Shisha smoking will cause 1 million new lung cancer cases globally by 2050: WHO study
SCMP •

Shisha smoking will cause 1 million new lung cancer cases globally by 2050: WHO study

Water pipe smoking will contribute to about 1 million new lung cancer cases globally by 2050, with the Western Pacific region bearing the brunt, according to a study led by a World Health Organization (WHO) research agency that was recently presented in Hong Kong. The study, which is yet to be published, was headed by Dr Mahdi Sheikh, a scientist of the early detection, prevention and infections b...

Language matters in Hong Kong’s birth rate debate, not just money
SCMP •

Language matters in Hong Kong’s birth rate debate, not just money

When Hong Kong debates how to raise its birth rate, the conversation usually revolves around money: bigger baby bonuses, tax concessions, housing support, cheaper childcare and so on. These economic measures are necessary. Lowering the cost of raising a child removes some real and immediate barriers. However, there is another, lesser-known factor that works more subtly and implicitly. It comes not...

In 2013, Tope Awotona emptied about $200,000 of his savings to build Calendly; eight years later investors valued the company at $3 billion

In 2013, Tope Awotona emptied about $200,000 of his savings to build Calendly; eight years later investors valued the company at $3 billion

Times of India •

In 2013, Tope Awotona launched Calendly to tackle the difficulties professionals face in scheduling meetings. His journey began with personal funds, retirement savings, and loans, slowly gathering momentum. By 2021, Calendly had soared to a valuation exceeding $3 billion, driven by a booming user base and the demand for streamlined online scheduling.

Reporter’s notebook: Kimi’s AI credit card turns spending into computing quotas – with limits

Reporter’s notebook: Kimi’s AI credit card turns spending into computing quotas – with limits

SCMP •

China’s artificial intelligence companies have spent years persuading consumers to pay for their technology. Now, Moonshot AI, the start-up behind Kimi, is taking a different approach: offering AI computing benefits through a credit card. The company has teamed up with the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) and American Express for what it calls “the world’s first AI native credit card”. After getti...

Landmark China trial gets 84% efficacy in treating cancer with cue from waste water tech

Landmark China trial gets 84% efficacy in treating cancer with cue from waste water tech

SCMP •

For patients with advanced, metastatic cancer that has progressed despite systemic therapy – options remain critically limited. Now, Chinese scientists are pointing to an unconventional therapeutic agent – the element iron. This idea originated in industrial waste water treatment: iron can react with hydrogen peroxide to generate hydroxyl radicals, which degrade various organic and toxic molecules...

Landmark China trial gets 84% efficacy in treating cancer with clue from waste water tech

Landmark China trial gets 84% efficacy in treating cancer with clue from waste water tech

SCMP •

For patients with advanced, metastatic cancer that has progressed despite systemic therapy – options remain critically limited. Now, Chinese scientists are pointing to an unconventional therapeutic agent – the element iron. This idea originated in industrial waste water treatment: iron can react with hydrogen peroxide to generate hydroxyl radicals, which degrade various organic and toxic molecules...

European delegates walk out on Russian finance minister at IMF summit

European delegates walk out on Russian finance minister at IMF summit

SCMP •

Many delegates to ⁠the International Monetary Fund’s steering ⁠committee walked out of a meeting on ⁠Saturday when Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov addressed the group in Russian, three sources familiar with the matter said. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has roiled the International Monetary and Financial Committee, preventing it from reaching consensus statements in the yea...

Police urge Apple to fix security after 110 reports of fraud over iPhone Duo

Police urge Apple to fix security after 110 reports of fraud over iPhone Duo

SCMP •

Hong Kong police have raised concerns over Apple’s refusal to activate an additional security protocol to prevent fraud despite repeated calls, as the force received more than 110 reports of unauthorised credit card transactions following the pre-order launch of the company’s latest model. The force said on Saturday that residents began reporting suspicious credit card purchases of the foldable iP...

