to counter the Russian threat became the foundation of an atomic partnership that endures to the present day. This mutual defence agreement, signed in 1958, has provided the UK with affordable access to the latest nuclear technology and a reliable western ally. The treaty has been amended and adapted over time to reflect changes in the US-UK working relationship and the two are now so entangled that it is very hard to leave the co-dependent relationship.

    Both sides have benefited from security and protection, especially during the cold war. However, Trump’s new “special relationship” with Russia’s Vladimir Putin has reconfigured the global order of geopolitics.

    Serious concerns are now being raised about the UK’s nuclear capacity, given the unpredictability and potential unreliability of the new US administration. Trump could ignore or threaten to terminate the agreement in a show of power or contempt.

    The UK’s nuclear subs

    The UK’s Trident nuclear deterrence programme consists of four Vanguard nuclear-powered and armed submarines. The UK has some autonomy, as it is operationally independent and controls the decision to launch.

    However, it remains dependent on the US because the nuclear technologies at the heart of the Trident system are US designed and leased by Lockheed Martin – and there is no suitable alternative. The Trident system therefore relies on the US for support and maintenance.

    The UK is currently in the process of upgrading the current system. But its options seem limited. If the US were to renege on its commitments, the UK would either have to produce its own weapons domestically, collaborate with France or Europe or disarm. Each scenario creates new issues for the UK. Manufacturing nuclear weapons from scratch in the UK, for example, would be a costly and protracted activity.

    Technical collaboration with France seems the most plausible back-up option at the moment. The two countries already have a nuclear collaboration treaty in place. France has taken a similar submarine-based approach to deterrence as the UK and French president Emmanuel Macron has suggested its deterrent could be used to protect other European countries. Another alternative would be to spread the cost across Europe and create a European deterrence – but both strategies just re-embed the UK’s current nuclear reliance.

    The UK is reliant on others for its nuclear deterrent.
    Number 10/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND

    While these weapons may deter a hostile nuclear strike, they have failed to prevent broader acts of aggression. Nuclear weapons have not been used in warfare for 80 years. Perhaps it is time to completely and permanently unshackle the UK from nuclear deterrence, and consider alternative forms of defence.

    The UK’s nuclear arsenal is expensive to maintain. The cost of replacing Trident is £205 billion. In 2023, the Ministry of Defence reported that the anticipated costs for supporting the nuclear deterrent would exceed its budget by £7.9 billion over the next ten years. This funding could be channelled into more pressing security threats, such as cybersecurity, terrorism or climate change.

    Nuclear weapons will become strategically redundant if the UK cannot act independently. As Nato and the US dominate the global nuclear stage, the UK’s capacity to respond has become contested. The time has come to decide whether the US is really our friend – or a new foe.

    Becky Alexis-Martin 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. UK nuclear deterrent: the mutual defense agreement is at risk in a Trumpian age – https://theconversation.com/uk-nuclear-deterrent-the-mutual-defense-agreement-is-at-risk-in-a-trumpian-age-252674

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Donald Trump likes tariffs, but they damage the economies of everyone involved

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Muhammad Ali Nasir, Associate Professor in Economics, University of Leeds

    Donald Trump is calling April 2 2025 “Liberation Day”. For the rest of the world it will just be the day when they discover the details of his latest round of tariffs.

    Those tariffs have already become the stand out economic feature of Trump’s second term in the White House. And frankly, it’s been hard to keep track.

    There have been tariffs imposed and then lifted, tariffs with exemptions, tariffs on metal and tariffs on wood. Now Trump has announced a 25% tariff on all imported cars to take effect on April 2, when he also plans to reveal his “reciprocal tariffs” on other trading partners.

    Trump thinks the US has been “ripped off for decades by nearly every country on Earth”. He also counts “tariff” as his favourite word, and a tool which is “”very powerful, both economically and in getting everything else you want”.

    Whether or not the president gets everything he wants remains to be seen. But the frequent changes in tariff policies over the past few weeks have definitely created uncertainty in trade with the US, which research shows can be harmful in itself.

    And the evidence clearly shows that the reasons for the US trade deficit are more to do with domestic issues such as productivity and fiscal discipline than international trade.

    So what are the possible outcomes if Trump continues to pursue this policy?

    The worst case

    Our analysis shows that in the worst-case scenario, non-reciprocated tariffs on Canada and Mexico could result in a significant fall in GDP for all three countries. Canada would be the worst affected (a dip of 16.5%) followed by Mexico (6.6%). GDP in the US would fall by 0.19%.

    Canada is particularly dependent on selling its oil and gas – and the US is heavily reliant on its northern neighbour for its fuel supply. In 2024, total trade between the two nations reached US$762.1 billion (£589 billion).

    The impact on Mexico would also be devastating. Over 40% of the country’s GDP is derived from exports – and 80% of those exports go to the US.

    High tariffs and subsequent retaliations would quickly reduce the confidence of companies on both sides. Costs passed on to consumers would reduce demand and then profits, forming a vicious cycle of economic recession. Trade protectionism could then rise further, potentially even turning a recession into a depression

    Middle ground

    We also found that even if the economic effects of tariffs were less severe, no nation involved would manage to achieve GDP growth. And Canada and Mexico would still suffer the most.

    In this situation, some kind of stalemate could emerge, where tariffs lead to rising inflation, reducing the political appetite for escalation. Trade friction would likely continue until 2026, when a renegotiation of the trade agreement between the US, Mexico and Canada is due to take place.

    Best case

    Even under the best-case scenario, with reduced economic impact, GDP for all three countries still falls. Put simply, imposing tariffs creates no winners.

    Since the tariff has been seen as a bargaining chip, the best option for Canada and Mexico will be to enter trade negotiations with the US, aiming for a balanced trade policy that is beneficial to all parties.



    Read more:
    Donald Trump is planning more trade barriers if he becomes president – but they didn’t work last time

    In the meantime, they should cooperate with other economies affected by US tariffs – such as the EU and China – in the hope that this encourages Trump to make concessions.

    All three countries could then revert to their original low-tariff levels before the trade war. This constitutes the optimal scenario within our projected framework – and could be what happens eventually.

    US treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, has said that Trump’s second favourite word is “reciprocal”. If that’s true, then it is possible that the Trump administration has the overall intention of cooling down the intensity of this trade war ahead of negotiating a new version of its trade deal with Canada and Mexico – and a new one with China too.

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

    – ref. Donald Trump likes tariffs, but they damage the economies of everyone involved – https://theconversation.com/donald-trump-likes-tariffs-but-they-damage-the-economies-of-everyone-involved-252322

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Climate change isn’t fair but Tony Juniper’s new book explains how a green transition could be ‘just’

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Alix Dietzel, Senior Lecturer in Climate Justice, University of Bristol

    Tony Juniper. Jason Bye, CC BY-NC-ND

    Inequality – between the rich and poor or between the powerful and the weak – is the main factor stalling action on environmental problems including biodiversity loss, pollution and climate change, according to British environmentalist Tony Juniper.

    In his new book, Just Earth: How a Fairer World Will Save the Planet, he argues that “if we want to build a secure future, both environmental priorities and social justice must be pursued together”. Much of this is about how decisions are made: “Disadvantaged groups rarely have a say, while those deciding on policy continue to comprise a narrow social segment.”

    It is interesting to see Juniper’s views on the topic of a just transition, given his decades of experience. Juniper has served as the executive director of environmental charity Friends of the Earth, he was a Green party parliamentary candidate in the 2011 general election and previously led The Wildlife Trusts. He is currently chair of Natural England, the official government organisation working for the conservation and restoration of the natural environment.

    His views on this subject certainly matter. His key message that social justice is at the heart of solving environmental problems helps to explain why we have collectively failed to address these.

    This injustice is an issue that has been raised for decades by those most affected by environmental issues, those who work in the environment sector and academics like me who focus on environmental justice.

    The UK environment sector, for example, is notoriously one of the least diverse, with only 3.5% of those working in environmental jobs identifying as an ethnic minority. In addition, the climate change movement is sometimes portrayed by the media as a middle-class preoccupation. Research shows a tendency for mainstream media to position environmentalism as a position of the wealthy. That’s reflected by the use of distancing terminology such as “middle-class tree huggers”.

    However, 39% of UK working class voters experience climate anxiety. That’s only slightly below the 42% of middle-class voters.

    Levels of climate concern have stayed high throughout both the COVID-19 pandemic and cost of living crises, while support for government action on climate mitigation policies, such as decreased meat consumption and flying, has remained steady.

    At the global level, there have always been tensions between developed and developing countries in terms of what is “fair”. Entrenched power dynamics ensure that developed countries have historically won out when deciding what a fair future looks like.

    Most recently, those tensions have been evident in the lack of clarity around how loss and damage will be funded and managed – who will pay out when an island disappears, or a village becomes inhabitable to due drought, for example? There’s also much debate around how a new finance goal should be defined, with huge disagreements between the developed and developing countries.

    As Juniper explains, not only is it unclear what fairness means at global negotiations, there is clear evidence that these tend to favour the more powerful countries, such as the US or members of the EU, and create an unjust regime. Steven Vanderheiden, one of the earliest climate justice philosophers, claims that developing nations are usually offered a “take it or leave it” deal, such as the new finance goal of US$300 billion (£232 billion) or about half of what developing countries were asking for, once developed nations have made decisions without them.

    A fairer vision

    In response to these inequalities and ongoing tensions, Juniper sets out a vision for a fairer, greener society – also known as a just transition.

    A just transition is hard to define. It was once a relatively well demarcated and clearly grounded concept associated with worker’s rights.

    Over time, it has become an increasingly all-encompassing policy objective, untethered from any specific policies, political objectives or priorities. Indeed, while there are certainly overlaps between the different visions of a just transition, significant aspects directly contradict one another.

    Just Earth by Tony Juniper is out now.
    CC BY-NC-ND

    Many of the messages in Juniper’s book have been shouted by those less privileged for decades. By using his platform to amplify the importance of climate justice, he is striving to make a difference. However, the voices of those from affected communities in developing countries, the working class in richer countries, and women (who will be hardest hit by climate change) are somewhat absent.

    Juniper neatly encompasses 40-plus years of global negotiations on climate change and biodiversity, reflecting on core issues blocking progress, such as populism and fossil fuel interests. Getting your head around negotiations is a complex task – and it’s one that Juniper executes very well.

    Juniper also discusses rising inequality, especially post-COVID, and the intersecting relationship between affluence and environmental destruction, with the richest consuming far more than the poorest and the top 10% wealthiest individuals having emitting more greenhouse gases than the poorest 50%.

    He sets out the impacts of consumption, particularly of the wealthiest, and the unfairness of those being hit hardest consuming the least. He carefully dissects why indefinite growth of GDP can no longer be taken as a given.

    Then he sets out his vision for a just transition with a ten-point agenda, including new measures of progress. He suggests focusing on wellbeing and sustainable consumption, not GDP.

    He highlights the importance of financing the future and raising the transition war chest – that involves carbon tax regimes and additional public resources for environmental protection to build climate resilience. He advises switching subsidies to green energy rather than fossil fuels, and also advocates for the use of ecocide law to protect future generations.

    While progress is possible, Juniper is a realist. He outlines how much our culture needs to shift away from consumption, competition, devaluing nature, and towards a fairer society for all. As he puts it: “We have nowhere else to go. There is just Earth.”

    Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?

    Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 40,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

    Alix Dietzel 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. Climate change isn’t fair but Tony Juniper’s new book explains how a green transition could be ‘just’ – https://theconversation.com/climate-change-isnt-fair-but-tony-junipers-new-book-explains-how-a-green-transition-could-be-just-250671

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How viruses blur the the boundaries of life

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Heshmat Borhani, Lecturer in in Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Nottingham

    Cryptographer/Shutterstock

    When people talk about the coronavirus, they sometimes describe this invisible entity as if it has a personality and even a conscience. If you ask a biology or medical student what a virus is, they will tell you that a virus is not a living organism, or at most that it exists at the border between living and dead – a kind of walking dead.

    For biologists who specialise in virology, however, this view is not clear-cut. Scientists still disagree on whether viruses are truly alive or not.

    What scientists can agree on is that a virus adapts to new conditions, evolves and sometimes harms humans. It is also an infectious agent that can only replicate within a host organism such as bacteria, plants or animals.

