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Загалом кінопремію «Золота дзиґа» вручили у 22 номінаціях
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«Ми повинні знайти рішення для всіх груп, утримуваних Росією: цивільних осіб, військовополонених та дітей» – Єрмак
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Gaborone, Botswana — Botswana and an American biotech firm, Ginkgo Bioworks, have partnered to conduct pathogen surveillance at the country’s entry points. Health officials say the proactive move is meant to safeguard public health as the world faces emerging disease threats.

Botswana introduced mpox screening last month for travelers at its entry points.

In a statement Wednesday, Ministry of Health spokesperson Christopher Nyanga said a pathogen-monitoring program is critical to detecting similar emerging health threats.

Dr. Mbatshi Mazwiduma, a public health expert, said the pathogen-surveillance program will complement existing strategies to prevent disease threats.

“The initiative by the Ministry of Health is a very welcome development in the sense that it is at least demonstrating that they are both embracing traditional methods of surveillance and disease detection plus at the same time, they are looking at other innovative ways of disease detection,” he said.

Through the collaboration, Boston-based Gingko Bioworks will work with the Ministry of Health to collect and monitor travelers’ samples. Nasal swabs will be used to collect the samples.

Nyanga said testing will be done on a voluntary, anonymous basis.

“Although participation in this initiative is entirely voluntary, travelers are encouraged to participate because this early detection of pathogens is meant to safeguard the health of all citizens, visitors and residents of this country,” he said. “The samples collected will be kept anonymous. The data collected from the samples will be vital in strengthening the country’s robust health system and response to public health threats and emergencies.”

But Mazwiduma said voluntary participation in the pathogen-monitoring program could hinder effective disease detection.

“Perhaps if non-invasive, non-intrusive, the technique should be compulsory because it ensures that the number of people who comply to sample acquisition is increased and, therefore, you can actually rapidly achieve suitable sample sizes for you to be able to ensure that you do not miss any patients, but also more importantly that it allows you to improve your validation of these particular technologies,” Mazwiduma said.

Botswana and Gingko Bioworks previously collaborated in a 2022 pathogen-monitoring program to detect new and emerging COVID-19 variants.

During the same year, Botswana was credited with the discovery of COVID-19 variant omicron.
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Vice President Kamala Harris joined President Joe Biden in commemorating the 23rd anniversary of the worst terror attack on American soil. Whoever takes the presidency in January, whether Harris or her rival, former President Donald Trump, also at the ceremonies, will continue to face a range of threats. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from ground zero in New York, from Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and from the Pentagon.
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This year, about 8 million young people will turn 18 and become eligible to vote. In all, an estimated 41 million members of Gen Z — people under age 27 — will be able to vote in the 2024 presidential election
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Abuja, Nigeria — The two-day pan-African AI conference co-hosted by the United States concluded Wednesday in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial hub.

Hundreds of delegates including public officials, tech leaders, policy makers academics and entrepreneurs attended the conference to hold talks about the development and use of safe, secure and trustworthy AI systems in Africa.

The U.S. deputy secretary of state, Kurt Campbell, spoke at the summit about the opportunity at hand.

“A global technology revolution is well under way — the race to develop and deploy new technologies, including artificial intelligence, is already shaping everything about our lives,” said Campbell. “We aim to foster collaborations between the United States and Africa AI researchers, policy makers and industry leaders, so that we can work together to drive innovation and address common challenges. This will enable us to share the benefits of AI globally.”

The conference is a significant step in Africa’s technological future.

Campbell said artificial intelligence can be used to address problems like global health, food security, education, energy and climate change, and asserted the conference has provided the ground for African voices in AI to shape emerging global AI systems.

“I cannot overstate Africa’s growing importance in the global technology landscape,” said Campbell. “By developing human capital and strengthening research and innovation ecosystems and building and AI ready institutional and regulatory environment, we can help AI work for Africa. The African Union’s landmark AI strategy sets the roadmap for African countries to harness AI’s potential to achieve developmental aspirations in education, health, agriculture, infrastructure, peace and security and good governance.”

In July, the African Union launched the continent’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy, saying AI is pivotal in transforming Africa into a global technology hub, and it called on member states to adopt the strategy.

On Tuesday, Nigeria’s minister of communication, innovation and digital economy, Bosun Tijani, announced a $61,000 grant for Nigeria’s brightest AI startups.

“For us to truly harness artificial intelligence for our collective benefits, we must be deliberate and collaborative in our approach,” said Tijani. “We just ensure that our digital transformation journey is inclusive, equitable and human focused.”

Africa currently represents 2.5% of the global AI market, according to the Artificial Intelligence for Development Africa, or AI4D.

But analysts say with more talks about safe use, AI applications could boost Africa’s economy by $2.9 trillion by the year 2030 with Kenya, South Africa and Nigerian markets taking the lead.
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В УДО просять киян та гостей столиці врахувати зазначену інформацію під час переміщення містом
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MOSCOW — A Soyuz spacecraft carrying two Russians and an American blasted off Wednesday for an express trip to the International Space Station. 

The space capsule atop a towering rocket set off at 1623 GMT from Russia’s manned space launch facility in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, and was scheduled to dock with the space station three hours later, in contrast to some missions that last for days. 

The mission commander is Alexei Ovchinin, with Russian compatriot Ivan Vagner and American Donald Pettit in the crew. 

The blast-off took place without obvious problems and the Soyuz entered orbit eight minutes after liftoff, a relief for Russian space authorities after an automated safety system halted a launch in March because of a voltage drop in the power system. 

