SUSTAINABILITY
The Biden administration will block imports from more than two dozen Chinese companies over their alleged links to forced labor in the country’s Xinjiang region, its largest-ever expansion of a ban list that took effect in 2022. On Friday, the administration added 29 companies to what is known as the Entity List, bringing the total to more than 100. Goods from those companies are presumptively blocked from entry to the U.S. under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. DETAIL
China’s “role” at the COP29 climate talks, which concluded over the weekend in Baku, Azerbaijan, was “markedly different to previous years”, with its negotiators being “unusually cooperative”, according to an anonymous “chief negotiator” for a “powerful” country quoted by BBC News. DETAIL
South Korea has won international praise for its recycling efforts, but as it prepares to host talks for a global plastic waste agreement, experts say the country's approach highlights its limits. When the talks known as INC-5 kick off in Busan next week, debate is expected to centre around whether a U.N. treaty should seek to limit the amount of plastic being made in the first place. DETAIL
In a research facility in the northwest of Beijing, molecular biologist Li Jieping and his team harvest a cluster of seven unusually small potatoes, one as tiny as a quail’s egg, from a potted plant. Grown under conditions that simulate predictions of higher temperatures at the end of the century, the potatoes provide an ominous sign of future food security. DETAIL
The world's biggest steelmakers are falling behind in the shift towards low-carbon production, with some still entirely dependent on fossil fuels for their energy, a survey of 18 leading firms showed on Friday. DETAIL
There is widespread coverage of a new scientific paper that suggests the next men’s World Cup, set for 2026 and taking place in Canada, the US and Mexico, faces a high risk of excessive heat, as El Pais reports. It says that in three of the venues, “extreme heat stress could persist well into the afternoon”, potentially reaching temperatures of up to 50C. DETAIL
Spain's left-wing government has approved a policy of "paid climate leave" – of up to four days – for people who need to avoid travelling during weather emergencies, Euronews reports. DETAIL
HEALTH
An international group of experts has agreed that low dose oral minoxidil, the active ingredient in Rogaine, can be a safe and effective treatment for hair loss, but doubts persist. DETAIL
Deaths from cervical cancer are plummeting among young women in the US, and scientists think we have a single vaccine to thank for the numerous lives saved. In the last decade alone, national health data suggests there has been a 62 percent drop in cervical cancer deaths in women under the age of 25. DETAIL
For decades, people with asthma have turned to the drug montelukast for relief. But new data collected by the Food and Drug Administration is the latest to show this treatment is more dangerous than once assumed—particularly to our brains. DETAIL
The development of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs, such as Wegovy and Zepbound, has ushered in a new era in weight management. While these drugs can lead to significant weight loss, researchers and medical professionals have raised concerns about the accompanying loss of muscle tissue. DETAIL
A groundbreaking study by researchers from RMIT University in Australia and Indian institutions has unveiled a novel gold-based drug that shows significant promise in the fight against cancer. The drug has demonstrated an impressive ability to slow tumor growth in animals by 82% while selectively targeting cancer cells far more effectively than traditional chemotherapy agents. DETAIL
DIGITAL / TECHNOLOGY / SCIENCE / ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Last week, the space agency announced that its seasoned Curiosity rover will embark on a lengthy journey to the foothills of Mount Sharp in Mars, where rising from the landscape is a sprawling, miles-long formation of spiderweb-like patterns, the likes of which has never been witnessed at such a scale on Earth. DETAIL
Scientists have discovered the nearly "perfectly preserved" mummy of a saber-toothed kitten in Siberia that is thought to have lived around 35,000 years ago. DETAIL
Australia approved on Thursday a social media ban for children aged under 16 after an emotive debate that has gripped the nation, setting a benchmark for jurisdictions around the world with one of the toughest regulations targeting Big Tech. DETAIL
The TBMM Peer Bullying Sub-Commission, established within the TBMM Petition Commission, convened. At the meeting, it was announced that the Information and Information Technologies and Communication Authority (BTK) had initiated a study to ban children under the age of 13 from accessing social media applications and social networks. DETAIL
Footprints preserved on the shore of Lake Turkana in Kenya seem to be from two ancient human species, showing they lived there at the same time about 1.5 million years ago. DETAIL
The algorithms behind social media platforms can change your attitude towards people with different political views in just one day, suggesting that tech companies really can have a strong influence on how we perceive others. DETAIL
Marine biologists documented the never-before-confirmed behavior among orcas living in the Southern Gulf of California, the body of water between the state and country of Mexico. They found evidence of several whale shark attacks that occurred over a six-year-span—most of which involved one particular male orca known as Moctezuma. While much is still unknown about the phenomenon, the findings suggest these killer whales may have acquired and passed on unique knowledge that allowed them to take down their hefty prey. DETAIL
There is a mineral so rare that only one specimen exists in the entire world. It is called kyawthuite (cha-too-ite), a tiny, light brown grain weighing just one-third of a gram (1.61 carats). At first glance, you might mistake it for amber or topaz, but this modest speck of mineral has immeasurable value. DETAIL
ENERGY / TRANSPORTATION
The US Federal Trade Commission is looking into whether Uber Technologies Inc. violated consumer protection laws with its flagship subscription service. The FTC is investigating Uber over enrollment and cancellation aspects of the product, according to documents viewed by Bloomberg. DETAIL
The Scottish Government has published its first plan to make Scotland a key producer and exporter of hydrogen. Acting Energy Secretary Gillian Martin said hydrogen is one of Scotland’s “greatest industrial opportunities since oil and gas”. DETAIL
CYBERSECURITY
CafeCanli, a Turkish live video chat provider, has leaked sensitive details on hundreds of thousands of its users. The only silver lining is that websites’ admins swiftly secured the leaky database. DETAIL
T-Mobile says it stopped an intrusion potentially linked to China’s “Salt Typhoon” group after hackers tried to infiltrate the company through another carrier. “Within the last few weeks, we detected attempts to infiltrate our systems by bad actors. This originated from a wireline provider’s network that was connected to ours,” T-Mobile Chief Security Officer Jeff Simon wrote on Wednesday. DETAIL