    The boundary between being alive and dead is a concept with no specific criteria. So to help you think about whether viruses are alive, I will talk you through some of the different definitions of life in science.

    Throughout history, scientists have debated the definition of life and researchers from different fields still disagree. This debate shapes scientific understanding and influences public health decisions – for example, defining whether viruses are “alive” affects how we design vaccines and strategies to stop their spread.

    Biologists may refer you to Erwin Schrödinger’s definition of life. Schrödinger was an Austrian Nobel-prize winning physicist who published a book in 1944 called What is Life? He was one of the first scientists to try to define life and is perhaps better known in popular culture for his “Schrödinger’s cat” thought experiment.

    He proposed that life is a form of negative “entropy”, a scientific concept that explains how disordered something is. A physical system will always increase in entropy/disorder unless we insert energy to change this process. Schrödinger thought living things create and maintain order by using energy.

    For example, a messy bedroom doesn’t clean itself, but a person can tidy it. Organisms do something similar at the molecular level. DNA is highly structured, allowing it to store genetic information. Proteins fold into specific shapes to function properly. In contrast, after an organism dies, its molecules break down, increasing disorder.

    Schrödinger later revised his view – around the 1950s – suggesting that life depends on free energy. Free energy is the energy that drives chemical reactions in living things. This marked a shift from focusing on order (negative entropy) to emphasising energy as essential for life.

    The coronavirus took on a personality for many people.
    creativeneko/Shutterstock

    In the mid-20th century, scientists switched from defining life to describing its key characteristics. Studying organisms such as bacteria, plants and animals, they identified common traits, setting a precedent still followed today.

    Rather than seeking a single definition, researchers classify entities based on these traits. To decide whether a virus is alive, researchers assess how well it meets these criteria.

    According to biology, the smallest unit of life is the cell. A cell is an independent unit which makes functional molecules (such as proteins and enzymes). Cells can use their own molecules to replicate genetic material independently. A virus also has genetic material but needs to use the host cell’s enzymes to make functional molecules or replicate its genetic material.

    Put simply, a virus does not replicate or function independently. So by the biological definition, a virus cannot be categorised as a living organism.

    But from a genetic and evolutionary point of view a living organism is defined by its ability to reproduce. A person who does not have children is still considered to be alive as they are part of the gene pool and descended from people who did have children. From this view a virus is alive, since it can produce similar offspring.

    Some scientists also focus on metabolism and energy production as criteria for life. Metabolism includes catabolism (breaking down molecules like sugars during digestion) and anabolism (building molecules like muscle tissue), linking energy and material. These reactions require molecular structures to generate or use energy – structures viruses lack.

    Does that mean viruses aren’t alive? An amoeba, for instance, uses nutrients and enzymes to sustain itself, while viruses rely entirely on a host. From this perspective, viruses don’t meet the metabolic criteria for life. However, some argue that since viruses hijack a host’s metabolism to replicate, they show life-like behaviour.

    If we consider nutrients to be sources of free energy, a cell uses energy from the environment to build what it needs. As the cell absorbs energy from the environment, it builds and maintains its internal structures – like proteins and membranes.

    It also releases a byproduct – carbon dioxide – that contributes to disorder in the external environment. Viruses also do this. They make their structures by using the external environment, a host cell in this case. The viruses’ byproducts may be what makes us sick.

    As we explore the complexities of biology, it becomes clear that defining life itself is anything but straightforward. Viruses display both life-like and non-living traits, which influences how we approach treatments like antiviral drugs designed to block their replication inside host cells.

    Heshmat Borhani 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. How viruses blur the the boundaries of life – https://theconversation.com/how-viruses-blur-the-the-boundaries-of-life-230802

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Public toilets in St Albans District to get £220,000 upgrade including baby changing and disabled facilities

    Source: St Albans City and District

    Publication date:

    Public toilets across St Albans District are to be modernised and upgraded with an investment of £220,000.

    Improvements will include equipping conveniences with enhanced facilities for disabled people and baby changing.

    St Albans City and District Council operates 16 public conveniences at various locations including the City Centre, three cemeteries, two parks and in a number of villages.

    A review of the facilities was recently undertaken with the British Toilet Association (BTA) to consider future options.

    The Council does not have a statutory duty to provide public toilets and in common with other local authorities is facing considerable pressure on its budget.

    Some of the toilets need substantial improvements and to add to the financial challenges, a cleaning contract due to be renewed in June is likely to increase costs significantly.

    However, the options of closing all the facilities or introducing a small charge for their use have been ruled out.

    Instead, Councillors agreed to proposals to upgrade key facilities, remodelling them into accessible and unisex toilets. 

    Only three toilets, which are no longer fit for purpose and close to alternative facilities, will be shut.

    Discussions are to be initiated with Parish and Town Councils to see if they will take over the operation of public toilets in their area as they have done with other community assets.

    The BTA assessment of the conveniences took into account the number of daily users, proximity to other toilets and the condition of the facilities.

    Chris Traill, the Council’s Strategic Director for Community and Place Delivery, said:

    In reviewing our public conveniences and considering future options, we have had to balance value for money with the needs of our communities.

    We were very much guided by the experts at the British Toilet Association and our own careful planning around locations to match our customers’ usage. This has resulted in our plan to turn some of the existing toilets into unisex ones with disabled and baby changing facilities. 

    These will provide improved facilities for the whole community such as people with a baby to care for while also being less costly to maintain.

    A few toilets will be permanently closed, but I hope our residents understand they were no longer fit for purpose and are a short walk from much better, alternative facilities.

    The review recommendations accepted by Councillors as part of the Council’s budget process for 2024/25 are:

    Clarence Park – the Bowling Green toilet will be closed for general use while the ornamental park toilet will be refurbished and converted into a unisex convenience with baby changing and disabled facilities.

    Verulamium Park – the Abbey View Athletics Track toilet, currently closed because of structural concerns, will be permanently shut with visitors signposted to Westminster Lodge Leisure Centre. The toilets beside the Roman Museum will be refurbished and retain separate male and female facilities.

    City Centre – Drovers Way and Civic Centre Car Park toilets, which have been plagued by serious anti-social behaviour, to be closed with people signposted to the first-class facilities at St Albans Museum + Gallery and inside the Civic Centre. The Changing Places toilet at the Civic Centre Car Park to be retained. 

    Parishes – toilets to be refurbished and remodelled as unisex ones with baby changing and disabled facilities at Wheathampstead, London Colney, Park Street and the Quadrant. This was trialled successfully at Sandridge and recently completed at Redbourn.

    Cemeteries – toilets refurbished and remodelled as unisex ones with baby changing and disabled facilities at Hatfield Road, London Road and Westfield Road.

    The refurbishments will require a one-off capital investment of £220,000 agreed by Councillors.

    Photo: Toilets beside the Roman Museum at Verulamium Park.

    Contact for the media: John McJannet, Principal Communications Officer: 01727 819533, john.mcjannet@stalbans.gov.uk.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: 31 March 2025 Departmental update WHO calls for urgent action on dementia among refugees and migrants

    Source: World Health Organisation

    The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a new report, Dementia in refugees and migrants: epidemiology, public health implications and global health responses, which synthesizes the latest global evidence on the factors affecting the health and care of displaced populations and offers policy considerations to address these challenges. This is the sixth report in the Global Evidence Review on Health and Migration (GEHM) series.

    Dementia: A growing public health challenge

    Dementia affects over 57 million people worldwide, with nearly 10 million new cases each year. It is the seventh leading cause of death and a major driver of disability among older people. While no cure exists, physical activity, social engagement, and some medications can help manage symptoms. However, people with dementia frequently face discrimination and barriers to care, highlighting the need for robust policies that safeguard their rights and ensure access to support services.

    Refugees and migrants with dementia face greater barriers to care

    For refugees and migrants, these challenges are even more pronounced. Many face limited access to culturally and linguistically appropriate care, disrupted support networks, and the compounded effects of migration-related stressors. A lack of cross-cultural assessment tools and limited specialist training for health care professionals contributes to underdiagnosis and undertreatment among refugees and migrants.

    As migration and forced displacement due to economic factors, conflict, climate change, and food insecurity intensifies, the number of older refugees and migrants is rising. Yet dementia in these populations remains largely overlooked in health policies and crisis response plans.

    Data and research on dementia prevalence and risk factors among refugees and migrants are scarce, making it difficult to design effective interventions. Without comprehensive, disaggregated data, health systems cannot tailor services to meet the needs of refugees and migrants.

    “Dementia care must be an integral part of migration and public health policies. Refugees and migrants have the same right to health as everyone else, yet too often face systemic barriers to care” said Dr Santino Severoni, Director of WHO’s Department of Health and Migration. “Urgent action is needed to ensure timely diagnosis, effective treatment, and appropriate support for both individuals and their carers.”

    Urgent action needed to address dementia in refugees and migrants:

    “Refugees and migrants, already vulnerable due to displacement, face additional risks when it comes to dementia” said Dévora Kestel, Director of WHO’s Department of Mental Health, Brain Health and Substance Use. “The report highlights the critical need for health systems and emergency responses to be equipped to address the unique barriers these populations face in accessing timely and appropriate dementia care”.

    The report synthesises available global evidence on dementia in refugees and migrants and puts forward a series of policy considerations to governments, policymakers, and programme managers in Ministries of Health and other ministries.

    • Policy and legislation: Ensure inclusion of refugees and migrants in national and regional dementia-related policies, legislation, and frameworks, and position dementia within broader health agendas addressing refugee and migrant populations.
    • Awareness and inclusion: Launch national and local campaigns and policy engagement to raise awareness of dementia in refugee and migrant communities. Develop dementia-friendly and dementia-inclusive environments, including in emergency displacement settings.
    • Risk reduction: Design and implement culturally and linguistically sensitive, evidence-informed interventions to lower dementia risk among refugees and migrants. Integrate dementia risk reduction into broader noncommunicable disease prevention policies and strengthen research on risk and protective factors.
    • Diagnosis, treatment, and care: Improve access to healthcare by addressing barriers to dementia diagnosis and treatment, particularly among refugees and migrants. Develop integrated care pathways and provide training for health and social care professionals working with refugees and migrants.
    • Support for carers: Implement training and legal protections for carers of refugees and migrants with dementia. Ensure access to care and support services, particularly in emergency settings, and involve family caregivers in care planning and policymaking.
    • Health information systems and monitoring: Strengthen national surveillance and monitoring systems to include data on dementia in refugees and migrants. Expand the evidence base on dementia prevalence and its public health implications in these populations, including addressing the priority evidence gaps brought forward in this Global evidence review.
    • Research and innovation: Prioritize dementia in refugees and migrants within the global research agenda. Increase investment and collaboration to develop innovative solutions tailored to their unique needs.