On the space station, Pettit, Vagner and Ovchinin will join NASA’s Tracy Dyson, Mike Barratt, Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps, Butch Wilmore, and Suni Williams, and Russians Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin, and Oleg Kononenko. 
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WASHINGTON — U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson canceled a vote scheduled for Wednesday on his stopgap funding bill, saying more work is needed to build support for a measure, less than three weeks before a government shutdown deadline. 

“No vote today, because we’re in the consensus-building business here in Congress, with small majorities, and that’s what you do,” Johnson told reporters at the Capitol. 

The vote had been set for later on Wednesday. 

Johnson added that Republicans will be working through the weekend to find a bill that would gain enough votes for passage, now that his measure, opposed by President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats, has faltered. 

House Republicans have attached a controversial provision requiring people to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote, a measure meant to force Democrats to take stances on the politically charged issue of non-citizen voting, which is already illegal in federal elections. 

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who continues to falsely claim his 2020 loss was the result of fraud, has urged Republicans to pass the voting measure ahead of the November 5 election. 

The federal government’s fiscal year ends on September 30, when funding for many agencies expires. Without some sort of extension, federal programs not deemed essential would have to suspend many of their operations, forcing thousands of government workers to go on leave. 

Success for the funding bill was not guaranteed in the chamber that Republicans control by a narrow 220-211 margin. Several House Republicans have said they would vote against the measure, citing spending concerns, and many members of the caucus generally oppose stopgap spending measures. 

Two Republicans joined Democrats on Tuesday in voting against a procedural move to advance the bill. 

Democrats broadly see the citizenship registration requirement as meant to undermine confidence in administering elections. 

“We’re watching a movie we’ve seen over and over again,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Tuesday. “House Republicans are trying to pass a bill so partisan that it even splits their own caucus. This proposal isn’t even serious.” 

The White House on Monday said Biden would veto this funding package were it to pass, citing the “unrelated cynical” voting requirement. The administration also wants a temporary funding period shorter than six months, as well as more money for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to fix infrastructure damaged by natural disasters. 

Lawmakers face an even more critical self-imposed deadline on January 1, before which they must act to raise or extend the nation’s debt ceiling or risk defaulting on more than $35 trillion in federal government debt.
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Він згадав про прецедент порушення Римського статуту владою Монголії, коли президент Росії Володимир Путін приїхав туди із візитом
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Чоловіка госпіталізували з опіками, в жінки – мінно-вибухова травма та струс головного мозку
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Washington — The post-pandemic spike in U.S. inflation eased further last month as year-over-year price increases reached a three-year low, clearing the way for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next week.

Wednesday’s report from the Labor Department showed that consumer prices rose 2.5% in August from a year earlier. It was the fifth straight annual drop and the smallest such increase since February 2021. From July to August, prices rose just 0.2%.

Excluding volatile food and energy costs, so-called core prices rose 3.2% in August from 12 months earlier, the same as in July. On a month-to-month basis, core prices rose 0.3% last month, a pickup from July’s 0.2% increase. Economists closely watch core prices, which typically provide a better read of future inflation trends.

For months, cooling inflation has provided gradual relief to America’s consumers, who were stung by the price surges that erupted three years ago, particularly for food, gas, rent and other necessities. Inflation peaked in mid-2022 at 9.1%, the highest rate in four decades.

Fed officials have signaled that they’re increasingly confident that inflation is falling back to their 2% target and are now shifting their focus to supporting the job market, which is steadily cooling. As a result, the policymakers are poised to begin cutting their key rate from its 23-year high in hopes of bolstering growth and hiring.

A modest quarter-point cut is widely expected next week. Over time, a series of rate cuts should reduce the cost of borrowing across the economy, including for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.

The latest inflation figures could inject themselves into the presidential race in its final weeks. Former President Donald Trump has heaped blame on Vice President Kamala Harris for the jump in inflation, which erupted in early 2021 as global supply chains seized up, causing severe shortages of parts and labor. Harris has proposed subsidies for home buyers and builders in an effort to ease housing costs and backs a federal ban on price-gouging for groceries. Trump has said he would boost energy production to try to reduce overall inflation.

A key reason why inflation eased again in August was that gas prices tumbled by about 10 cents a gallon last month, according to the Energy Inflation Administration, to a national average of about $3.29.

Economists also expect the government’s measures of grocery prices and rents to rise more slowly. Though food prices are roughly 20% more expensive than before the pandemic, they have barely budged over the past year.

Another potential driver of slower inflation is that the cost of new apartment leases has started to cool as a stream of newly built apartments have been completed.

According to the real estate brokerage Redfin, the median rent for a new lease rose just 0.9% in August from a year earlier, to $1,645 a month. But the government’s measure includes all rents, including those for people who have been in their apartments for months or years. It takes time for the slowdown in new rents to show up in the government’s data. In July, rental costs rose 5.1% from a year ago, according to the government’s consumer price index.

Americans’ paychecks are also growing more slowly — an average of about 3.5% annually, still a solid pace — which reduces inflationary pressures. Two years ago, wage growth was topping 5%, a level that can force businesses to sharply raise prices to cover their higher labor costs.

In a high-profile speech last month, Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted that inflation was coming under control and suggested that the job market was unlikely to be a source of inflationary pressure.

Consumers have propelled the economy for the past three years. But they are increasingly turning to debt to maintain their spending and credit card, and auto delinquencies are rising, raising concerns that they may have to rein in their spending soon. Reduced consumer spending could lead more employers to freeze their hiring or even cut jobs.
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