Finland is crowned as the world’s happiest country for the fifth year in a row. The report provides scores based on an average of data over a three-year period on a scale of zero to 10. The World Happiness Report, reports are based on people’s own assessment of their happiness along with economic and social data. The happiness score considers GDP, social support, personal freedom, as well as the level of corruption in each country along with a personal sense of well-being based on Gallup polls in each country. The authors also used social media data this year to compare people's emo
A long-awaited intellectual property waiver for the COVID-19 vaccine has been reached by the United States, European Union, India, and South Africa. There are still some elements of the consensus agreement that need to be finalized, such as whether the patent waivers will last three years or five years. A comprehensive WTO waiver that had been supported by the United States would apply only to COVID-19 vaccine patents. According to some source, the talks has described the text as a tentative agreement among the four World Trade Organization members that requires formal approval from the
On Monday, the British government announced that all measures related to coronavirus, including the requirement to test some unvaccinated travelers for COVID-19 before and after their arrival, will cease on Friday in order to make going on holiday easier for the Easter school vacation. According to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, the changes will mean that the people “can travel just like in the good old days”. The people will be required to fill out the passenger locator forms with the travel details, address in the UK, and their vaccination status. Some of the UK airlines like V
On Friday, the United States unveiled relaxation of a wide range of financial and commercial transactions in Afghanistan. The “General Licence 20”- new relations allow “financial institutions, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and private sector companies to engage in wide-ranging transactions and activities in the country while complying with the US sanctions. The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “The United States took the decision today to facilitate a broad range of commercial activities in Afghanistan to benefit the people there”. He spec
In the Weddell Sea, Sir Ernest Shackleton's lost vessel, the Endurance, was discovered over the weekend. In 1915, the ship sank due to getting crushed by sea ice which forced Shackleton and his men to escape on foot and in small boats. For more than a century, the ship is sitting 10,000 feet, it is still much together and looks just like it did while sinking. However, its timber is disrupted, the name- Endurance is clearly visible on the stern. The marine archaeologist, Mensun Bound said, “Without any exaggeration, this is the finest wooden shipwreck I have ever seen- by far”. Mensu
India is set to resume regular international flights from March 27. After 2 years the flight will resume as pre-pandemic schedules. Civil Aviation Minister said that international operations will be subjected to strict adherence to Ministry of Health guidelines for international travel. In November last year, the aviation ministry announced it would resume regular international flights starting December 15, 2021. That order was subsequently revoked due to the rise in Omicron cases. The government official said, “After being recognised the increase of vaccination coverage across the gl
The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) approved Covovax for 12-17 years after the Subject Expert Committee on COVID-19 of the CDSCO last week recommended granting emergency use authorisation (EUA). It was authorized by DCGI to the Serum Institute subject to certain conditions. Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute said confirming the DCGI approval, “@SerumInstIndia’s brand Covovax has completed bridging studies in India and has been granted Emergency Use Authorization by DCGI for adults and for children above the age of 12. Younger age groups will follow shortly”. To recei
Malaysia is ready to re-open its border for tourists after two-year of Covid closure. From April 1, all vaccinated travelers will be permitted to enter the nation in an attempt to live with Covid. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri said, “The government has decided to open its borders on April 1, 2022. We believe this decision will boost our economy and help revive our ailing tourism sector”. The change comes despite Malaysia is reporting more than 25,000 infections a day. However, the infection is said to have mild symptoms, the decision came mirroring to its neighboring nations Singapore
Professor Deepak Dhar who is a physicist and emeritus faculty at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune will be awarded the prestigious Boltzmann Medal for 2022. Along with him, Professor John Hopfield is also selected from Princeton University. Boltzmann Medals honor outstanding achievements in statistical physics and are awarded once every three years by C3 Commission on Statistical Physics of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP). The award will be held in Tokyo, Japan which will be presented during the Stathys28 Conference next year i
India’s largest electric vehicle (EV) charging station with a capacity of 121 charging points for four-wheelers is opened in Gurugram’s Sector 86. With the new EV station, the city now has two of the largest electric vehicle charging stations in the nation. The first EV station was opened in January which would facilitate 100 four-wheelers to charge at the same time and is located at Sector 52 of Gurugram. The Ease of Doing Business Program has aided Alektrify Private Limited to develop an EV charging station that has 75 AC, 25 DC along with 21 hybrid charging points with a potentia