    This sixth report of the GEHM series was developed by WHO Health and Migration, in collaboration with the Department of Mental Health, Brain Health, and Substance Use. The GEHM series provides policymakers with evidence-based insights and policy considerations to address the health needs of refugees and migrants

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/SOUTH KOREA – Archbishop Nappa celebrates the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Korean Pontifical Mission Societies in Seoul

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Don Marco Kim

    Seoul (Agenzia Fides) – “It is with great emotion that I visit this land of martyrs that is Korea, a unique country in the history of the Church, where the faith took root spontaneously before the arrival of the missionaries.” With these words, Archbishop Emilio Nappa began his homily at the commemorative Mass for the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Korean National Direction of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS). The Eucharistic concelebration was presided over this morning, Monday, March 31, by Bishop Mathias Iong-hoon Ri, President of the Korean Bishops’ Conference, in the Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Seoul, in Myeongdong.Archbishop Nappa, current Secretary General of the Governorate of the Vatican City and former President of the Pontifical Mission Societies, concelebrated the Mass at 10 a.m., in the presence of Cardinal Andrea Yeom, Archbishop Emeritus of Seoul; Archbishop Giovanni Gaspari, Apostolic Nuncio to South Korea; and numerous prelates, priests, former national directors of the Pontifical Mission Societies, religious sisters and lay missionaries, as well as hundreds of faithful. “Your ancestors in the faith,” said Archbishop Nappa, “kept their faith under severe persecution, dreaming of eternal life. Nobles and servants sat together, calling each other brothers and sisters.” The former PMS president “gave thanks and praise to God” for all those who have served the Korean PMS throughout their history, inviting the faithful to “implore with the same ardent intention […] so that the steadfast faith that animated your ancestors in the faith may be awakened in you.”In his welcoming address, Cardinal Andrew Soo-jung Yeom, Archbishop Emeritus of Seoul, retraced the history of the Korean PMS, recalling that the Pontifical Mission Societies of Korea were established on June 29, 1965, under the name ‘Pontifical Commission for the Propagation of the Faith’.He also emphasized that in 60 years, we have moved from a “Church that receives” (referring to the period when Korea was still poor and seminaries benefited from PMS subsidies) to a “Church that gives.” Indeed, “the Church on mission,” the Cardinal explained, “is a Church on the move, a Church that spreads the fragrance of Christ through the charity of daily life.”The Eucharistic celebration was followed by a conference on mission and several testimonies from consecrated and lay missionaries. Thomas Aquinas Seong-ho Song and Rosa Eun-hyung Rosa Yang, a Consolata lay missionary couple and grandparents of three grandchildren, recounted how they were called at the age of 60 to a mission in Tanzania after a previous experience in Mozambique. “Living with people and loving them” in order to “be able to proclaim Christ” were the main characteristics of the mission witnessed by the couple. As administrators at the Mission Center, he and her vice-directors, Thomas and Rosa, also reiterated the importance of learning the language and obtaining a driver’s license to begin interacting with the local community and becoming accustomed to its cultural expressions. They also emphasized that the situation they have embraced is “a place where it is difficult to live without prayer.”Another significant testimony came from Sister Anna Kang, a member of the Conceptionist Teaching Missionaries and a missionary in the Philippines from 2018 to 2023. With the help of the PMS and thanks to the support of many other donors, Sister Anna continued a daycare project, created specifically to provide a place of welcome and education for children who come from these homes where “a single room serves as a kitchen, dormitory, and bathroom.”During the lecture given by Father Peter Dong Won Kim, head of the Department of Mission ad Gentes of the Archdiocese of Seoul, he recounted his missionary experience in Taiwan, working with an aboriginal parish in the mountains, emphasizing that “missionary travel is not dictated by personal preferences (even if it seems so), but by the missionary’s response to God’s call.””We hope that the missionary spirit you experienced as President of the Pontifical Mission Societies will continue to accompany you in fulfilling your new mission,” expressed Father Marco Sungsu Kim, official of the Dicastery for Evangelization (section for the First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches), who accompanied the Archbishop during his visit to Japan and South Korea. The former President of the PMS took the time, at the end of his homily, to thank the Korean Church, which places its priests at the disposal of the universal Church.Archbishop Nappa’s visit to South Korea began on March 26 with a visit to the Apostolic Nunciature and a meeting with the Nuncio, Msgr. Giovanni Gaspari, and ended this morning. During his stay, Archbishop Nappa participated with a message of good wishes in the Mass celebrated on March 26, also in Myeongdong, for the 12th anniversary of the papal election of Pope Francis, with all the Korean bishops gathered for the Ordinary Plenary Assembly of the Korean Bishops’ Conference.The Archbishop also celebrated a Mass with the Salesian Sisters (about 30 sisters) on March 27 and took the opportunity to thank them for their commitment to North Korean youth. On the same day, he visited the Korean Bishops’ Conference where he was welcomed with “deep gratitude” by Secretary General Stefano Cheol-soo Lee and conveyed the greetings of Cardinal Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization.The day’s program concluded with a meeting with Catholic secondary school students. On March 28, he then visited the Diocese of Daegu, where he celebrated Mass, had a brief meeting with Bishop Thaddeus Hwan-kil Cho, and visited the Daegu Archdiocesan Major Seminary, Gwandeokjung (Museum of Martyrdom), the cathedral, the headquarters of ‘Catholic Times’, and the regional headquarters of the ‘Catholic Peace Broadcasting Corporation’. On the 29th, he visited the Diocese of Suwon, where Bishop Mathias Iong-hoon Ri, president of the Korean Bishops’ Conference, is bishop. In the afternoon, after visiting the Marian Shrine of Namyang (dedicated first to the anonymous martyrs, and later, in 1991, to the Virgin Mary), he concelebrated Mass with approximately 200 children at the parish of St. Pio of Pietrelcina in Hwaseong (Dongtan Bansong-dong Catholic Church). He then returned to the Seoul Major Seminary on Sunday, March 30, and visited the Seosomun Martyrs’ Shrine, the site where many early Korean Catholics were martyred, including the first to be baptized, Peter Seung-hun Yi.The gifts that Archbishop Nappa brought to the bishops and collaborators in Japan and Korea consisted of a wooden reproduction of the crucifix offered by Saint John Mary Vianney to Blessed Pauline Jaricot (prepared by the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith, POPF) and booklets on the life of the foundress of the societies and of Jeanne Bigard (foundress of the Pontifical Society of Saint Peter the Apostle, POSPA), as well as the missionary rosaries of the Dicastery. (PR) (Agenzia Fides, 31/3/2025)
    Don Marco Kim

    Don Marco Kim

    Don Marco Kim

    Don Marco Kim

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  • MIL-OSI Europe: ASIA/MYANMAR – Lack of medicine and shelter: The Catholic community launches humanitarian aid and calls for a ceasefire

    Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI

    Karuna Myanmar

    Mandalay (Agenzia Fides) – “There is a lack of medicine and emergency shelter, as many are injured and thousands are homeless on the streets,” reads a statement from Karuna Myanmar (Caritas Burma) sent to Fides. “Local groups, volunteers, and civil society organizations on the ground are working to assess the full extent of the damage and provide initial emergency assistance. The destruction is widespread and the civilian population has been severely affected. The earthquake has caused power outages and disrupted communications. Myanmar’s National Disaster Management Committee has declared a state of emergency in many regions. Thousands of people in Mandalay remain on the streets,” reads the statement from the Catholic Church’s charitable organization, which has activated its network of diocesan offices to monitor the situation and organize humanitarian aid. Numerous buildings, including monasteries, mosques, pagodas, seminaries and churches, schools, hospitals, banks, hotels, airports, residential buildings, bridges, and highways, suffered significant damage. Cities worst affected include Yangon, Mandalay, Naypyidaw, Sagaing, Aungpan, Bago, Kalay, Magway, Kyaukse, Muse, Yinmapin, Taunggyie, and some areas in Shan State. The national Karuna office and diocesan offices have mobilized their volunteer teams to assist the worst-affected Diocese of Mandalay, which has initiated coordination with local authorities, other religious leaders, and local charities. “Under the current conditions, it is difficult to provide an accurate picture with data and figures due to the lack of telecommunications and restricted access to various areas. Karuna volunteer teams are still unable to travel to the affected areas due to disruptions or lack of security,” the Mandalay-based relief agency said. Instead, Karuna’s national office is coordinating with Caritas Internationalis, UNHCR, OCHA, and other aid organizations to seek channels for humanitarian resources and assistance. In the Mandalay, Magway, Sagaging, Bago, and Shan regions, the death toll from the earthquake that struck the country on March 28 continues to rise: more than 2,000 dead, 3,400 injured, and more than 300 missing have been confirmed, but for organizations involved in humanitarian assistance, the number is sure to rise. Myanmar’s ruling military junta has declared a week of national mourning from today, March 31, to April 6. As the civil war continues, the Catholic Church in the country is firmly calling for “an urgent ceasefire to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid,” according to an appeal issued by the Bishops’ Conference of Myanmar. “This tragic event has further exacerbated the profound multidimensional humanitarian crisis already gripping Myanmar, where, according to UN estimates, nearly 20 million people, including 6.3 million children, are in urgent need of assistance,” the Burmese bishops wrote. “The Catholic Church reaffirms its unwavering support for those affected and expresses its condolences to the families who have lost loved ones. We pray especially for those who have died in places of worship, pagodas, and mosques. We are deeply touched by the moving messages we have received from Pope Francis, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, and the Chargé d’Affaires of the Nunciature, Archbishop Andrea Ferrante,” the country’s bishops wrote. With a view to mobilizing the international community, the bishops assure that “the Catholic Church will participate in the support to help the people with food, medicine, and shelter.” They also reiterate: “This humanitarian crisis requires an urgent cessation of hostilities. We urgently call for an immediate and complete ceasefire by all parties involved in the conflict to ensure the safe and unhindered delivery of essential humanitarian aid from local and international donors.” (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 31/3/2025)
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  • MIL-OSI: BOS Reports Financial Results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Net Income Rises 14.7% Year-Over-Year on Increased Gross Margin, Efficient Operations

    Provides Initial 2025 Outlook for Further 10% Growth in Sales and Net Income

    RISHON LE ZION, Israel, March 31, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — BOS Better Online Solutions Ltd. (“BOS” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: BOSC) reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2024.

    Year 2024 Financial Highlights:

    • Revenues declined by 9.7% to $39.9 million from $44.2 million in 2023. Revenue results in 2023 benefitted from one-time post-COVID restocking activities at multiple customers.
    • Gross profit margin increased to 23.3% compared to 20.8% in the preceding year, demonstrating improved operating efficiency.
    • Operating profit decreased to $1.4 million from $2.5 million in 2023, due to $1.2 million non-cash impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets in 2024.
    • EBITDA increased to $3.25 million compared to $3.06 million in 2023.
    • Financial expenses decreased to $139,000 from $441,000 in the prior year.
    • Non cash income from taxes amounted to $1 million in year 2024.
    • Net income increased by 14.7% to $2.3 million, or $0.40 per basic share, compared to $2.0 million, or $0.35 per basic share, in the year 2023.

    Fourth Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights:

    • Revenues declined by 4.6% to $10.4 million from $10.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.
    • Gross profit margin increased to 22.9% compared to 19.2% in the comparable quarter last year.
    • Operating loss amounted to $616,000 compared to an operating income of $400,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023, due to a $1.2 million non-cash impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets included in the results of the fourth quarter of 2024.
    • EBITDA amounted to $715,000 compared to $562,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023.
    • Financial income amounted to $99,000 compared to financial expenses of $31,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023.
    • Non cash income from taxes in the amount of $1 million in the fourth quarter of 2024.
    • Net income amounted to $485,000 or $0.08 per basic share compared to $427,000 or $0.07 per basic share in the fourth quarter of 2023.

    Eyal Cohen, BOS’ CEO, stated: “BOS improved profitability on an operating basis across all of our business units in 2024, leveraging our favorable sales mix and lean cost structure to increase gross margin to 23.3% and net income to $2.3 million. That momentum has carried into 2025 as we continue to scale the business, manage costs effectively and drive operating leverage. We are starting the year with a 35% increase in backlog, at $27 million as of December 31, 2024, compared to $20 million as of December 31, 2023, plus significant new defense customer orders announced in the first quarter to date. As a result, our 2025 outlook calls for a 10% year-over-year increase in both sales and net income to $44 million of revenues and $2.5 million of net income.

    “BOS’ growth strategy remains focused on deepening our penetration in the defense sector, where we have strong customer relationships at both the primary and subcontractor levels. We expect robust ordering patterns across the strategic defense industry to continue in 2025, and we are progressing our sales strategy to enter new overseas markets by leveraging our relationships with Israeli defense customers that operate globally. We also continue to seek accretive strategic opportunities where we can deploy our strong balance sheet to expand BOS’ capabilities and reach in the growing global defense market.”

    Board Updates
     On March 19, 2025, BOS announced the appointment of Osnat Gur, an independent director since 2021, as Board Chair and the appointment of Avi Dadon as a new independent director.

    Ms. Gur brings extensive management and leadership experience to BOS, having served as CEO of a global B2B marketing agency, an RFID technology company, and a dietary supplements manufacturer over the course of her career. She also serves as a board director in multiple Israeli companies.

    Mr. Dadon brings decades of experience in military leadership, defense procurement, supply chain management and logistics to BOS. He served as Head of Procurement for the Israeli Ministry of Defense from 2017 to 2023 and is a retired Colonel in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), with 28 years of military service.

    “We are excited to congratulate Osnat in her new role as Board Chair, and look forward to working with her to plan BOS’s next chapter of growth and earnings as we continue to execute our growth strategy,” said Cohen. “We also welcome Avi to the board and look forward to leveraging his decades of experience with the IDF and Ministry of Defense procurement to support BOS’s continued success.” 

