Over 20 new giant viruses have been discovered in sewage and pre-filtered water in Mumbai, India. They are able to hoard and pass on new genes when hopping from one host to another, a 5-year study claims.

Despite its ominous-sounding notion, there is no evidence that ‘Giant Viruses’ are causing disease in people. Or at least that is what we all would like to believe!

“There isn’t enough evidence to suggest that they are directly linked to infections in humans,” Dr. Anirvan, one of the lead researchers on the paper, told India Science Wire.

While posing no danger to humans, the viruses are of great interest to scientists, who believe they could help solve the riddle of evolution.

It is believed that when a virus infects a life form, it harvests genes as it develops and then passes them to other life forms that it infects afterwards. Researchers think the process can ultimately pave the way for the creation of a new species.

It is not that the viruses are ‘giant’ in the traditional sense of the word, but they are certainly gigantic in the world of microbiology – several times larger than their peers, other microorganisms.

The biggest of the ‘Giant Viruses’ unearthed by the researchers is Bandra megavirus (BMV), measuring 465 nanometers. One nanometer is 1,000 times smaller than a micrometer, which is 1,000 times smaller than a millimeter.

The other viruses discovered by the scientists are Powai Lake megavirus (PLMV), Mimivirus bombay (MVB), and Kurlavirus (KUV).

The find was made by researchers from Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IITB), who used modern identification and isolation techniques as well as Big Data analysis in cooperation with the Technical University of Denmark to ‘catch’ over 20 new viruses in samples from pre-filtered water of a household water purifier and from a wastewater treatment plant.

The original research was published in March in the Scientific Reports journal.

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US President Donald Trump has ordered to kick-start the process of cranking up tariffs on “all remaining Chinese goods” worth $300 billion. That is in addition to a fresh 15 percent tariff hike on $200 billion worth of imports.

In a statement Friday, Trump’s chief trade negotiator Robert E. Lighthizer announced that the US eyes increasing import tariffs on virtually all Chinese goods.

Earlier on Thursday, the US increased tariffs on some $200 billion worth of Chinese goods from 10 to 25 percent as the negotiations over the trade deal stalled after Bejiing reportedly walked back on some of the terms of the draft agreement.

As the high-level US-China trade talks that kicked off on Thursday ended on Friday with no breakthrough, Lighthizer said that Trump decided to slap tariffs on additional $300 billion worth of Chinese imports.

“The President also ordered us to begin the process of raising tariffs on essentially all remaining imports from China,” he stated.

Although the Chinese and the US sides seem to be miles away from thrashing out a deal, Trump appears not concerned with the negotiations hitting a brick wall.

Ahead of the final round of talks on Friday, Trump tweeted that tariffs “are much easier and quicker to do” than a traditional deal, arguing that the US might be better off without one.

“Tariffs will bring in FAR MORE wealth to our Country than even a phenomenal deal of the traditional kind,” he said.

Summarizing the outcome of two-day talks in the US capital late Friday, Trump struck an optimistic note, calling the negotiations “candid and constructive” and his relationship with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping “a very strong one.”

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The US president did not rule out that he might reverse the 15 percent hike, depending on the outcome of the future negotiations.

China has yet to respond to the latest tariff hike proposal. Beijing earlier vowed to take “necessary countermeasures” in retaliation to the tariff increase already in effect. 

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The French government is pushing for greater regulation of Facebook and other platforms in order to combat what it calls ‘hate speech’, according to a state-commissioned report published as CEO Mark Zuckerberg visits Paris.

The report, issued by the French Minister for Digital Economy Cedric O, found that social media companies were allowing “abuses” to take place on their platforms, particularly in the area of hateful or bigoted speech, and that the companies had not done enough to address the problems.

“Public intervention to ensure that the major players adopt a more responsible attitude protecting the cohesion of our societies is therefore legitimate,” the report said.

Though the report noted the government would “aim for minimum intervention,” it said that previous attempts at private self-regulation were not sufficient. The regulators added the government should look to strike a balance between “repressive” policies that react to ‘hate speech’ after the fact, and more preventative ones that start with the companies’ policies.

The report said the “lawfulness” of content would be decided in the courts, and specifically requested closer oversight of social media platforms’ algorithms which auto-detect supposedly hateful content.

French President Emmanuel Macron, a major advocate for greater regulation of the web, met with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Friday to discuss some of the issues touched on in the report. Zuckerberg has also called for more government controls over the internet.

