Source: www.consumeraffairs.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
There are a couple of simple ways to stay ahead of the situation, and there's possible relief for those who can't By Gary Guthrie of ConsumerAffairs May 8, 2020 var myLink = "https://my.consumeraffairs.com/tax-relief/get-matched/"; var mySubTitle = "Get matched with an Accredited Tax Relief Partner"; window.onload = function changeLink(){var linkForm = document.getElementsByClassName("wzrd-wg__form")[0];var titleForm = document.getElementsByClassName("wzrd-wg__sbtl")[0];linkForm.setAttribute("action", myLink);if (mySubTitle != ""){titleForm.innerHTML = " " + mySubTitle + " ";}}; The hits keep on comin'! On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the economy lost 20.5 million jobs in April, with the unemployment rate at 14.7 percent. Thank you, COVID-19. All told, upwards of 22 million Americans have lost their jobs during the pandemic, forcing many to collect unemployment to make ends meet. For some, a bonus of $600 each week in coronavirus relief is being added on. All that is fine and dandy for now, but most of those check recipients are unaware that they're going to have to pay taxes on that money because the IRS views it as "taxable income." Note: the "economic impact payment" Americans received is NOT taxable. "Most people don't realize it. They're thinking in the moment. They don't have much savings, credit is not great and then come April 15, 2021, you have a big tax bill you're not expecting," Ken Lin, the

Source: mashable.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
Whether you're having a weird Mother's Day weekend or not, mom just feels extra far away, right? Even if you live far away and didn't see your mom (or mom figure) that often before social distancing, keeping in touch feels more imperative than ever. Watching a movie over FaceTime or Zoom isn't the same as hanging out IRL, but the whole "quality time" thing being your idea will be enough to make her smile. And this doesn't require a special mom holiday, you know — choosing one night a week for a movie night with mom would do a world of good for everyone's sense of normalcy.  Set it in stone with a new 4K TV on sale for Mother's Day weekend: Read more... More about 4k Tv , Oled , Mashable Shopping , Tech , and Consumer Tech

Source: www.npr.org - Thursday, May 07, 2020
The version published in China Daily omitted a reference to the illness originating in China and spreading to the rest of the world. The piece was published in full on the authors' websites. (Image credit: Jason Lee/Reuters)

Source: www.geekwire.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
University of Washington researchers work with the virus that causes COVID-19 in a restricted lab. (UW Medicine via YouTube) In a newly published study, a University of Washington researcher argues that the eventual death toll from COVID-19 could be more than twice as high as the figures currently being discussed. The study was written by Anirban Basu, a health economist and statistician who’s the director of UW’s Comparative Health Outcomes, Policy and Economics Institute, also known as the CHOICE Institute . In his research paper , published online Thursday by the journal Health Affairs, Basu acknowledges there’s still lots of uncertainty surrounding the fatality rate for the disease caused by the coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2. But he says there’s evidence that the U.S. death toll could amount to 350,000 to 1.2 million. Anirban Basu is the Stergachis Family Endowed Director of the CHOICE Institute at the University of Washington’s School of Pharmacy. (UW Photo) “This is a staggering number, which can only be brought down with sound public health measures,” Basu said in an interview with MedicalResearch.com . The latest projections from UW’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation estimate that the U.S. death toll due to COVID-19 will amount to nearly 135,000 by Aug. 4. IHME’s projections are closely watched (and occasionally lowballed) by the White House. “We’ll be at 100,000” or 110,000 deaths, President Donald Trump to

Source: www.businessinsider.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
Los Angeles' food truck population of over 800 trucks faces a downturn in profits during the coronavirus pandemic, which threatens the livelihood of dozens of vendors. Trucks, many of which are family-owned, are losing up to 60% to 70% of their business. The disintegration of Los Angeles' food truck scene is creating ripple effects as truck owners, employees, and commissaries take financial hits. California recently allowed food trucks to obtain a permit to sell at rest stops, giving vendors the chance to sell to truckers outside the LA proper. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories . Los Angeles' food truck scene of over 800 operational trucks is facing a difficult time as business essentially grinds to a halt during the coronavirus pandemic. Food trucks, which are often run as small family businesses, cost on average $29,000 to run in LA, according to a report by the US Chambers of Commerce . But as the lifeblood of food trucks — foot traffic, social gathering, and events — disappears in the wake of the coronavirus, families and small businesses are suffering. "Food trucks rely on people to gather. That model went away pretty quickly," Ross Resnick, founder of food-truck-booking company Roaming Hunger, told the Orange County Register in March. "Pre-corona, it's events, it's workplaces, it's nighttime gatherings in markets. When you close your eyes and imagine a food truck, you imagine a group of people." There are

Source: www.thestar.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
The unemployment rate jumped 5.2 points in April to 13 per cent in the first full month of economic restrictions.

Source: www.extremetech.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
Public health officials universally agree that the world needs much more coronavirus testing before we can safely ease current lock-down restrictions. Even at the low end, experts say we’ll need to do hundreds of thousands more daily tests, but the equipment and resources to make that happen are in short supply. An MIT spin-off company called Sherlock Biosciences has gotten FDA approval to begin using its CRISPR-based COVID-19 test , which promises to be faster and easy to perform without access to a full lab. Current coronavirus testing is based on PCR (polymerase chain reaction), the same technology used in DNA tests. This involves repeatedly heating the sample to amplify the genetic material so technicians can detect viral RNA. Sequencing those samples to hunt for viral genes requires expensive machines that many facilities don’t have, but the Sherlock method relies on a device similar to a pregnancy test. MIT’s Broad Institute developed Sherlock as a way to identify diseases with the clever addition of a reporter molecule with a DNA segment. Sherlock Biosciences now develops tests with this technology for specific diseases like COVID-19. CRISPR/Cas9 has gained fame as a powerful tool for genetic engineering, but that’s slightly different than the system devised by Sherlock. CRISPR is the sequence that guides Cas9 to the specific genetic code where you want to make a cut (known as cleaving), but scientists can also pair CRISP