    About BOS Better Online Solutions Ltd.
    BOS integrates cutting-edge technologies to streamline and enhance supply chain operations across three specialized divisions:

    • Intelligent Robotics Division: Automates industrial and logistics inventory processes through advanced robotics technologies, improving efficiency and precision.
    • RFID Division: Optimizes inventory management with state-of-the-art solutions for marking and tracking, ensuring real-time visibility and control.
    • Supply Chain Division: Integrates franchised components directly into customer products, meeting their evolving needs for developing cutting-edge products.

    For additional information, contact:
    Matt Kreps, Managing Director
    Darrow Associates
    +1-214-597-8200
    mkreps@darrowir.com

    Eyal Cohen, CEO
    +972-542525925
    eyalc@boscom.com

    Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information
    BOS reports financial results in accordance with US GAAP and herein provides some non-GAAP measures. These non-GAAP measures are not in accordance with, nor are they a substitute for, GAAP measures. These non-GAAP measures are intended to supplement the Company’s presentation of its financial results that are prepared in accordance with GAAP. The Company uses the non-GAAP measures presented to evaluate and manage the Company’s operations internally. The Company is also providing this information to assist investors in performing additional financial analysis that is consistent with financial models developed by research analysts who follow the Company. The reconciliation set forth below is provided in accordance with Regulation G and reconciles the non-GAAP financial measures with the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures.

    Safe Harbor Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
    The forward-looking statements contained herein reflect management’s current views with respect to future events and financial performance. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of BOS. These risk factors and uncertainties include, amongst others, the dependency of sales being generated from one or few major customers, the uncertainty of BOS being able to maintain current gross profit margins, inability to keep up or ahead of technology and to succeed in a highly competitive industry, inability to maintain marketing and distribution arrangements and to expand our overseas markets, uncertainty with respect to the prospects of legal claims against BOS, the effect of exchange rate fluctuations, general worldwide economic conditions, the continued availability of financing for working capital purposes and to refinance outstanding indebtedness; and additional risks and uncertainties detailed in BOS’ periodic reports and registration statements filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, including risks related to Israel’s conflicts with Hamas and other parties in the region.
    BOS undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its expectations or in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

     
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
    U.S. dollars in thousands
           
      Year ended
    December 31,    		   Three months ended
    December 31,
      2024
    		   2023     2024
    		   2023
      (Unaudited)
    		   (Audited)
    		     (Unaudited)
    		     (Audited)
    		  
           
    Revenues $ 39,949     $ 44,179     $ 10,388     $ 10,886  
    Cost of revenues 30,655     34,970     8,007     8,796  
    Gross profit 9,294     9,209     2,381     2,090  
    Operating costs and expenses:                      
    Research and development 175     158     50     44  
    Sales and marketing 4,394     4,891     1,118     1,278  
    General and administrative 2,113     1,762     656     420  
    Other income, net –     (52)     –     (52)  
    Impairment of intangible assets and Goodwill 1,173     –     1,173     –  
    Total operating costs and expenses 7,855     6,759     2,997     1,690  
                           
    Operating income (loss) 1,439     2,450     (616)     400  
    Financial income (expenses), net (139)     (441)     99     31  
    Income before taxes on income 1,300     2,009     (517)     431  
    Income taxes benefits (expenses) 1,000     (4)     1,002     (4)  
    Net income $ 2,300     $ 2,005     $ 485     $ 427  
                           
    Basic net income per share $ 0.40     $ 0.35     $ 0.08     $ 0.07  
    Diluted net income per share $ 0.39     $ 0.34     $ 0.08     $ 0.07  
    Weighted average number of shares used in computing basic net income per share 5,756     5,727     5,776     5,748  
    Weighted average number of shares used in computing diluted net income per share 5,887     5,905     5,975     5,856  
                         
    Number of outstanding shares as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 5,793     5,748     5,793     5,748  
    CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (U.S. dollars in thousands)
           
      December 31, 2024
    		   December 31, 2023
      (Unaudited)
    		   (Audited)
    ASSETS      
               
    CURRENT ASSETS:      
    Cash and cash equivalents $ 3,368     $ 2,344  
    Restricted bank deposits 185     217  
    Trade receivables 11,787     12,424  
    Other accounts receivable and prepaid expenses 1,150     963  
    Inventories 7,870     6,070  
               
    Total current assets 24,360     22,018  
               
    LONG-TERM ASSETS 177     196  
               
    PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT, NET 3,417     3,268  
               
    OPERATING LEASE RIGHT-OF-USE ASSETS, NET 779     1,026  
               
    DEFERRED TAX ASSETS 1,000     –  
               
    OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET 422     1,078  
               
    GOODWILL 4,188     4,895  
               
    Total assets $ 34,343     $ 32,481  
    CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (U.S. dollars in thousands)
           
      December 31,
    2024    		   December 31, 2023
      (Unaudited)   (Audited)
           
                    LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY      
           
    CURRENT LIABILITIES:      
    Current maturities of long-term loans $ 439     $ 170  
    Operating lease liabilities, current   176       235  
    Trade payables   6,362       7,710  
    Employees and payroll accruals   1,087       980  
    Deferred revenues   2,003       600  
    Advances net of inventory in progress   –       137  
    Accrued expenses and other liabilities   598       1,072  
           
    Total current liabilities   10,665       10,904  
           
    LONG-TERM LIABILITIES:      
    Long-term loans, net of current maturities   980       1,150  
    Operating lease liabilities, non-current   576       759  
    Long-term deferred revenues   293       339  
    Accrued severance pay   498       490  
           
    Total long-term liabilities   2,347       2,738  
           
           
    TOTAL SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY   21,331       18,839  
           
           
    Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 34,343     $ 32,481  
    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED EBITDA
    (U.S. dollars in thousands)
           
      Year ended
    December 31,    		   Three months ended
    December 31,
      2024
    		   2023
    		   2024   2023
                   
    Operating income (loss) $ 1,439     $ 2,450     $ (616 )   $ 400  
    Add:              
    Impairment of Goodwill and other intangible assets   1,173       –       1,173       –  
    Amortization of intangible assets   190       168       47       48  
    Stock-based compensation   74       98       11       24  
    Depreciation   370       342       100       90  
    EBITDA $ 3,246     $ 3,058     $ 715     $ 562  
    SEGMENT INFORMATION
    (U.S. dollars in thousands)
                       
      RFID   Supply
    Chain Solutions    		   Intelligent 
    Robotics    		   Intercompany   Consolidated
      Year ended December 31,
      2024
                       
    Revenues $ 12,877   $ 25,829     1,410   (167)   $ 39,949
    Cost of revenues   9,344     19,763     1,079   (167)     30,019
    Allowance for slow inventory   –     636     –   –     636
    Gross profit   3,533     5,430     331         9,294
                       
    Allocated operating expenses   2,273     3,338     274         5,885
                       
    Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets   984     189     –         1,173
                       
    Unallocated operating expenses*       –     –         797
                       
    Operating income $ 276   $ 1,903   $ 57         1,439
                       
    Financial expenses and income tax benefits                   861
                       
    Net income                 $ 2,300
      RFID   Supply Chain
    Solutions    		   Intelligent
    Robotics
    		   Intercompany
    		   Consolidated
      Year ended December 31,
      2023
                       
    Revenues $ 13,713   $ 28,845     1,742   (121)   $ 44,179
    Cost of revenues 10,534   22,830     1,557   (121)   34,800
    Allowance for slow inventory –   170   –   –   170
    Gross profit 3,179   5,845     185       9,209
                       
    Allocated operating expenses 2,150   3,675     258       6,083
                       
    Unallocated operating expenses*     –   –       676
                       
    Operating income (loss) $ 1,029   $ 2,170   $ (73)       2,450
                       
    Financial expenses and tax on income                 (445)
                       
    Net income                 $ 2,005
                       

    *Unallocated operating expenses include costs not specific to a particular segment but are general to the group, such as expenses incurred for insurance of directors and officers, public company fees, legal fees, and other similar corporate costs.

    SEGMENT INFORMATION
    (U.S. dollars in thousands)
                       
      RFID   Supply
    Chain Solutions    		   Intelligent Robotics   Intercompany   Consolidated
        Three months ended December 31,
    2024
                       
    Revenues $          3,445   $         6,806   $         171   (34)   $         10,388
    Cost of revenues 2,294   5,170   127   (34)   7,557
    Allowance for slow inventory –   450   –   –   450
    Gross profit 1,151   1,186   44   –   2,381
                       
    Allocated operating expenses 605   883   84   –   1,572
                       
    Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets 984   189   –       1,173
                       
    Unallocated operating expenses*                 252
                       
    Operating income (loss) $         (438)   $         114   $         (40)       (616)
                       
    Financial income and income tax benefits                 1,101
                       
    Net income                 $         485
      RFID   Supply
    Chain Solutions    		   Intelligent Robotics   Intercompany   Consolidated
        Three months ended December 31,
    2023
                       
    Revenues $          3,622   $         7,017   $         279   (32)   $         10,886
    Cost of revenues 2,897   5,797   171   (32)   8,833
    Allowance for slow inventory –   (37)   –   –   (37)
    Gross profit 725   1,257   108   –   2,090
                       
    Allocated operating expenses 513   974   72   –   1,559
                       
    Unallocated operating expenses*                 131
                       
    Operating income $         212   $         283   $         36       400
                       
    Financial income and tax on income                 27
                       
    Net income                 $         427
                       

    *Unallocated operating expenses include costs not specific to a particular segment but are general to the group, such as expenses incurred for insurance of directors and officers, public company fees, legal fees, and other similar corporate costs.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Westhaven Announces Leadership Changes; Appoints Armstrong President & CEO

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 31, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Westhaven Gold Corp. (TSX-V:WHN) today announced that Gareth Thomas will step down as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective April 30, 2025 with the Board of Directors appointing Ken Armstrong as the new President and CEO, effective May 1, 2025. Thomas, who has served in an executive capacity with Westhaven since 2010 and CEO since 2018, will remain as a director and advisor to the Board.

    Eira Thomas, Chairperson commented: “Gareth led Westhaven from an early-stage, grass roots gold exploration concept, through multiple high-grade gold drilling discoveries and most recently, the completion of a PEA outlining a robust development opportunity at Shovelnose, the Company’s flagship project in southern BC. We are indebted to Gareth for his commitment and leadership during this critical phase in the Company’s development.” She further stated that: “This planned transition represents a strategic renewal of leadership as we work to rapidly advance the Shovelnose project towards feasibility in parallel with ongoing gold exploration efforts across our highly prospective Spences Bridge portfolio of properties. We are delighted to be welcoming industry veteran Ken Armstrong as CEO to lead this effort.”

    Gareth Thomas, stated, “I am very proud of what we’ve accomplished on the Spences Bridge Gold Belt since Westhaven’s inception in 2010. This transition marks a new chapter for the Company, as we advance towards development at Shovelnose, and I am excited for what the future holds under Ken’s leadership. The relationships that we have established within the Nlaka’pamux Nation are particularly important to me. These relationships are founded on respect, trust and collaboration, and I remain fully committed to continuing to work with the Nlaka’pamux Nation in my role as a director and advisor to Westhaven.”

    Ken Armstrong is a seasoned exploration and mining professional with over thirty years of experience, including twenty years as a corporate executive for publicly listed exploration and mining companies covering a range of commodities including diamonds, gold, nickel, and tin. Ken has a distinguished track record in mineral exploration, corporate leadership, and strategic project development and has also received recognition for excellence in community and government engagement. His diverse leadership roles include serving most recently as CEO and director of North Arrow Minerals, Director and Interim CEO of Cornish Metals Inc., Executive Director of the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines, and previously leading Strongbow Exploration Inc. (now Cornish Metals Inc.). He is a registered Professional Geoscientist in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and the Province of Ontario.

    Westhaven has granted 1,000,000 incentive stock options to Mr. Armstrong pursuant to the terms of its 10% Rolling Equity Incentive Plan which was approved by Shareholders at the Annual General Meeting held on June 24, 2024. The stock options have an exercise price of $0.15 per share, a 5-year term, and will vest in thirds over a period of 18 months from the date of grant. Following this grant of stock options, there are 16,555,000 stock options outstanding, representing 8.8% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common shares.

    On behalf of the Board of Directors
    WESTHAVEN GOLD CORP.

