• MI5 warns of spies using LinkedIn to trick staff into spilling secrets
    BBC

    MI5 warns of spies using LinkedIn to trick staff into spilling secrets

    The security agency says thousands of UK workers have been approached by spies using fake profiles.

  • You Won't Have to Wear a Mask When You Do This Very Soon, Expert Says
    Best Life

    You Won't Have to Wear a Mask When You Do This Very Soon, Expert Says

    Mid-April has marked the arrival of two major milestones for the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, as more than half of all adults have received at least one dose according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data, and all adults are now eligible to be vaccinated nationwide as of Apr. 19. Such progress has revived the question of how much longer public safety measures that have been in place since the early days of the pandemic will have to stay in effect, especially as the CDC has begun to issue new guidance for people who have been fully vaccinated. But during an appearance on CNN, Ashish Jha, MD, dean of Brown University's School of Public Health, said that major changes might be coming soon, including not having to wear a mask when you're outdoors in public. Read on to learn when this might come into effect, and for more on how to keep yourself safe, The CDC Says If You See This at a Restaurant, Don't Go Inside. Outdoor mask mandates will likely go away soon for most areas. While being interviewed on CNN's Inside Politics on Apr. 18, Jha explained that the risk factor of catching COVID is much lower when you're not in an enclosed, poorly ventilated space, saying outdoor activities can be seen "largely as a safe thing, unless you have congregations of large numbers of people together for long periods of time." This has led him to believe that change could be coming soon, predicting that "I expect over the next few weeks states to start lifting outdoor mask mandates." COVID can only potentially be spread outdoors at crowded events. Especially as the arrival of spring has brought the return of warmer weather—and with it, more outdoor gatherings and activities—Jha pointed out that the idea of outside spaces being much safer than indoor venues has become a widely accepted fact."We've known for a year that outdoor infections are extremely rare," he told host Abby Phillip.The only exception comes in the form of crowded outdoor events where social distancing isn't possible. "[COVID-19 infections] only happen when you have large packed rallies, for instance," he explained. "So if you are not participating in one of those, I think it is pretty safe to be out and about walking around without a mask, especially in large parts of the country where infection numbers are under reasonable control." And for more on where you still shouldn't go after your shots, The CDC Is Warning You to Avoid This One Place, Even If You're Vaccinated. Research has shown that outdoor infection is exceedingly rare. Since the beginning of the pandemic, mounting research has shown that being outside can drastically reduce the chances that COVID will spread. According to data from Ireland's Health Protection Surveillance Centre that was recently shared with the Irish Times, only 262 cases out of a reported 232,164—which is about .1 percent—could be linked to "locations which are primarily associated with outdoor activities." And another study from China found that only one instance of outdoor transmission out of 7,300 reported cases occurred when two friends held a long conversation in close quarters outside, The New Republic reports.Risk conditions change quickly when you move things inside, though. By comparison, a Japanese study published in April of 2020 estimated that the risk of spreading COVID-19 indoors was 19 times higher while indoors with others who were contagious. More people need to be vaccinated before indoor mask mandates are dropped. The likely change in rules surrounding outdoor mask-wearing rules comes as more states have already decided to abandon their mask mandates outright, including requiring them in indoor public venues. According to Jha's colleague, Megan Ranney, MD, emergency physician at the Rhode Island Hospital and associate professor at Brown University, regional spikes in some areas have made it clear that indoor mandates should stay in place for now, telling CNN they should only be removed when "around 70 percent or 80 percent" of the national adult population is vaccinated, Boston.com reports.Ranney isn't alone in holding this opinion. During an interview with CNN's Dana Bash in February, Anthony Fauci, MD, chief White House COVID adviser, said: "When [the number of COVID cases] goes way down, and the overwhelming majority of the people in the population are vaccinated, then I would feel comfortable in saying, we need to pull back on the masks, we don't need to have masks." And for more on what the top health official is still avoiding, check out The 2 Places Dr. Fauci Still Won't Go After Vaccination.

  • 'The tipping point:' First T. rex mass death site in southern US, found in Utah, strengthens evidence of pack behavior
    USA TODAY

    'The tipping point:' First T. rex mass death site in southern US, found in Utah, strengthens evidence of pack behavior

    The pack of four, possibly five, T. rexes likely died in a seasonal flood after a slow-burn fire between 66 and 100 million years ago, scientists say.