After the meeting, Zuckerberg hailed the French government’s approach as a model for other countries to follow.

“If more countries can follow the lead of what your government has done here, that will likely end up being a more positive outcome for the world in my view than some of the alternatives,” he told reporters at Facebook’s Paris office.

In January, the French digital economy minister said he was “one hundred percent in agreement” with Zuckerberg’s previous calls for regulation, but complained that Facebook’s growing size and power was creating a “huge democratic problem.”

“Facebook decides that something online is legal or not legal” and “plays the role of justice,” O told AFP last year.

Facebook took steps on its own in 2018 to censor “misleading” content it said contributed to violence, and more recently announced that ‘white nationalist’ content would be wiped from the site. The company also faced claims of censorship this month when it banned controversial figures including Alex Jones, Milo Yiannopoulos and Louis Farrakhan, citing violations of its community standards.

Facebook has seen heavy criticism on a number of other fronts in recent years. Some were outraged when the company struggled to keep videos of the Christchurch massacre off its website, while lawmakers in countries around the world have called for tighter control of the platform over the spread of ‘fake news’

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The US’ continuous military buildup in Japan, namely deployment of missile defense systems, is a direct threat to Russia, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said after meeting his Japanese counterpart Taro Kono.

“We’ve yet again drew attention to certain actions of Washington, including the deployment of the global missile defense systems’ elements to Japan, bolstering of its military presence in the region and activities in the arms control sphere, where the US is demolishing all the existing agreements. We perceive such actions as a threat for our country,” Lavrov said on Friday.

The bilateral Russia-Japan relations are still riddled with multiple issues, including the significant differences in Moscow’s and Tokyo’s approach to the peace treaty issue, Lavrov noted.

The two countries never signed a proper peace treaty after the end of WWII, and Japan has unresolved territorial claims on four Russian Kuril Islands. After the war, the islands of Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan, and Habomai – known in Japan as the ‘Northern Territories’ – were handed over to the USSR under the 1945 Potsdam Declaration.

Last year, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Japanese PM Shinzo Abe agreed to continue discussions of the peace treaty, based on the 1956 declaration signed by Japan and the USSR. The document envisioned a possibility of handing over the island of Shikotan and islets of Habomai to Japan, yet any territorial swaps were possible only after a peace treaty was signed. Tokyo, on its part, insists that the territorial dispute must be “solved” first – preferably with Russia handing over all the contested territories.

The 1956 document was denounced by the Soviet Union in 1960 after Japan signed a security treaty with the US. While the defunct declaration was taken as a basis for the reinvigorated negotiations, it should not be taken at face value, given the heavy – and growing – US military presence in Japan.

“The joint declaration was adopted under particular historical and geopolitical circumstances. Since then, the situation has changed drastically. We have to consider the active security treaty between Japan and the US,” Lavrov noted.

Despite the outstanding “differences” Moscow is looking forward to continue negotiations, Lavrov stated. Any agreement must “fully reflect interests of our two countries and should be unambiguously accepted by the two nations.” Last year, for example, mere rumors of a potential secession of some of the islands to Japan sparked protests across Russia.

“Such task is not an easy one. Obviously it can be achieved only through continuous, meticulous and creative work,” Lavrov stressed.

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The US has imposed restrictions on two companies, involved in oil trade between Caracas and Havana, as well as threatened Venezuelan security services with sanctions over their continuous support to President Nicolas Maduro.

The sanctions were imposed on two transport companies, registered in Marshall Islands and Liberia, as well as two oil tankers belonging to them, the US Treasury said Friday. Both vessels, flying Panama flags, have been allegedly involved in transporting Venezuelan oil to Cuba.

Such transfers are a payment for Cuban support towards Maduro, Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin claimed, vowing to “take further action if Cuba continues to receive Venezuelan oil in exchange for military support.” Aside from that, the official threatened Venezuelan military and intelligence services with more sanctions if they would not defect from the legitimate government.

“Treasury’s action today puts Venezuela’s military and intelligence services, as well as those who support them, on notice that their continued backing of the illegitimate Maduro regime will be met with serious consequences,” Mnuchin warned.

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According to the Treasury statement, all of the US sanctions against the country are not “permanent” and are merely designed to bring a “positive change of behavior.” Basically, the restrictions are designed to encourage defection of Venezuelan government and military officials from the legitimate leadership of the country towards the US-backed self-styled “interim president” Juan Guaido.