Police receive over 100 reports about credit card charges for iPhone Duo pre-orders

Police receive over 100 reports about credit card charges for iPhone Duo pre-orders

SCMP •

Hong Kong police have received more than 100 reports of unauthorised credit card transactions related to pre-orders of Apple’s latest iPhone model, the South China Morning Post has learned. Apple began its online pre-orders for its foldable iPhone Duo on Friday at 8pm, and complaints about suspicious transactions began to appear on social media overnight. Some credit card users claimed duplicate o...

New York’s Plaza Hotel to close for four years to restore its historic facade

New York’s Plaza Hotel to close for four years to restore its historic facade

Times of India •

Starting in January 2027, New York City's iconic Plaza Hotel will embark on a significant facade restoration that is projected to last a minimum of four years. This closure will impact not only guests but also local residents. With previous renovations totaling $450 million between 2005 and 2008, and a pandemic-related shutdown in 2020, this restoration seeks to uphold the hotel's renowned archite...

Modi under pressure as India’s youth protests rise to highest level in a decade

Modi under pressure as India’s youth protests rise to highest level in a decade

SCMP •

Despite ⁠tens of thousands of security personnel deployed to stop them, youth protesters in India scaled barricades last ⁠week, chanted anti-government slogans and scuffled with police officers trying to drag them away. “Long live the revolution,” shouted one young man before police bundled him into a bus. Street protests in India this year are likely to be higher than at any time in the past deca...

Security fears in Norway as Chinese smart cars record sensitive military data

Security fears in Norway as Chinese smart cars record sensitive military data

SCMP •

Chinese-made cars filmed sensitive information during a Norwegian military exercise, including access codes at secure sites and officials’ comings and goings, raising concerns about the risks posed by connected vehicles. During a security exercise at Oslo airport on September 14 to 18, waiting soldiers tapping on their vehicle’s screen discovered videos recorded by the on-board cameras, the Dagens...

Plan to make firms pay more to train older workers than youth apprentices in England

Plan to make firms pay more to train older workers than youth apprentices in England

The Guardian •

Exclusive: Ministers considering overhaul of apprenticeship funding scheme to tackle youth jobs crisisEmployers in England are to be forced to pay more to train an older worker than a youth apprentice under plans being drawn up by the government to tackle the youth jobs crisis.The Guardian understands ministers plan to overhaul Labour’s apprenticeship funding scheme to increase the cost of trainin...

‘I cannot carry all of this alone’: the couples kept apart by the war in Gaza

‘I cannot carry all of this alone’: the couples kept apart by the war in Gaza

The Guardian •

Families have been scattered, fathers separated from their children, and couples unable to reunite and marryWijdan Abu Matar, 43, was forced to leave Gaza in November 2023 with her eight children for medical treatment, while her injured husband, Hatem, remained behind.Wijdan and her family were living in the Nuseirat refugee camp when the Gaza war began with the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Isra...

Abby Choi’s partner tells murder trial she hid ex-in-laws’ financial reliance on her

Abby Choi’s partner tells murder trial she hid ex-in-laws’ financial reliance on her

SCMP •

Slain Hong Kong socialite Abby Choi Tin-fung’s partner has told a court she initially misled him about her former in-laws’ wealth before describing them as horrible and ungrateful after a bitter family dispute. Chris Tam Fong-chun’s testimony also shed light on his complex relationship with Choi and his former classmate Alex Kwong Kong-chi. The three remained connected through their four children,...

‘Austerity is inevitably painful’: How Michael Gove justifies his politics | Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty – podcast

‘Austerity is inevitably painful’: How Michael Gove justifies his politics | Radical Thinking with Aditya Chakrabortty – podcast

The Guardian •

For more than three decades, Michael Gove has been a leading figure in British Conservatism. As a journalist, government minister and now editor of the Tory bible, the Spectator, he has helped shape the right even as it has moved further rightwards. In the latest episode of Radical Thinking, Gove joins Aditya Chakrabortty to discuss the future of the right, his record on Brexit and austerity, and ...