North & Central America | Peter Schulte

New York passes laws protecting kids from addictive social media content

By Peter Schulte / June 8, 2024 / Good news links

New York state has taken novel legislative steps to limit children’s exposure to computer algorithmic social media feeds, passing two laws to protect children from social media content and to protect their privacy. The Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation for Kids Act requires social media companies to restrict feeds for users under 18. The second law, the New York Child Data Protection Act, prohibits online sites from collecting, using, sharing, or selling personal data of anyone under the age of 18.

New bowel cancer drug is found to be 100% effective

By Peter Schulte / June 4, 2024 / Good news links

An immunotherapy drug could spare bowel cancer patients the need for surgery and chemotherapy after results showed it was effective in 100% of cases. Jemperli from British pharmaceutical company GSK showed “unprecedented results”, the firm said, with no evidence of disease in all patients treated. The data showed all 42 patients in a trial led by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in the U.S. had a complete response to treatment, with no evidence of tumors on scans.

Mexico elects Claudia Sheinbaum as first female president

By Peter Schulte / June 4, 2024 / Good news links

Mexico’s official electoral authority said preliminary results showed the 61-year-old former mayor of Mexico City winning between 58% and 60% of the vote in the recent election. That gives her a lead of about 30 percentage points over her main rival, businesswoman Xóchitl Gálvez. Ms. Sheinbaum will replace her mentor, outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, on 1 October.

Vermont becomes first U.S. state to require oil companies to pay for climate change damages

By Peter Schulte / June 1, 2024 / Good news links

Vermont has enacted a law requiring fossil fuel companies to pay a share of the damage caused by climate change after the state suffered catastrophic summer flooding and damage from other extreme weather. The funds could be used for upgrading stormwater drainage systems; upgrading roads, bridges and railroads; relocating, elevating or retrofitting sewage treatment plants; and making energy-efficient weatherization upgrades to public and private buildings.

U.S.’s Internal Revenue Service to make its free tax filing program permanent

By Peter Schulte / May 31, 2024 / Good news links

A pilot version of the online program, known as Direct File, launched earlier this year. It provides step-by-step guidance to taxpayers filing their federal tax returns.

A pilot version of the online program, known as Direct File, launched earlier this year. It provides free step-by-step guidance to taxpayers filing their federal tax returns. Last year, more than 140,000 people across 12 states successfully filed their federal tax returns using Direct File, exceeding the agency’s expectations. Next year, the IRS plans to allow some taxpayers in all states and Washington, DC, to use the program.

Cryo-cooling breakthrough slashes the energy cost of serious cold by 71%

By Peter Schulte / May 30, 2024 / Good news links

Cryogenic cooling is used to preserve tissues, eggs, sperm, and embryos and CAT scanners, CERN’s massive particle accelerators, and the James Webb Space Telescope possible. It may also one day be the key to making fusion power or quantum computers a reality. However, it is also quite energy-intensive. Fortunately, researchers at the U.S.’s National Institute of Standards & Technology have recently discovered a way to reach near-absolute zero up to 3.5 times faster or using about 71% less energy.

Karla Sofía Gascón becomes the first trans woman to win award for Best Actress at Cannes

By Peter Schulte / May 30, 2024 / Good news links

For the first time in its 77-year history, the Cannes Film Festival’s jury bestowed the award for Best Actress on an out transgender woman. Spanish actress Karla Sofía Gascón received the award at Saturday night’s gala awards ceremony alongside Adriana Paz, Zoe Saldaña, and Selena Gomez, her co-stars in French film-maker Jacques Audiard’s Spanish-language musical Emilia Pérez.

Minnesota bans the LGBTQ+ panic defense

By Peter Schulte / May 29, 2024 / Good news links

Minnesota passed H.F. 5216, a bill that bans the infamous LGBTQ+ panic defense, the LA Blade reports. The LGBTQ+ panic defense is when a defendant argues that they “panicked” when they learned that their victim was LGBTQ+ as an excuse for anti-LGBTQ+ violence. Signed by Gov. Tim Walz (D) after making its way through the state’s House of Representatives and Senate. It will go into effect on August 1, 2024.

A neuron or nerve cell is an electrically excitable cell

Breakthrough synapse-regenerating ALS pill moves to phase 2 human trials

By Peter Schulte / May 29, 2024 / Good news links

Spinogenix, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company based in California, has developed SPG302, a unique once-a-day pill that regenerates the gaps, called synapses, between neurons to restore communication in ALS patients. Following promising results from clinical trials to evaluate the drug’s safety, the FDA has approved the company’s Investigational New Drug application, paving the way for further trials and a possible watershed moment in the treatment of the fatal disease.

HIV transmissions in the U.S. dropped 12% between 2018 and 2002

By Peter Schulte / May 23, 2024 / Good news links

According to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) HIV Surveillance Supplemental Report, the largest decrease in HIV infections from 2018 to 2022 was among men ages 13 to 24, where HIV infections decreased by 30%. In another recent report, the CDC found that over 80% of people diagnosed with HIV had access to care within one month of diagnosis. Furthermore, 65% had achieved viral suppression in 2022.