    “Eira Thomas”

    Eira Thomas, Chairperson & Director

    Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

    About Westhaven Gold Corp.

    Westhaven is a gold-focused exploration company advancing the high-grade discovery on the Shovelnose project in Canada’s newest gold district, the Spences Bridge Gold Belt. Westhaven controls ~61,512 hectares (~615 square kilometres) with four gold properties spread along this underexplored belt. The Shovelnose property is situated off a major highway, near power, rail, large producing mines, and within commuting distance from the city of Merritt, which translates into low-cost exploration. Westhaven trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol WHN. For further information, please call 604-681-5558 or visit Westhaven’s website at www.westhavengold.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: UK adults dial up importance of mobile phones

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    A new survey reveals that the UK public considers the mobile phone to be the second most important invention of all time, with the majority of people admitting they couldn’t live without theirs.

    The poll, carried out on behalf of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) by OnePoll, surveyed 2,000 UK adults between 19-24 March and coincides with the launch of the Connecting Worlds research hub at ARU, to highlight the university’s groundbreaking research and innovation, and make it more accessible to the public.

    The survey found that 52% of respondents view their mobile phones as indispensable, with this figure rising to 65% among those under 45.

    When asked to name the most important invention ever, the wheel topped the list at 31%, ahead of the mobile phone at 15%. Interestingly, among the under-45s, the mobile phone was the clear winner at 26%, rising to 33% among people aged 18-24.

    Early research into mobile phone technology was led by researchers at the Chelmer Institute in Essex, which later became Anglia Ruskin University, and these pioneering prototypes were featured in the 1970s on popular TV shows such as Blue Peter and Tomorrow’s World.

    When questioned about the most significant scientific discovery ever made, a third of those surveyed said electricity (33%), followed by penicillin, the first antibiotic (26%), and then DNA, the genetic code of living organisms (16%).

    Looking to the future, just over a third of people (34%) believe that finding a cure for cancer will be the biggest scientific breakthrough to occur over the next century. More “out of this world” breakthroughs such as colonising Mars and discovering alien life were selected by only 4% and 5% of people, respectively.

    At ARU, senior researchers are leading important research into different new cancer treatments, including for breast cancer and bowel cancer, and are also instrumental in work to provide cancer screenings for homeless people.

    Despite the impactful work being carried out at universities, the survey revealed that 43% of people were unaware that most UK universities engage in important, life-changing research alongside providing undergraduate and postgraduate education to students.

    “Crucially, our survey found that a high proportion of people aren’t aware of the twin roles of most UK universities – research and education. Our new Connecting Worlds research hub highlights that ARU, like many universities in the UK, carries out world-class research that benefits all parts of society.

    “It’s really important for us that our research activities are of the highest quality and contribute to knowledge and understanding in the academic literature. However, just as important for us is that we can continue to work in collaboration with partners, funders, policy makers, industry and civic leaders to undertake research which will have real and positive impact on the everyday experiences of individuals, communities, the professions and industry both locally and globally.

    “At ARU, this ranges from developing new treatments for cataracts, to helping to save the UK from future food shortages, to highlighting discrimination in the labour market and working to revive endangered languages. We encourage everyone to explore the innovative work being carried at ARU.”

    Professor Yvonne Barnett, Deputy Vice Chancellor at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU)

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Our early human ancestors were surprisingly slow

    Source: Anglia Ruskin University

    Computer simulated anatomy, used in the study, of the lower limb of Australopithecus afarensis. Bates et al.

    By Tom O’Mahoney, Anglia Ruskin University

    Imagine the scene, around 3 million years ago in what is now east Africa. By the side of a river, an injured antelope keels over and draws its last breath. The carcass is soon set on by hyenas, who tussle with a crocodile. The crocodile surfaces and grabs part of the animal.

    The hyenas win and the crocodile retreats with only a leg. After having their fill, the hyenas slope off. Some funny-looking apes approach, walking upright. They have what appear to be stones with sharp edges in their hands. They hurriedly cut off some scraps of meat and start chewing at them.

    Their squabbling attracts the attention of a nearby Homotherium (an extinct, scimitar-toothed big cat) who creeps up and suddenly breaks cover. Will these strange apes survive the encounter? Can they run fast enough, and far enough?

    Our team’s research modelled the anatomy of these early humans, Australopithecus afarensis, to find out how well they could run. Australopithecus afarensis is one of the best-known early human ancestors dating from 2.9-3.9 million years ago.

    The partially complete Australopithecus afarensis skeleton Lucy, or Dinkʼinesh (Amharic: ድንቅ ነሽ, lit.“you are marvellous”) is globally iconic as a representation of early bipedalism (the ability to walk on two legs). Found in the Afar Depression in north east Ethiopia, this discovery received worldwide attention when it was made in 1974. It was evidence that brain expansion evolved after human ancestors started walking on two legs, as scientists had long believed.

    Reconstruction of the fossil skeleton of Lucy the Australopithecus afarensis. Wikimedia/Author 120, CC BY-SA

    Some researchers have also linked Australopithecine anatomy to an, as yet unknown, knuckle-walking common ancestor of humans, gorillas and chimpanzees. This hypothesis has since been refuted.

    Scientists now believe that knuckle-walking probably evolved several times in apes, as the style of walking and internal architecture of ape hands and elbows are subtly different from each other. Researchers also think that the anatomy we see in hominins reflects an adaptation for upright movement in trees in a distant ancestor.

    Early bipeds, such as Ardipithecus kadabba which looked a bit like a gorilla, lived in Africa between 5.8 and 5.2 million years ago. They lived in mosaic habitats (a mixture of open and wooded landscapes) so some adaptation to moving in trees would make sense.

    Until recently, scientists thought that only animals of the genus Homo, which emerged around 2 million years ago, made stone tools. The discovery of cut-marked bones in Dikika, Ethiopia (in 2009) dated at 3.4 million years, and in 2011 of stone tools at Lomekwi, Kenya from 3.3 million years ago, changed scientists’ ideas of how much access Australopithecus had to meat.

    The debate is now more a matter of whether Australopithecus regularly killed animals themselves, or if they were eating from carcasses after other predators (secondary access).

    For primary access and regular kills, they needed to be able to do two things. Run fast (bursts of speed to outpace an unaware animal), and run for long amounts of time (to wear down a prey animal).

    This is the endurance running hypothesis. The emergence of this behaviour is thought to coincide with more modern anatomy, such as seen in Homo erectus, who lived from around 2 million years ago to around 1 million years ago. The best way to test if Australopithecus was capable of endurance running at what we consider “modern” speeds is to reconstruct the skeleton of Australopithecus afarensis and simulate how they may have moved.

    To try and answer this question, my team reconstructed the complete skeleton of Lucy, using 3D modelling. Where parts were missing, we estimated these using scaled versions of other Australopithecus skeletons. Since Lucy is closely related to chimpanzees as well, we also morphed Australopith and modern human and chimpanzee skeletal material, using an analytical technique called geometric morphometrics.

    We then started putting muscles onto the bones of the pelvis and lower limbs of Australopithecus and a modern human model, using the open source software Gaitsym. Muscles and other soft tissues are not preserved in fossils so we varied the muscle properties from chimpanzee-like to human-like, producing a range of estimates for running speed and economy.

    We also ran multiple simulations where we added and removed a long Achilles tendon, which chimpanzees don’t have, as it is thought to affect running speed and energy use by enhancing recovery.

    This was a team effort, with reconstructions across multiple labs. The simulations were run on the high performance computing facilities at the University of Liverpool.

    These simulations revealed that Lucy wasn’t as good at running as modern humans. The top speed our simulations could produce was 11mph, with a minimum of about 3.35mph. Elite sprinters, however, can reach peak speeds of more than 20mph. Even non-elite sprinters can reach around 17.6mph.

    We also found that the metabolic cost of transport (how much energy it takes to move) was between 1.7 and 2.9 times higher in Lucy than in a modern human. The more “ape like” you make the muscle architecture and the shorter you make the Achilles tendon, the higher this cost is.

    It appears that modern human limb proportions, combined with key changes in architecture of the calf muscle (such as relatively short fibres and large cross sectional areas), plus a long Achilles tendon, enabled much faster running in the genus Homo.

    This means that it was probably not physiologically possible for Australopithecus afarensis to engage in persistence hunting, unlike later species of the genus Homo species.

    Going back to our story at the start, it is likely the Australopithecines in this group wouldn’t have escaped the big cat. They simply couldn’t run fast enough, or for long enough.

    Tom O’Mahoney, Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

    The opinions expressed in VIEWPOINT articles are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of ARU.

    If you wish to republish this article, please follow these guidelines: https://theconversation.com/uk/republishing-guidelines

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: CAMHS Annual Report 2024 published31 March 2025 The Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service, CAMHS, Annual Report 2024 has been published and can be viewed here. Minister for Children and Families, Connétable Richard Vibert said: “I… Read more

    Source: Channel Islands – Jersey

    31 March 2025

    The Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service, CAMHS, Annual Report 2024 has been published and can be viewed here. 

    Minister for Children and Families, Connétable Richard Vibert said: “I am pleased to present the 2024 CAMHS Annual Report. As Minister for Children and Families, I remain committed to ensuring that Children and Young People in Jersey are supported to enjoy the best mental health and wellbeing.

    “The Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) continues to be extremely busy and in-demand. The statistical performance compared with UK data is pleasing, and progress described in JCC inspection reports also shows a clearly improving and evolving service. 

    “I hope, as an island, we continue to work collectively to create an environment where every child and young person feels empowered to seek help, share their experiences, and know they are not alone. Together, we will continue to work hard to build a healthier, more resilient future for all.” 

    Key highlights within the report: 

    • The team has expanded and now includes 75 full-time members of staff 
    • The Duty and Assessment team will be fully operating as an 8am to 8pm, seven days a week service from April 2025 
    • Total of 1145 referrals in 2024, with 934 new referrals 
    • The CAMHS target for the completion of routine referrals is 36 days from the date received. Despite the significant volume of referrals, initial assessments of routine referrals were completed on average in 31 days 
    • In 2025, for the first time local staff will be part of the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology through Southampton University 
    • The Experience of Service Questionnaire (ESQ) had 218 responses (97 from parents / carers and 121 from children and young people), an increase from 181 in 2023. Responses in each category were extremely positive.​

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Rosneft held snowboarding competitions dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Rosneft – Rosneft – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Rosneft held corporate snowboarding competitions dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Victory. More than 100 oil industry athletes from 35 subsidiaries of the Company gathered at the ski center in Baikalsk (Irkutsk Region).

    The competition took place on the famous mountain track on the Khamar-Daban ridge. Snowboarders competed in the discipline of “parallel slalom” on a track 450 m long. Professional judges worked on the slope, who monitored the descent of the athletes.

    Among men, the winner for the second year in a row was an employee of Taas-Yuryakh Neftegazodobycha. The first among women, also for the second year in a row, was an employee of the corporate scientific center in Tyumen. In the team competition, the best were recognized as snowboarders from Uvatneftegaz, second place went to RN-Vankor, and bronze was won by the corporate scientific center in Tyumen.

    The award ceremony for the winners and runners-up took place at the 900-meter mark of Mount Sobolinaya, which offers a breathtaking view of Lake Baikal. All participants received prizes and commemorative medals. In addition, a tour of the lake was organized for the athletes.

    For the sixth year in a row, corporate snowboarding competitions have been held with the support of the Angarsk Petrochemical Company (part of the Rosneft oil refining complex).

    Reference:

    Rosneft actively supports mass and professional sports. The Company holds large-scale corporate competitions in the regions of its presence dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Victory. Among them: Rosneft Winter Sports Games in Krasnoyarsk, a series of races Rosneft Ski Track in Angarsk, Ufa, Krasnoyarsk and Nefteyugansk and the winter extreme race Taiga-Trail in Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug-Yugra. Ski races in honor of the 80th anniversary of the Victory were also held in Komsomolsk-on-Amur. Ice arenas, sports complexes and multifunctional sports grounds are being built in the regions with funds from the Company and its subsidiaries.

    As part of the corporate sports and health movement “Energy of Life”, employees regularly engage in sports and compete in various sports disciplines. In 2024, almost 128 thousand employees of the Company engaged in sports as part of the “Energy of Life” movement. At the same time, more than 92 thousand employees took part in competitions in various sports.