Despite receiving broad support from Washington and its allies, Guaido did not manage to achieve much and failed to snatch real power from Maduro since his self-enthronement earlier this year. A widely publicized “military coup” announced by Guaido last week flopped, as it failed to attract any sizable number of army defectors nor massive civilian support.

A GPS tracker used as a panic alarm has major security flaws that can leak users’ real-time location and allow it to be remotely deactivated, say UK cyber-security researchers. They are calling for an immediate recall.

Manufactured in China, the devices are bought in bulk and resold by several companies around the world. While the device itself doesn’t have internet connectivity, it does use a SIM card to connect to a cell network for location tracking. However, almost anyone can give the device commands by knowing its phone number and sending it a text.

Commands can allow the device’s current location to be divulged and its built-in microphone to be listened to remotely. It can also be turned off completely – all without the user’s knowledge.

READ MORE: US indicts Chinese national in biggest known healthcare hack in its history

The staggering security breach was uncovered by researchers at British cybersecurity firm Fidus Information Security, who have published a report about their astonishing findings. The researchers note that while the SIM can be protected with a PIN, that setting it not enabled by default and the device can still be reset without needing a PIN.

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Marketed as an alarm and panic button for the elderly, a monitoring device for children or a car tracker, the device is utilized by thousands of vulnerable people who think it’s keeping them safe, wrote Fidus.

“This device is marketed at keeping the most vulnerable safe and yet anybody can locate and listen into thousands of people’s lives without their knowledge,” warns Fidus director Andrew Mabbitt, TechCrunch reports.

Mabbitt explained, in the organization’s blog, that while the team have informed manufacturers of the major security flaws, the only way to fix the issue is to recall tens of thousands of units already in use around the world. There are at least 10,000 in use in the UK alone, according to Fidus.

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A makeshift pyrotechnics factory near Bogota, Colombia has exploded, killing four and injuring at least 30 more. The blast tore through both floors of the house and also damaged nearby buildings and vehicles.

Several gas cylinders exploded around 1pm in a house in the La Estrada neighborhood of Engativà, a town west of Bogota, according to Cablenoticias news agency, which reported the building was being used to manufacture wicks and gunpowder for “tejo,” a game that involves throwing a metal disc at packets of gunpowder.

At least 16 of the injured were minors, according to district health authorities, who said most of the injuries were caused by the shock wave from the blast.

Authorities have ruled out a deliberate attack but are still investigating what caused the explosion.

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The Houthis have offered to withdraw their forces from three key ports in Yemen starting this weekend, according to senior United Nations official in charge of monitoring the move.

The UN “welcomes the offer and intention of the Ansar Allah to undertake an initial unilateral redeployment from the ports of Al-Hudaydah, Salif and Ras-Issa,” said Michael Lollesgaard, chair of the UN’s Redeployment Coordination Committee (RCC), which oversees some of the peace talks between the warring parties in Yemen.

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Ansar Allah (Supporters of God) is the official name for the military arm of the Houthis, who have been in conflict with a coalition led by Saudi Arabia since early 2015.

Al-Hudaydah (Hodeidah) is a major port on the Red Sea, which has been under siege by the Saudi-led coalition forces since June 2018. Salif and Ras-Issa are a salt mine and oil terminal north of the port.

According to the UN, the Houthis have pledged to turn control of all three to the Yemen Red Sea Ports Corporation, a governmental body that manages some of the country’s commercial shipping.

The Houthis agreed in principle to vacate the ports when they met to negotiate in Sweden last December. The resulting ‘Stockholm Agreement’ saw a number of setbacks since then as the fighting continued.

The gesture of goodwill by the Houthi rebels did not sit well with Yemen’s Saudi-backed government.

The Yemeni information minister, Moammar al-Eryani, has castigated the proposal as “innacurate” and “misleading,” arguing that any withdrawl of forces that does not envisage “joint verification” by the parties is “elusive and manipulative.”

The conflict in Yemen has already claimed tens of thousands of lives and put millions on the brink of starvation in what was already the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula. Fighting has choked off much of the aid entering the ports, and with the coming redeployment the UN hopes the flow of food and other goods entering Yemen will increase, helping alleviate the humanitarian crisis.

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Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro called his former intelligence chief a mastermind behind the recent botched coup attempt, claiming Caracas has proof that he was recruited by the CIA over a year ago.

