US Fertility Says Patient Data Was Stolen in a Ransomware Attack

U.S. Fertility, one of the largest networks of fertility clinics in the United States, has confirmed it was hit by a ransomware attack and that data was taken. From a report: The company was formed in May as a partnership between Shady Grove Fertility, a fertility clinic with dozens of locations across the U.S. east coast, and Amulet Capital Partners, a…

The meat of protected African animals is being sold in Belgium

The meat of several protected species, including the red-tailed and De Brazza’s monkeys, is being illegally sold in Belgium Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2259906-the-meat-of-protected-african-animals-is-being-sold-in-belgium/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…

Clues to Mars life in Earth’s Atacama Desert

Researchers in the U.S. and Spain have discovered a plethora of previously unknown microbes living in wet clay layers below Chile’s arid Atacama Desert. The finding will help future rovers search for life on Mars. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/microbes-clay-atacama-desert-life-on-mars…

Trump Administration, In Late Push, Moves To Sell Oil Rights In Arctic Refuge

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The New York Times: The Trump administration on Monday announced that it would begin the formal process of selling leases to oil companies in a last-minute push to achieve its long-sought goal of allowing oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. That sets up a potential sale of leases…

Screening Travelers For Symptoms of COVID-19 Was Ineffective, CDC Study Says

Temperature and symptom-based screening programs don’t help catch coronavirus cases, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a new report that took a closer look at the programs used at US airports until mid-September. CNN reports: The CDC said this was a resource-intensive program that had a low case detection rate. Between January 17 and September 13, the…

New Nasal Spray Prevents Covid Infection in Ferrets, Study Finds

The New York Times reports: A nasal spray that blocks the absorption of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has completely protected ferrets it was tested on, according to a small study released on Thursday by an international team of scientists. The study, which was limited to animals and has not yet been peer-reviewed, was assessed by several health experts at the request of…

EFF Argues RIAA is ‘Abusing DMCA’ to Take Down YouTube-DL

While the RIAA has objected to a tool for downloading online videos, EFF senior activist Elliot Harmon responds with this question. “Who died and put them in charge of YouTube?” He asks the question in a new video “explainer” on the controversy, and argues in a new piece at EFF.org that the youtube-dl tool “doesn’t infringe on any RIAA copyrights.” RIAA’s…

Ancient life signs under dinosaur-killing Chicxulub crater

Researchers have found evidence for an ancient microbial ecosystem in a hydrothermal system beneath Mexico’s Chicxulub Crater, thought to be the site of the impact that killed the dinosaurs 66 million years ago. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/dinosaur-killing-chicxulub-impact-crater-hydrothermal-microbial…

Proctoring Software Company Used DMCA To Take Down a Student’s Critical Tweets

A series of tweets by one Miami University student that were critical of a proctoring software company have been hidden by Twitter after the company filed a copyright takedown notice. TechCrunch reports: Erik Johnson, a student who works as a security researcher on the side, posted a lengthy tweet thread in early September about Proctorio, an Arizona-based software company that several…

These Drones Will Plant 40,000 Trees in a Month. By 2028, They’ll Have Planted 1 Billion

Earlier this month, on land north of Toronto that previously burned in a wildfire, drones hovered over fields and fired seed pods into the ground, planting native pine and spruce trees to help restore habitat for birds. From a report: Flash Forest, the Canadian startup behind the project, plans to use its technology to plant 40,000 trees in the area this…