    Department of Information and Advertising of PJSC NK Rosneft March 31, 2025

    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 United Kingdom: MHRA showcases next phase of regulatory science to bring innovative treatments to patients sooner

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    MHRA showcases next phase of regulatory science to bring innovative treatments to patients sooner

    Seven new CERSIs came together to showcase how partnerships will modernise regulation in AI, clinical trials, and advanced therapies, bringing innovations to patients sooner.

    Last week, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) hosted an event for the seven newly established Centres of Excellence in Regulatory Science and Innovation (CERSIs) to showcase how their projects will help drive advancements in healthcare.

    The event held in Westminster, London, brought together for the first time the MHRA and its fellow funding partners – Innovate UK, the Office for Life Sciences, and the Medical Research Council (MRC) – MHRA project sponsors, and key representatives from government, industry and academia to hear directly from the CERSI leads about how their projects had developed since launch at the beginning of the year.

    Discussions centred on:

    • AI and MedTech – Making sure AI-powered tools are safely developed and integrated into patient care and the wider healthcare system.
    • In silico trials – Exploring new approaches to streamline development while maintaining safety.
    • Pharmacogenomics and diagnostics – Shifting healthcare from sickness to prevention.
    • Cell and gene therapies – Developing laboratory approaches to shared challenges in advanced therapies.
    • Modernising manufacture – Using new digital tools to the full in the production of medicines and medical devices.

    The session also provided the opportunity to focus on cross-cutting issues, covering:

    • Data sharing – A fundamental enabler for all CERSI projects, ensuring responsible and effective use of health data.
    • Skills and expertise – Training regulatory scientists to keep pace with rapid medical advancements.
    • Patient and public involvement – Embedding patient perspectives in innovation to understand and shape how it impacts their experience of healthcare.

    The collective impact of the CERSI initiative will help to ensure patients benefit from innovation and new treatments sooner.

    Science and Innovation Minister Lord Vallance and MHRA Chief Executive Dame June Raine led keynote speeches, highlighting the programme’s role in shaping the future of regulatory science.

    June Raine, MHRA Chief Executive, said:

    “At our CERSIs event this week, the depth of expertise was impressive and there was real excitement about the progress being made. The discussions highlighted a strong commitment to improving access to innovation for patients, shared with our partners Innovate UK, Office of Life Sciences and the MRC. Through the CERSIs, we have a major opportunity to drive advances in regulatory science in the UK – now is the time to turn that potential into action.”

    Notes to editors 

    1. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK by ensuring they work and are acceptably safe.  All our work is underpinned by robust and fact-based judgements to ensure that the benefits justify any risks. 
    2. The MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care. 
    3. For media enquiries, please contact the newscentre@mhra.gov.uk, or call on 020 3080 7651.

    Updates to this page

    Published 31 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Pando Recognized as a Visionary in 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Transportation Management Systems

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    CHICAGO, March 31, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Pando, the leading supply chain AI company, has been recognized by Gartner as a Visionary in the 2025 Magic Quadrant for Transportation Management Systems. 

    Pando’s AI Agents replace staff and software at Fortune 500 manufacturers, distributors, and retailers worldwide, automating work done by logistics teams to deliver products globally. Powered by its proprietary Logistics Language Model®, Pando’s suite of AI Agents have been deployed globally to free teams from the manual drudgery of managing bids, shipments, and invoices and empowering them to focus on strategic work. Pando is empowering enterprises to tackle the challenges in the $10 trillion global freight economy and take strategic control with AI agents, eliminating outsourcing costs, optimizing the technology landscape, and redefining talent strategy.

    “Global logistics teams are under pressure, navigating the complexities of tariffs and geopolitical tensions, and their impact on logistics operations,” said Nitin Jayakrishnan, CEO and co-founder of Pando. “Logistics teams are spending more than 80% of their time on manual tasks outside of systems, making hundreds of micro-decisions daily, while coordinating with carriers, suppliers, and customers to execute operations efficiently. Pando’s vision is to free logistics teams from constant routine tasks by leveraging AI agents as extended team members. These agents automate workflows, enabling teams to shift operational burdens to become strategic partners who drive business growth. We believe Pando’s recognition as a Visionary is a testament to our vision of unifying talent and AI strategy, where AI agents seamlessly drive collaboration, decision-making, and execution autonomously.”

    Gartner defines Visionaries as companies that “seek to deliver a unique or differentiated approach to the market. They may be considered thought leaders and tend to be on the leading edge of emerging concepts and technologies.”

    Pando’s innovative approach to transportation management includes:

    • AI-first Offering: Pando sets itself apart by investing in R&D, with a strong focus on AI-driven innovation. By leveraging agentic AI, Pando enables more autonomous workflows and smarter decision-making, driving greater efficiency and intelligence across logistics operations.
    • Customer-centric solutions: Designed for global manufacturers and retailers, Pando offers industry-specific solutions seamlessly integrating with existing enterprise systems, onboarding AI agents aligned to the organization’s supply chain knowledge graph, and automating decisions, actions, and collaboration across logistics processes.
    • Quick Time to Value: Pando’s value-driven approach ensures there is a quantifiable return on investment (ROI) for every AI agent onboarded, delivering immediate business impact with accelerated time to value.

    Pando supports customers across various industries, including consumer products, retail, automotive, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals, in Asia and North America.

    To access a complimentary copy of the report 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Transportation Management Systems, please visit 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Transportation Management Systems.

    Gartner, “Magic Quadrant for Transportation Management Systems,” Brock Johns, Oscar Sanchez Duran, Carly West, Manav Jain, 27 March 2025. GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Magic Quadrant is a registered trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

    About Pando
    Pando is a global leader in AI-powered logistics technology and offers AI agents for logistics, enabling manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to automate their logistics operations to build agility, control freight spend, and reduce carbon footprint. Trusted by Fortune 500 enterprises with global customers across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific regions, Pando is pioneering the future of autonomous logistics with cutting-edge AI capabilities.

    Pando is recognized by World Economic Forum (WEF) as a Technology Pioneer, by G2 as a Market Leader in Freight Management, and named one of the fastest-growing technology companies by Deloitte. For more information, visit www.pando.ai.

    Media Contact
    Courtney Meints
    Skyya PR for Pando
    pando@skyya.com

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/316bdce2-0aa8-426d-9fba-b9125043a2c1

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: RYVYL Reports Q4 2024 and Full Year 2024 Financial Results and Provides a Business Update

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    – Reiterates 2025 guidance of $80 million to $90 million in revenue and mid-40s percentage gross margin – 

    SAN DIEGO, CA, March 31, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — RYVYL Inc. (NASDAQ: RVYL) (“RYVYL” or the “Company”), a leading innovator of payment transaction solutions leveraging electronic payment technology for the diverse international markets, reported its financial results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2024.

    RYVYL Co-founder and CEO Fredi Nisan issued the following business update for investors.

    “We made significant progress in 2024 as our U.S. operations stabilized over the past several quarters, while our International segment maintained a strong growth trajectory. International revenue for 2024 reached $37.8 million, representing a remarkable 124% increase compared to 2023. With momentum building in both the U.S. and international markets, we are actively onboarding new clients across multiple jurisdictions, further strengthening our market presence and positioning us for a high-growth year in 2025.

    Our global pipeline is robust, and we are rapidly gaining traction with our Payments-as-a-Service offering from RYVYL EU. We are strategically positioned to capitalize on substantial opportunities as we continue to expand our market reach.

    “We are building on our core competitive strengths and foundation, and I’m excited to offer a summary of our progress and reiterate our 2025 guidance of $80 million to $90 million in revenue and mid-40s percentage gross margin.

    Business Overview and Competitive Position

    Our competitive strengths, unique value proposition, and strategic focus are what truly set us apart in the fintech space. We’re especially optimistic about our position in the market, as the global shift toward credit cards, mobile wallets, and real-time payment platforms continues to accelerate. Our solutions are purpose-built for this evolution, leveraging our longstanding investment in proprietary payment and banking technologies to stay ahead of the curve.

    As fintech innovators are rapidly disrupting the landscape with agile, cost-effective models, RYVYL is strongly positioned to lead the way. We are nimble, innovative, and well-prepared to capitalize on this favorable environment, driving forward as a leader in the next era of digital payments.

    We are committed to continuously evolving our product portfolio to anticipate and meet the ever-changing needs of businesses worldwide. At the heart of this effort is the enhancement of our dual-sided payment platform, which seamlessly supports both acquiring and disbursement services. This platform is purpose-built to accommodate emerging use cases in acquiring, disbursements, and embedded finance, delivering comprehensive, end-to-end financial solutions that empower our clients to stay ahead in a dynamic market.

    Technological innovation is transforming how consumers engage with their finances as multiple payment rails converge to offer greater flexibility and choice. RYVYL is at the forefront of this evolution with our next-generation payment technology. By integrating various payment systems and methods into a single, cohesive digital platform, we empower consumers and businesses to access multiple options—such as bank transfers, mobile payments, digital wallets, and more—all in one place. This innovative approach allows users to select the payment method that best meets their needs at any given moment, positioning RYVYL as a pioneer in the rapidly evolving financial landscape.

    We target high-margin segments, focusing on merchants and retail clients who are often overlooked by traditional processors or left out of the existing financial ecosystem. Currently, we serve nearly 1,500 business customers across 50 industries, leveraging a diversified foundation to establish ourselves as a global innovator in payment and banking solutions. By offering advanced banking and payment technologies, we’re able to capture 40% gross margins in these high-potential areas. With new offerings like Payments-as-a-Service (PaaS) on the horizon and greater operational efficiencies through scale, we are well-positioned to continue driving margin expansion.

    Our value proposition is distinct and forward-thinking. We deliver comprehensive banking and processing solutions that emphasize transparency, speed, and tailored processing capabilities designed for specific industries. Our customized, turnkey solutions are powered by cutting-edge technologies, such as AI, that set us apart. We leverage these advanced capabilities and tools to streamline operations, reduce errors, and enhance scalability, while AI-driven insights optimize decision-making and efficiency, creating a transformative approach to financial services.

    Compliance and onboarding agility are fundamental to our business model—serving as key competitive advantages in this rapidly evolving landscape. As regulatory scrutiny and antitrust initiatives reshape the payment ecosystem, legacy networks are being challenged, creating new opportunities for innovative players. While real-time systems like FedNow are making strides, credit cards still dominate, and adoption remains gradual. Meanwhile, advancements in AI are transforming fraud prevention, transaction security, and seamless banking integration. RYVYL is strategically positioned to navigate and capitalize on these changes, leveraging our expertise to stay ahead in this dynamic environment.

    We’re driven by our momentum and confident in our path forward. Recent wins, increased pipeline visibility, and an expanding presence across verticals are propelling us to new heights. We’re diversifying revenue streams and building stronger client relationships, positioning ourselves to meet the complex and evolving needs of our customers. Market demand remains robust, and we’re well-prepared to capitalize on opportunities, further solidifying our position as a frontrunner in the sector.

    Q4 2024 and Recent Highlights

    During Q4 and recently, we:

    • Completed two European software integrations in October, with these two European partners launching on the new platforms.
    • Expanded our global reach by launching Visa Direct services in more geographies, increasing our footprint to a total of 16 countries.
    • Launched co-branded debit cards in the EU.
    • Went live with our next-generation Charge Savvy (POS).
    • Implemented NEMS Core payments in the U.S.

    Balance Sheet Restructuring

    We completed key steps in our strategy to improve our capital structure, greatly reducing potential dilution and positioning us for profitable growth supported by increased financial flexibility.

    In January 2025, we:

    • Executed a Preferred Stock Repurchase and Note Repayment Agreement and paid the initial tranche of $13.0 million to a securityholder that:
      • Redeemed of all shares of the Company’s Series B Convertible Preferred Stock for which the liquidation value was $53.1 million; and
      • Partially repaid an 8% Senior Convertible Note, reducing the outstanding principal from $18.3 million to $4.0 million, which is due on or before April 30, 2025.
    • Entered into an agreement with a financing source for $15.0 million to fund the Preferred Stock Repurchase and Note Repayment Agreement transaction that was structured as a pre-funded asset sale with a 90-day closing period, which ends on April 23, 2025 and may be extended an additional 30 days to May 23, 2025, if the Company pays $500,000 for such extension. Shares in the Company’s RYVYL EU subsidiary were placed in escrow during the closing period. Although there are no guarantees, the Company intends to terminate the asset sale within the closing period by paying $16.5 million in consideration of such termination.