During a televised speech on Friday, Maduro unleashed an attack on General Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera, former director general of Venezuela’s National Intelligence Service (SEBIN), who defected from Maduro’s side in the wake of the failed military coup on April, 30. The coup attempt fizzled out within hours as it failed to attract broad support from the military, having been orchestrated by a small group of soldiers.

Maduro said that investigators were able to determine that Figuera was the driving force behind the attempt, and was apparently doing it at the behest of Washington.

“Investigations have succeeded in proving that General Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera has been recruited by the CIA for more than a year,” Maduro said, adding that justice would be served on the “traitor” Figuera “sooner rather than later.”

After the coup flopped, opposition leader Juan Guaido, recognized as ‘interim president’ of Venezuela by the US and 50 other countries, lamented that the opposition did not have enough manpower and supporters within government circles.

While the opposition seemed to have been poorly prepared for a decisive push to topple Maduro, it might be explained by the fact that Figuera was apparently in a hurry to rush the coup before his imminent arrest.

Maduro revealed that he was given a heads-up by Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino, Supreme Court chief Maikel Moreno, and chief of the General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence, Iván Hernández Dala, about Figuera’s “strange behavior” in the run-up to the coup attempt.

Figuera was going to be fired and arrested at 9:00am on April 30, and that is what apparently prompted him to set the coup in motion, Maduro said.

The president also accused the former spy chief of spreading false rumors about Padrino and Moreno’s intent to join the opposition, both considered “honorable patriots” by Maduro.

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Figuera became one of the most senior officials to switch sides and join the Guaido-led opposition. In a letter circulated after he broke ranks with Maduro, he wrote that his decision was prompted by his desire to “rebuild the country” and fight rampant corruption.

His defection earned lavish praise from US Vice President Mike Pence, who cited Figuera’s example as a rallying call for those Venezuelan serviceman who don’t want to suffer under US sanctions. Pence personally announced the lifting of all sanctions from Figuera on Tuesday, commending him for “taking a stand for the Bolivarian constitution and libertad.”

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The SpaceX Crew Dragon has apparently brought a party spirit along with supplies on its very first visit to the International Space Station (ISS). Russia has sent a complaint to NASA about the strange delivery.

The incident occurred early in March, when the Crew Dragon arrived at the ISS, head of the Cosmonaut Training Centre Pavel Vlasov told RIA Novosti on Friday. As it was a test flight, the ship was unmanned and brought a load of supplies and a dummy astronaut instead of an actual crew.

On March 3, the station crew noticed a strong alcohol odor and ran some tests, discovering an unusually high concentration of isopropyl alcohol in the air – some 6 milligrams per cubic meter. Before the arrival of the Crew Dragon, the concentration was only a fraction of milligram, according to Vlasov. The cosmonauts had to employ air purification systems, managing to bring concentration to 2 milligrams, and it fell even further after the departure of the SpaceX ship.

In addition to the mysterious alcohol, the ship also set off an alarm in the Russian part of the station during the docking. While that might have signaled a malfunction in the station oxygen systems, it was deemed to be a false alarm. It remains unclear whether the alarm was actually linked to the arrival of the SpaceX vessel.

Russian space authorities have filed a complaint with NASA about the isopropyl issue, however. The US space agency has acknowledged the issue, describing the incident as “interesting,” yet not dangerous to the station and its crew. SpaceX is cooperating with the investigation of the mysterious alcohol affair as well, according to NASA.

While the direct connection between the spirits abroad the ISS and the Crew Dragon is yet to be established, the alcohol affair adds to the string of mishaps plaguing the SpaceX vessel. Back in April, a Crew Dragon was obliterated in a powerful blast during engine tests. While both SpaceX and NASA initially downplayed the incident, describing it as an “anomaly,” it was officially acknowledged this week that the ship did in fact undergo a “rapid unscheduled disassembly.”

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The Crew Dragon, also known as Dragon 2, is a reusable, manned spacecraft designed to bring up to seven people abroad the ISS and back. It is an upgraded version of the Dragon-type transport vessel, employed for bringing supplies to the station.
With its development already behind schedule, the recent mishaps with the Crew Dragon threaten NASA’s plans to have its own means of bringing astronauts to the ISS and back. Since the iconic Space Shuttle program was canceled back in 2011, the US has had to rely on Russian Soyuz spacecraft to get astronauts into space.

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