HOBART, Australia — Tasmania Police has dropped weapons charges against a former state Liberal politician who is facing other criminal charges in Queensland. Adam Brooks was charged in April with incorrectly storing ammunition, accusations which he had denied while running as a candidate in the state election. He went on to claim a seat after the May 1 poll but stood down a day after being declared elected, with Premier Peter Gutwein revealing Brooks faced several charges in Queensland and was battling mental health problems. Tasmania Police on June 23 advised they had dropped firearms charges against Brooks after reviewing the…
Author: zenger.news
A real-life “Fly Away Home”-like professor who soars through the skies in a microlight plane helps endangered ibises migrate while protecting them from golden eagles. Johannes Fritz has run a project called Reason for Hope — Reintroduction of Northern Bald Ibis in Europe for nearly two decades. “In Europe, the species became extinct about 400 years ago, mainly due to human persecution, possibly worsened by climate change (Little Ice Age) and the Thirty Years’ War,” the project states. Much like Jeff Daniels’ character in the 1996 movie “Fly Away Home,” based on Bill Lishman’s actual experiences, Fritz flies a microlight…
KILIFI, Kenya — After performing morning chores, Riziki Athman, 39, picks a net and heads out to Arabuko Sokoke forest in Kilifi County, on the Kenyan coast, for a unique business venture that puts food on the table for many families in the region—butterfly farming. Athman and many other women from villages surrounding Arabuko Sokoke trap butterflies from the forest and rear them at home for pupae which they sell abroad. “Before venturing to butterfly farming, I was struggling to raise my children,” the mother of five told Zenger News. “Things have changed now for the better. Life now is about protecting the…
YAOUNDÉ, Cameroon — A move by the United States government to impose visa restrictions on people thought to be stalling peace efforts in Cameroon’s crisis-hit Anglophone regions has sharply divided public opinion. The United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, on June 7, 2021, imposed visa restrictions on individuals “who are believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining the peaceful resolution of the crisis in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon.” However, he did not give names. Even though it is unclear who might be affected by the visa sanctions, the public debate over the U.S. move revolves around who will be…
Researchers from Tel Aviv University have developed a molecule that protects against bone loss around orthopedic and dental implants as well as natural teeth. Surprisingly, it is derived from the protein VIP — first isolated in the TAU lab of professor Illana Gozes — that maintains the viability of brain cells and plays a part in sexual activity as well. “We were first to develop drug candidates by binding VIP with a lipid to create SNV — a molecule that can penetrate the skin and serve as an ointment drug,” said Gozes. “At that time, we tried to apply the…
The “yuck factor” is the biggest hurdle facing Israeli food-tech startup Flying SpArk. The Ashdod-based company produces a protein and mineral rich powder from — wait for it — fruit fly larvae. “In insect protein, you have all the good stuff without the bad stuff,” said Eran Gronich, Flying SpArk’s CEO. Flying SpArk’s larvae-derived powder is 70 percent protein with the rest containing important amino acids and minerals such as calcium, iron, zinc and magnesium. Unlike meat, creating protein powder from insects is pesticide- and antibiotic-free, low in fat, and takes substantially less water and almost no land to produce.…
CANBERRA, Australia — For the average Australian worker, legislated rises in superannuation will mean an extra AU$85,000 ($64,353) in their super account at retirement. The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) on June 23 released a report on how the increases set to kick in from July 1 will “super-size” retirement balances. Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia is the peak policy, research, and advocacy body for Australia’s superannuation industry. Super balances are also set for a whopper year of double-digit gains, despite Covid-19 wobbles. The rise in the superannuation guarantee rate to 10 percent from next month represents an…
CANBERRA, Australia — Compensation for farmers and other rural industries will be crucial to a potential deal between the Nationals and Liberals on contentious climate targets. Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce is expected to continue negotiations with Scott Morrison with a long-term move towards net-zero carbon emissions target a sticking point. Environment Minister Sussan Ley is digging in on net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 despite Joyce’s opposition. Deputy leader and Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said the party wouldn’t enter a deal until what was on offer was clearer. “That’s just good business principles. You don’t give away your end price straight…
CANBERRA, Australia — Australian industry groups have renewed calls for the federal government to set out a roadmap for reopening international travel. The calls come as the government announced the addition of 22 professions to the skilled migration list. The list now includes 41 professions with chefs, auditors, tax accountants, engineers, surveyors and cartographers among those added to it. (ELEVATE from Pexels)The list now includes 41 professions with chefs, auditors, tax accountants, engineers, surveyors, and cartographers among those added to it. Multimedia and Information Technology (IT) specialists are also being sought, along with software programmers and medical laboratory scientists. Anyone sponsored under the…
CANBERRA, Australia — Australians fighting the asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma, will soon be able to buy lifesaving drugs at a fraction of the retail cost. Opdivoand and Yervoy help activate patients’ immune systems to recognize and attack unresectable malignant mesothelioma, which cannot be treated surgically. The medications will from July 1 be listed on the federal government’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, reducing treatment to about AU$41.30 ($31.27) per script or AU$6.60 ($5) for patients with a concession card. More than 700 patients will benefit from the listing annually. Without the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) subsidy, they could have paid more than AU$130,000 ($98,420) per treatment…