    We are pursuing a range of funding alternatives to raise capital to terminate the asset sale and anticipate completing this step in our financial strategy to further deleverage the balance sheet in Q2 2025. The Company has recently filed an S-1 registration statement to raise up to $24 million, including the overallotment, and intends to explore all fundraising options, including term debt, equity or some combination to fund the termination payment of $16.5 million.

    Payments-as-a-Service (PaaS)

    In March 2025, RYVYL EU landed two new Payments-as-a-Service (PaaS) contracts, which are anticipated to bring in close to one million new customer accounts over the next year. These partnerships mark a major step forward in expanding our presence across Europe and boosting our long-term growth potential. These partnerships are a strong endorsement of our ability to support fast-growing financial platforms and assist with their international growth. Our advanced payment technology enables quick and compliant onboarding, paired with the scalability today’s digital banks demand.

    • The first contract is with a prominent global money service provider and includes the provision of both virtual and physical payment cards through RYVYL’s platform and mobile application. So far, 1,000 accounts have already been activated, and an additional 50,000 are expected to follow in 2025.
    • The second agreement, with one of the world’s largest fully digital banks, is expected to add 900,000 new customer accounts within 12 months, beginning in Q2 2025. API integrations and system testing are already underway, with the onboarding phase set to launch in the near future.

    “We are poised for a strong growth year in 2025, with multiple initiative underway to leverage our technology and well-established customer infrastructure and market reputation, and I look forward to updating you on our progress,” concluded Nisan.

    Financial Summary for the Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2024

    • Revenue: Fourth quarter 2024 revenue totaled $14.1 million, driven largely by $11.4 million from RYVYL EU. This compares to $22.2 million in revenue during the same period in 2023, of which $5.6 million was generated by RYVYL EU.
    • Processing Volume: In the fourth quarter of 2024, processing volume rose 38.7% to $1.3 billion, compared to $0.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023. International operations accounted for $1.1 billion of the fourth quarter volume, a significant increase from the $591 million volume in the fourth quarter of 2023, fueled by strong growth across multiple verticals, particularly through our Independent Sales Organizations (“ISO”) and partnership network, as well as expanded offerings in global payments processing and banking-as-a-service. In North America, processing volume totaled $176 million, down from $356 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.
    • Cost of Revenue: Cost of revenue was $8.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, down from $14.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. This decrease was primarily due to reduced processing activity in North America, partially offset by higher processing volumes in the International segment.
    • Gross Margin: Gross margin for the fourth quarter of 2024 was 38.2%, up from 35.0% in the fourth quarter of 2023, reflecting higher margin product mix.
    • Operating Expenses: Operating expenses for the fourth quarter of 2024 were $11.4 million, compared to $10.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. This increase was primarily driven by a $3.0 million impairment charge in the fourth quarter of 2024 against intangible assets held in North America, partially offset by lower other operating expenses compared to the fourth quarter 2023.
    • Other Expense, net: Other expense, net, decreased 97% to $0.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, down from $27.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. The net decrease was primarily driven by the multiple restructurings of the Company’s convertible note during the fourth of 2023, with no comparable activity during the fourth quarter of 2024.
    • Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2024 was negative $1.7 million, compared to a positive $0.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

    Financial Summary Full Year Ended December 31, 2024

    • Revenue: 2024 revenue was $56.0 million, driven largely by $37.8 million from RYVYL EU. This compares to $65.9 million during the same period in 2023, of which $16.9 million was generated by RYVYL EU.
    • Cost of Revenue: Cost of revenue was $33.6 million, down $6.6 million, from $40.2 million during 2023, primarily due to reduced processing activity in North America, partially offset by higher processing volumes in the International segment.
    • Gross Margin: Gross margin was 40.0%, up from 39.0% in 2023.
    • Operating Expenses: 2024 operating expenses were $43.3 million compared to $38.0 million in 2023, due primarily to impairment charges recorded during 2024 of $6.7 million and $3.0 million for goodwill and intangible assets held in North America, respectively, with no comparable charges in 2023, partially offset by lower research and development expenses and professional fees.
    • Other Expense, net: Other expense, net, decreased to $4.8 million in 2024, down from $40.5 million in 2023. This decrease was mainly driven by a $28.8 million net decrease in other expenses associated with the Company’s multiple restructurings of its convertible note during 2023 with no comparable restructurings during 2024.
    • Adjusted EBITDA: Adjusted EBITDA for 2024 was a loss of $5.7 million, compared to a loss of $3.9 million in 2023.
    • Cash Balances: Cash and restricted cash as of December 31, 2024, was $92.0 million, with $89.4 million being restricted cash.

    The foregoing guidance is based on the Company’s continuation of the business, as currently conducted. On January 24, 2025, the Company entered into an agreement with a financing source that was structured as a pre-funded asset sale with a 90-day closing period, which ends on April 23, 2025 and may be extended an additional 30 days to May 23, 2025, if the Company pays $500,000 for such extension. Shares in the Company’s RYVYL EU subsidiary were placed in escrow during the closing period. Although there are no guarantees, the Company intends to terminate the asset sale within the closing period by paying $16.5 million in consideration of such termination. The Company’s financial guidance for 2025 is based on fully retaining its RYVYL EU subsidiary.

    About RYVYL

    RYVYL Inc. (NASDAQ: RVYL) was born from a passion for empowering a new way to conduct business-to-business, consumer-to-business, and peer-to-peer payment transactions around the globe. By leveraging electronic payment technology for diverse international markets, RYVYL is a leading innovator of payment transaction solutions reinventing the future of financial transactions. Since its founding as GreenBox POS in 2017 in San Diego, RYVYL has developed applications enabling an end-to-end suite of turnkey financial products with enhanced security and data privacy, world-class identity theft protection, and rapid speed to settlement. As a result, the platform can log immense volumes of immutable transactional records at the speed of the internet for first-tier partners, merchants, and consumers around the globe. www.ryvyl.com

    Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release includes information that constitutes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company’s current beliefs, assumptions, and expectations regarding future events, which in turn are based on information currently available to the Company. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding anticipated revenues and margins, timely payment of the second tranche, the benefit to stockholders from the repayment of the Note and repurchase of the Preferred Stock, and the timing and expectation of revenues from the license described herein and are charactered by future or conditional words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate” and “continue” or similar words. You should read statements that contain these words carefully because they discuss future expectations and plans, which contain projections of future results of operations or financial condition or state other forward-looking information. By their nature, forward-looking statements address matters that are subject to risks and uncertainties. A variety of factors could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those expressed in or contemplated by the forward-looking statements, including the risk that the licensee understands and complies with various banking laws and regulations that may impact the licensee’s ability to process transactions. For example, federal money laundering statutes and Bank Secrecy Act regulations discourage financial institutions from working with operators of certain industries – particularly industries with heightened cash reporting obligations and restrictions – as a result of which, banks may refuse to process certain payments and/or require onerous reporting obligations by payment processors to avoid compliance risk. These statements are also subject to any damages the Company could suffer as the result of previously announced litigation or actions of any governmental agencies. These and other risk factors affecting the Company are discussed in detail in the Company’s periodic filings with the SEC. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether because of the latest information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable laws.

    IR Contact:
    David Barnard, Alliance Advisors Investor Relations, 415-433-3777, ryvylinvestor@allianceadvisors.com

    RYVYL INC.
    CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (In thousands, except share and per share data)

        December 31,  
        2024     2023  
    ASSETS            
    Current Assets:            
    Cash   $ 2,599     $ 12,180  
    Restricted cash     89,432       61,138  
    Accounts receivable, net of allowance for credit losses of $206 and $23, respectively     1,076       859  
    Cash due from gateways, net of allowance of $89 and $2,636, respectively     88       12,834  
    Prepaid and other current assets     2,189       2,854  
    Total current assets     95,384       89,865  
                     
    Non-current Assets:                
    Property and equipment, net     165       306  
    Goodwill     18,856       26,753  
    Intangible assets, net     1,802       5,059  
    Operating lease right-of-use assets, net     3,425       4,279  
    Other assets     2,644       2,403  
    Total non-current assets     26,892       38,800  
    Total assets   $ 122,276     $ 128,665  
                     
    LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY/(DEFICIT)                
                     
    Current Liabilities:                
    Accounts payable   $ 3,515     $ 1,819  
    Accrued liabilities     8,146       5,755  
    Payment processing liabilities, net     90,802       76,772  
    Current portion of operating lease liabilities     839       692  
    Other current liabilities     240       504  
    Total current liabilities     103,542       85,542  
    Long term debt, net of debt discount of $3,906 and $24,349, respectively     17,363       15,912  
    Operating lease liabilities, less current portion     2,863       3,720  
    Total liabilities     123,768       105,174  
                     
    Stockholders’ Equity/(Deficit):                
    Preferred stock, Series B, par value $0.01, 5,000,000 shares authorized; 53,499 and 55,000 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively     1       1  
    Common stock, par value $0.001, 100,000,000 shares authorized; 8,032,318 and 5,996,948 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively     8       6  
    Additional paid-in capital     179,157       175,664  
    Accumulated other comprehensive income     (1,251 )     401  
    Accumulated deficit     (179,407 )     (152,581 )
    Total stockholders’ (deficit)/equity     (1,492 )     23,491  
                     
    Total liabilities and stockholder’s (deficit)/equity   $ 122,276     $ 128,665  

    RYVYL INC.
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
    (In thousands, except share and par value data)

        Three Months Ended December 31,     Twelve Months Ended December 31,  
        2024     2023     2024     2023  
                                     
    Revenue   $ 14,127     $ 22,249     $ 55,998     $ 65,869  
    Cost of revenue     8,730       14,455       33,572       40,157  
    Gross profit     5,397       7,794       22,426       25,712  
                                     
    Operating expenses:                                
    Advertising and marketing     20       (73 )     95       80  
    Research and development     821       1,323       3,848       5,757  
    General and administrative     1,826       1,968       6,933       8,678  
    Payroll and payroll taxes     4,167       3,785       13,836       12,017  
    Professional fees     1,016       1,425       4,372       7,076  
    Stock compensation expense     83       1,544       624       1,853  
    Depreciation and amortization     438       654       2,264       2,553  
    Impairment of goodwill     –       –       6,675       –  
    Impairment of intangible assets     3,028       –       3,028       –  
    Restructuring charges     –       –       1,636       –  
    Total operating expenses     11,399       10,626       43,311       38,014  
                                     
    Loss from operations     (6,002 )     (2,832 )     (20,885 )     (12,302 )
                                     
    Other income (expense):                                
    Interest expense     (400 )     (30 )     (862 )     (3,340 )
    Accretion of debt discount     (280 )     (3,508 )     (2,258 )     (13,134 )
    Changes in fair value of derivative liability     –       (35 )     14       6,544  
    Derecognition expense on conversion of convertible debt     (531 )     (23,516 )     (600 )     (25,035 )
    Legal settlement expense     (467 )     –       (2,064 )     (4,142 )
    Gain on sale of property and equipment     –       1,069       –       1,069  
    Other income (expense)     754       (999 )     970       (2,472 )
    Total other expense, net     (924 )     (27,020 )     (4,800 )     (40,510 )
                                     
    Loss before provision for income taxes     (6,926 )     (29,852 )     (25,685 )     (52,812 )
    Income tax provision     (75 )     151       1,140       289  
    Net loss   $ (6,851 )   $ (30,003 )   $ (26,825 )   $ (53,101 )
                                     
    Comprehensive income statement:                                
    Net loss     (6,851 )     (30,003 )     (26,825 )     (53,101 )
    Foreign currency translation (loss) gain     (2,371 )     433       (1,652 )      44  
    Total comprehensive loss   $ (9,222 )   $ (29,570 )   $ (28,477 )   $ (53,057 )
                                     
    Net loss per share:                                
    Basic and diluted   $ (0.91 )   $ (5.43 )   $ (4.01 )   $ (10.11 )
    Weighted average number of common shares outstanding:                                
    Basic and diluted     7,543,480       5,525,608       6,694,165       5,251,852  

    RYVYL INC.
    CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
    (In thousands)

