176865467
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XXongo writes:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ordered staff this week not to release their experts’ assessment that found the risk of catching measles is high in areas near outbreaks where vaccination rates are lagging, according to internal records. The assessment had emphasized the importance of vaccinating people against the highly contagious and potentially deadly disease that has spread to 19 states, the records show. The shift in its long-standing messaging about vaccines is a sign that it may be falling in line under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime critic of vaccines. Meanwhile, researchers say that measles vaccination rates may be as low as 71% in younger children, well below the threshold needed for herd immunity.
176864657
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Hmmmmmm writes:
Utah has become the first US state to ban the use of fluoride in its public water, following concerns raised by health secretary Robert F Kennedy that the mineral poses potential health risks.
Governor Spencer Cox signed the ban into law this week, which will go into effect on 7 May. Other states, including Florida and Ohio, are weighing similar legislation.
Fluoride has been added to US drinking water since 1945 to prevent cavities.
Utah's move to remove the mineral has been criticised by experts, who worry it will have consequences for oral health, especially for children.
The bill, signed by Cox on Thursday, prohibits communities from adding fluoride to their public water supplies.
The law does not mention any public health concerns related to the mineral, but Republican state lawmaker Stephanie Gricius — who introduced the bill in the state legislature — has argued that there is research suggesting fluoride could have possible cognitive effects in children.
Gricius has said that her bill would give citizens a choice whether they want to consume fluoride or not.
This concern over fluoride was previously raised by Kennedy, the US health secretary, who said in November that "the Trump White House will advise all US water systems to remove fluoride from public water".
He alleged the chemical found in toothpaste and regularly used by dentists "is an industrial waste associated with arthritis, bone fractures, bone cancer, IQ loss, neurodevelopmental disorders, and thyroid disease".
Most of western Europe does not add fluoride to its water. In England, about one in 10 people has fluoridated drinking water, though a programme has since been introduced to fluoridate water for 1.6 million people in north-east England.
By contrast, around 63% of the US population have fluoridated water.
Experts who support putting fluoride in water says studies show that community water fluoridation prevents at least 25% of tooth decay in children and adults.
176857139
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jrnvk writes:
The Verge is reporting that Microsoft will soon make it harder to run the well-publicized bypassnro command in Windows 11 setup. This command allows skipping the Microsoft account and online connection requirements on install. While the command will be removed, it can still be enabled by a regedit change — for now.
176854141
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jjslash writes:
President Trump has introduced a new 25% tariff on imported cars and auto parts, sparking debate about its effects on the U.S. auto industry. TechSpot reports:While supporters argue that the policy will spur growth, attract investment, and create jobs domestically, critics warn that it will lead to significantly higher prices for shoppers.
The new tariff on imported cars will take effect on April 2, while the import duty on car parts will go into effect on May 3. The components subject to the new policy include engines and engine parts, transmissions and powertrain components, and electrical systems.
Under the plan, imported vehicles will be taxed only on their non-US content.
176851109
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SoCalChris writes:
Wired is reporting that DOGE is planning to try and replace the entire Social Security Administration's existing COBOL code base with a new JAVA implementation, and plan to have it completed "within a matter of months". As one of the experts that Wired talked to pointed out, simply identifying all of the edge cases that the software would need to test for would take several years.
176850121
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frank_adrian314159 writes:
According to an article in Wired, Elon Musk has appointed a team of technologists from DOGE to "rewrite the code that runs the SSA in months". This codebase is currently 10 million lines of COBOL and handles record keeping for all American workers and payments for all Social Security recipients. Given that the code has to track the byzantine regulations dealing with Social Security, it's no wonder that the codebase is this large. What is in question, though is whether a small team can rewrite this code "in months". After all, what could possibly go wrong?
176847851
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theodp writes:
"As I prepared for a White House meeting last fall on the nation’s electricity needs," begins Microsoft President Brad Smith in The Country Needs More Electricity — And More Electricians, a Fox Business op-ed. "I met with the leaders at Microsoft who are building our AI infrastructure across the country. During our discussion, I asked them to identify the single biggest challenge for data center expansion in the U.S. I expected they would mention slow permitting, delays in bringing more power online or supply chain constraints — all significant challenges. But instead, they highlighted a national shortage of people. Electricians, to be precise."
Much as Smith has done in the past as he declared crisis-level shortages of Computer Science, Cybersecurity, and AI talent, he's calling for the nation's politicians and educators to step up to the plate and deliver students trained to address the data center expansion plans of Microsoft and Big Tech.
"How many new electricians must the U.S. recruit and train over the next decade?" Smith asks. "Probably half a million. [...] The good news is that these are good jobs. The bad news is that we don’t have a national strategy to recruit and train the people to fill these jobs. Given the Trump administration’s commitment to supporting American workers, American jobs and American innovation, we believe that recruiting and training more electricians should rise to its list of priorities. There are several ways to address this issue, and they deserve consideration. For example, we need to do more as a nation to revitalize the industrial arts and shop classes in American high schools. [...] This should be a priority for local school boards, state governors and appropriate federal support. [..] We must also adopt a broad perspective on where new technology is taking us. The tech sector is most often focused on computer and data science — people who code. But the future will also be built in critical ways by a new generation of engineers, electricians, plumbers, pipefitters, iron workers, carpenters and other skilled trades.
So, is 'Learn to Wire' the new 'Learn to Code'?