Source: www.thegatewaypundit.com - Friday, May 08, 2020
One in Four Americans would refuse a COVID-19 vaccine according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll. The news comes as Americans trust in the medical community continues to plunge thanks to overblown predictions on the extent of the coronavirus pandemic, fake news reporting and the continued attacks on hydroxychloroquine treatments that are showing great success. HUGE UPDATE: Dr. Fauci and Dr. Birx Used Imperial College Model — NOW CONFIRMED AS A COMPLETE FRAUD — To Persuade President Trump to Lock Down Entire US Economy! After losing your business and livelihood due to faulty models and predictions why would you trust the government with a COVID-19 vaccine? Via ABC Action News : Americans, by a large 30-point margin, are resistant to re-opening the country now, believing the risk to human life of opening the country outweighs the economic toll of remaining under restrictive lockdowns — a concern that starkly divides along partisan lines, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos released Friday. In the new poll, conducted by Ipsos in partnership with ABC News using Ipsos’ Knowledge Panel, nearly two-thirds of Americans said they more closely align with the view that opening the county now is not advantageous since it will result in a higher death toll, while slightly more than one-third agree with the belief that an immediate reopening is beneficial to minimize the negative impact on the economy. But those attitudes show deep partisan divisio

Italian referee Nicola Rizzoli to officiate at Wembley

029 - Six clubs fulfil conditions set out by CFCB

030 - Venues for finals of UEFA 2015 club competitions chosen

Winners to qualify automatically for UEFA Champions League while commercial rights are fully centralised from group stage

Gibraltar becomes UEFA’s 54th member association

Accreditation process starts on 1 June 2013

General public can apply for tickets on UEFA.com as of 14 June 12.00CET

Draws for qualifying rounds to be held at UEFA Headquarters on 24 June

038 - Romanian club handed deferred sanction

040 - Inaugural Best Women’s Player in Europe Award launched

041 - Draws to be held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon on 19 July

042 - Decisions made after Beşiktaş JK and Fenerbahçe SK appeal initial decision

043 - Draws to be held at UEFA headquarters on 9 August

UEFA Best Women’s Player in Europe 2012/13 – Shortlist of top three announced

045 - 2013/14 UEFA Women’s Champions League draws for rounds of 32 and 16 in Nyon

047 - Swedish official Jonas Eriksson to handle FC Bayern München v Chelsea FC

Award presented at Monaco ceremony

049 - Award presented during ceremony at UEFA Headquarters

050 - Media accreditation deadline is Wednesday 11 September at 12.00CET

051 - Decision on 13 final tournament hosts to be taken in September 2014

052 - Further analysis of national team competitions needed

053 - UEFA Club Financial Control Body investigatory chamber takes measures

Members of a Holyrood Committee have visited the shipyard where two overdue and over-budget vessels to serve the Clyde and Hebrides ferries network are being built.

Holyrood’s Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee is to have an inquiry into the role of Scottish Development International (SDI) in developing a Scotland that competes on the international stage.

The Culture, Tourism, Europe and External Affairs Committee will on Thursday (5 March) question the Secretary of State for Scotland regarding the Withdrawal Agreement and the future relationship between the European Union and the UK.

The Scottish Parliament will next week (Tuesday 10 March) be invited to nominate Stephen Boyle to Her Majesty the Queen for appointment as the new Auditor General for Scotland.

The UK and Scottish Governments must work more closely together to ensure people get the benefits they are entitled to, a new report by the Scottish Parliament’s Social Security Committee has said.

The Scottish Parliament has announced it will suspend public engagement activities as it prioritises supporting parliamentary business and responding to the Coronavirus.

On Tuesday (24 March), MSPs from across the Scottish Parliament will scrutinise the proposed UK-wide Emergency Coronavirus Bill

A proposal to make civil partnerships available to different sex couples will strengthen equality and advance human rights in Scotland, according to a Holyrood Committee.

Lewis Macdonald MSP has been elected as a temporary Deputy Presiding Officer (DPO) of the Scottish Parliament. The election was held as part of the Parliament's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Economy, Energy and Fair Work Committee has today issued a call for views from Scottish businesses and workers on the current Covid-19 crisis.

The first Leaders’ Virtual Question Time will take place tomorrow, Thursday 9 April, at 12:30, with arrangements set out in a message sent to all MSPs from the Scottish Parliament’s Presiding Officer, Rt Hon Ken Macintosh MSP, today.

The Presiding Officer has today written to all Members to set out new business plans this week. The first ever Members’ Virtual Question Time will be held this Friday, 17 April at 2:30pm.

• A new Committee will be created to scrutinise the response to the Covid-19 outbreak, subject to Parliamentary approval.

Lewis Macdonald MSP has today chaired parliamentary proceedings for the first time as Deputy Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament.

The detrimental impact of Covid-19 and the lockdown measures imposed on people across Scotland is to be investigated by MSPs.

The impact the Coronavirus outbreak has had on children and young people is to be explored by Holyrood’s Education and Skills Committee as it announces its work in response to the current public health crisis.

A Scottish Parliament Committee will take evidence from a leading microbiologist, Professor Hugh Pennington, as it begins its scrutiny of the Government’s response to COVID-19.

The Culture, Tourism, Europe and External Affairs Committee has today issued a call for views from the culture and tourism industry on the current Covid-19 crisis.

Plans for further virtual scrutiny at the Scottish Parliament have today been announced by the Scottish Parliament’s Presiding Officer.