        Year Ended December 31,  
        2024     2023  
    Cash flows from operating activities:            
    Net loss   $ (26,825 )   $ (53,101 )
    Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:                
    Depreciation and amortization expense     2,264       2,553  
    Noncash lease expense     143       350  
    Stock compensation expense     624       1,853  
    Restricted common stock issued for compensation     182       –  
    Accretion of debt discount     2,258       13,134  
    Derecognition expense on conversion of convertible debt     600       25,035  
    Changes in fair value of derivative liability     (14 )     (6,544 )
    Gain on sale of property and equipment     –       (1,069 )
    Impairment of goodwill     6,675       –  
    Impairment of intangible assets     3,028       –  
    Restructuring charges     1,636       –  
    Changes in assets and liabilities:                
    Accounts receivable, net     (155 )     297  
    Prepaid and other current assets     664       6,568  
    Cash due from gateways, net     12,684       (5,407 )
    Other assets     (160 )     (1,183 )
    Accounts payable     1,695       189  
    Accrued and other current liabilities     1,497       2,080  
    Accrued interest     366       546  
    Payment processing liabilities, net     14,029       47,860  
    Net cash provided by operating activities     21,191       33,161  
                     
    Cash flows from investing activities:                
    Purchases of property and equipment     (47 )     (108 )
    Logicquest Technology acquisition     –       (225 )
    Proceeds from sale of property and equipment     –       2,620  
    Capitalized software development costs     (1,647 )     –  
    Purchase of intangibles     (114 )     –  
    Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities     (1,808 )     2,287  
                     
    Cash flows from financing activities:                
    Treasury stock purchases     –       7  
    Repayments of convertible debt     –       (3,000 )
    Repayments on long-term debt     (12 )     (15 )
    Tax withholdings related to net settlement of equity awards     (229 )     –  
    Net cash used in financing activities     (241 )     (3,008 )
                     
    Effect of exchange rates in cash and restricted cash     (430 )     44  
    Net increase (decrease) in cash and restricted cash     18,712       32,484  
                     
    Cash and restricted cash – beginning of period     73,318       40,834  
                     
    Cash and restricted cash – end of period   $ 92,030     $ 73,318  
                     
    Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information                
    Cash paid during the period for:                
    Interest   $ 300     $ 2,709  
    Income taxes   $ 848     $ 199  
                     
    Non-cash financing and investing activities:                
    Convertible debt conversion to preferred stock   $ 900     $ 64,600  
    Convertible debt conversion to common stock   $ –     $ 1,650  
    Interest accrual from convertible debt converted to preferred stock   $ –     $ 1,703  
    Interest accrual from convertible debt converted to common stock   $ –     $ 4  

    Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information

    Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (“Adjusted EBITDA”) is a non-GAAP measure that represents our net loss before interest expense, amortization of debt discount, income tax expense, depreciation and amortization, changes in the fair value of derivative liabilities, losses on the extinguishment and derecognition expenses on the conversion of convertible debt, non-cash stock-based compensation expense, acquisition-related expense, non-recurring provisions for credit losses on legacy matters, accounting fees related to the restatement of prior period financial statements, non-recurring costs related to the spin-off of a subsidiary, and legal costs and settlement fees incurred in connection with non-ordinary course litigation and other disputes.

    We exclude these items in calculating Adjusted EBITDA because we believe that the exclusion of these items will provide for more meaningful information about our financial performance, and do not consider the excluded items to be part of our ongoing results of operations. Our use of Adjusted EBITDA has limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our financial results as reported under GAAP. Some of these limitations are: (a) although depreciation and amortization are non-cash charges, the assets being depreciated and amortized may have to be replaced in the future, and Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect cash capital expenditure requirements for such replacements or for new capital expenditure requirements; (b) Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect changes in, or cash requirements for, our working capital needs; (c) Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect the potentially dilutive impact of equity-based compensation; (d) Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect tax payments that may represent a reduction in cash available to us; and (e) other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate Adjusted EBITDA or similarly titled measures differently, which reduces its usefulness as a comparative measure.

    Because of these and other limitations, you should consider Adjusted EBITDA alongside our other GAAP-based financial performance measures, net income (loss) and our other GAAP financial results. The following table presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA from net loss, the most directly comparable GAAP measure, for the periods indicated:

    Reconciliation of Net Loss attributable to RYVYL, Inc., to Adjusted EBITDA for the
    Three and Twelve Months Ended December 31, 2024 and 2023
    (In thousands, except share and per share data)

        Three Months Ended December 31,     Twelve Months Ended December 31,  
        2024     2023     2024     2023  
                                     
    Net loss   $ (6,851 )   $ (30,003 )   $ (26,825 )   $ (53,101 )
    Interest expense     400       30       862       3,340  
    Accretion of debt discount     280       3,508       2,259       13,134  
    Income tax provision     (75 )     151       1,140       289  
    Depreciation and amortization     438       654       2,264       2,553  
     EBITDA     (5,807 )     (25,660 )     (20,301 )     (33,785 )
                                     
    Other non-cash adjustments:                                
    Changes in fair value of derivative liability     –       35       (14 )     (6,544 )
    Derecognition expense on conversion of convertible debt     531       23,516       600       25,035  
    Stock compensation expense     83       1,544       624       1,853  
    Impairment of goodwill     –       –       6,675       –  
    Impairment of intangible assets     3,028       –       3,028       –  
    Restructuring charges     –       –       1,636       –  
                                     
    Special items:                                
    Non-recurring legal settlements and ongoing matters and related legal fees     467       –       2,064       5,308  
    Carryover effects of financial statement restatements in prior periods     –       691       –       1,913  
    Non-recurring provision for credit losses on legacy matters     –       –       –       1,994  
    Accounting fees related to the restatement of prior period financial statements     –       –       –       237  
    Non-recurring impairment of right of use asset     –       –       –       100  
    Non-recurring costs of spin-off     –       –       –       29  
    Adjusted EBITDA   $ (1,699 )   $ 126     $ (5,688 )   $ (3,860 )
                                     
    Loss from operations   $ (6,002 )   $ (2,832 )   $ (20,885 )   $ (12,302 )

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Army solar project generates green energy for Larkhill Garrison

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Army solar project generates green energy for Larkhill Garrison

    Construction works have completed on the installation of over 1,370 roof-mounted solar panels at Larkhill Garrison.

    Maj Gen Richard Clements CBE, Director Basing & Infrastructure and representatives from Army, DIO and Aspire Defence beside new roof mounted PV at Larkhill Garrison. Aspire Defence Ltd.

    The Photovoltaic (PV) panels will generate electricity to run buildings at Larkhill, with any surplus being fed through the private wire network for reuse across Bulford, Tidworth and Perham Down. The works have been completed under the army’s Project Prometheus, which is delivering both ground and roof mounted solar arrays at a number of sites across the army estate in the coming years.

    The solar panels support the army’s commitment to operate more sustainably and reach net zero by 2050.

    At the official switch-on of the PV panels at Larkhill Garrison on Wednesday 26 March, Major General Richard Clements CBE, Director of Basing & Infrastructure and the army’s sustainability champion, said:

    I am delighted to see the successful completion of our latest solar installation project. By increasing green energy supply, we are building a more sustainable, cost-effective army estate that protects both our future capability and the environments in which soldiers live, work and train.

    Almost 11,000 PV panels have been installed in recent years on vehicle garaging, offices, stores and training assets at Salisbury Plain Training Area garrisons, covering over 18,000m2 of roof space. This saves 600 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year, equivalent to the annual absorption of 27,000 trees.

    All the construction has been carried out by Aspire Defence Services Ltd, contracting to the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) under Project Allenby/Connaught.

    Barry Ray, DIO Regional Delivery Lead, said:

    It’s fantastic to see the completion of the latest solar panel installation under Project Prometheus, through the Aspire Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and the tireless efforts of the whole team. We’re happy to be playing our part in the MOD’s efforts to meet the government’s net zero targets and make the Defence estate as sustainable as we can. The energy generated will help to power the buildings at Larkhill and any extra can be used to meet demand elsewhere on the PFI estate, so the benefit will be widely felt.

    Richard Tindal, Capital Projects Director, Aspire Defence Services Ltd, said:

    We are very pleased to support the army and DIO in this latest stage of the journey towards decarbonising their estate. Our long-term collaborative relationship has enabled us to work together, identifying the opportunities to support sustainability ambitions as funding becomes available. I look forward to continuing this into the future.

    Updates to this page

    Published 31 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy will help support city’s most vulnerable residents

    Source: City of Stoke-on-Trent

    Published: Monday, 31st March 2025

    A new strategy is being developed in Stoke-on-Trent to help support individuals facing homelessness and reduce rough sleeping.

    A four-week consultation is underway on the draft Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy 2025-2030, which sets out how the city council will prevent, intervene in and reduce homelessness – as well as provide support to those affected by it.

    It also outlines the council’s priorities around homelessness over the next five years, which include:

    • Raising the priority of homelessness prevention within the city
    • Relieving homelessness and tackling rough sleeping quickly by making the best use of accommodation options available in the city
    • Ensuring those most vulnerable to homelessness have the right level of support tailored to their needs

    The strategy is being developed on the back of a Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Review, which was carried out by the council in 2024 and assessed the current and likely future state of homelessness in the city.

    The review found that the most common reasons people lose their accommodation in Stoke-on-Trent are that family and friends are no longer willing to accommodate and the loss of a private-rented tenancy.

    It also noted that the number of homelessness enquiries received by the council in 2024 increased by 16 per cent in the last five years.

    Councillor Chris Robinson, cabinet member for housing and planning at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “Homelessness is a complex issue which we know has been exacerbated over the last few years due to things like the cost of living crisis and housing pressures.

    “Locally, there are simply not enough affordable homes available to those on the lowest incomes.

    “But we are committed to doing everything we can to ensure everyone – including our most vulnerable residents – have a decent place to call home. And we want to make sure that they are being given the support they need to live independently.

    “Working with local residents and our trusted partners, this strategy will set out our collective vision and the steps we will take to prevent and reduce homelessness in Stoke-on-Trent over the next five years.

    “This will build on all the work we are already doing to ensure our city is a healthier, safer and fairer city for all.”

    Over the past five years, the city council has made a number of significant developments around homelessness and rough sleeping in the city.

    These include securing £20 million of government funding for various rough sleeping initiatives, the creation of 74 new bed spaces for people sleeping rough and the launch of the Hanley Connects homelessness hub which supported more than 1,000 people in its first six months.

    In addition, the council’s Rough Sleeper Service successfully supported 1,014 people off the streets.

    Now the authority is launching a final consultation on its new draft Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy, to gather residents’ views on whether they think the vision and priorities are the right ones to focus on over the next five years.

    To have your say visit www.stoke.gov.uk/homelessnessstrategy and fill in the online survey.

    The consultation will run for four weeks until Sunday 27 April.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Care leavers up for the cup as city hosts national tournament

    Source: City of Wolverhampton

    The annual football tournament for care experienced young people aged 16 to 24 is organised by the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Reach Leaving Care Team and Wolves Foundation.

    This year, it will see 20 local authority 6 a side teams from around the country go head to head in a series of 8 minute matches – culminating with the final on the same day.

    The tournament was born out of a conversation with a young person who was no longer involved in football because he lacked the support network to take him to games and training.

    A team of young people with care experience came together to form Wolverhampton Warriors and competed against teams from 3 other local authorities for the first Championship Cup in 2022. The tournament doubled in size in 2023 and was held on the hallowed turf of Molineux for the first time in 2024.

    This year’s event, on Saturday 14 June from 10am to 2pm, is set to be the biggest yet, with interest from councils as far away as North Yorkshire and Milton Keynes, resulting in 200 young people taking part.

    Free tickets will be available and details of how to get these will be announced in the coming weeks.

    Councillor Jacqui Coogan, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Education, said: “This is a fabulous opportunity for care experienced young people to play on the hallowed turf of Molineux Stadium, and to follow in the footsteps of so many of their footballing heroes.

    “It would be fantastic to fill Molineux and have as many people as possible there to cheer them on, so please make sure you get your free tickets when they become available.”

    The teams are playing for 3 cups, with one being the overall Championship Cup. All players will also receive a medal for taking part.

    Organisers are keen to reach out to businesses who may be able to help by sponsoring either the trophies or the medals. For more information please email Heather Edwards at heather.edwards@wolverhampton.gov.uk or Sam Neath via Sam.Neath@wolverhampton.gov.uk.
     

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