SCIENTISTS WIN HISTORIC NOBEL CHEMISTRY PRIZE FOR 'GENETIC SCISSORS'

This year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for the discovery of the

CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing system, which has-for the first time-enabled

scientists to make precise changes in the long stretches of DNA that make up

the code of life for many organisms, including people. The prize was shared

by Emmanuelle Charpentier, a microbiologist and director of the Berlin-based

Max Planck Unit for the Science of Pathogens, and Jennifer A. Doudna, a

professor and biochemist at the University of California, Berkeley. The

scientists will split the prize money of 10 million Swedish kronor, or a

little more than $1.1 million.

This CRISPR tool, often described as "genetic scissors," has been used by

plant researchers to develop crops that withstand pests and drought, and it

could transform agriculture. In medicine, the method is involved in clinical

trials of new cancer therapies. And researchers are trying to employ it to

cure certain inherited diseases. "It is being used all over science," says

Claes Gustafsson, chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry.

HOUSE PANEL CALLS FOR CONGRESS TO BREAK UP TECH GIANTS

In a report led by Democrats, lawmakers said Apple, Amazon, Google and

Facebook needed to be checked and recommended they be restructured and that

antitrust laws be reformed.

House lawmakers who spent the last 16 months investigating the practices of

the world's largest technology companies said on Tuesday that Amazon, Apple,

Facebook and Google had exercised and abused their monopoly power and called

for the most sweeping changes to antitrust laws in half a century.

In a 449-page report that was presented by the House Judiciary Committee's

Democratic leadership, lawmakers said the four companies had turned from

"scrappy" start-ups into "the kinds of monopolies we last saw in the era of

oil barons and railroad tycoons." The lawmakers said the companies had

abused their dominant positions, setting and often dictating prices and

rules for commerce, search, advertising, social networking and publishing.

To amend the inequities, the lawmakers recommended restoring competition by

effectively breaking up the companies, emboldening the agencies that police

market concentration and throwing up hurdles for the companies to acquire

start-ups. They also proposed reforming antitrust laws, in the biggest

potential shift since the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act of 1976 created stronger

reviews of big mergers.

CONCERNS ABOUT CHINA'S 'GROSS AGGRESSION' SHARED ACROSS QUAD: U.S. OFFICIALS

A senior State Department official cited 'sudden' and "gross aggression" by

China as a priority of the Quad, in response to a query on whether or not

Quad members aside from the U.S. had been much less "forward-leaning" on

countering the Chinese menace, and whether or not the U.S. risked alienating

the opposite three international locations with its emphasis on China.

"No. That is the concern. I mean, if you look at the conflict on the - in

the Himalayas between China and India, something that has been in the past

handled according to unspoken or unwritten rules in the past to prevent

these things from getting out of control, and then you look at what happened

here recently, where you've got actually people beating each other to death

- no," the official mentioned.

". If you look at the single thing that's driving all this, it's a sudden

turn toward gross aggression by the Chinese government in its entire

periphery. I mean, you take it all the way around the Indo-Pacific and its

western borders; you're seeing things that you haven't seen before, and

these are responding to that," the official mentioned.

Later, the official reiterated that it was not "not just the U.S. dragging

folks [ i.e., India, Australia, Japan] who are maybe unwilling or hesitant

to" tackle the challenges that China was posing. "Everybody likeminded is

looking at erosion of democracy, of free market economy and all that, and

they're taking action."

"But we also have to frame the problem correctly. This isn't about a

U.S.-China dispute. This is about the free world versus Chinese

authoritarianism," a second senior State Department official said.

Asked on hypothesis by analysts that the Quad gave the impression of an

"Asian NATO", the primary official mentioned wanting on the language

underpinning the framework of cooperation was on the to-do record for the

international locations.

"Well, I mean, one of the projects out of this is to think through what

those people sort of balk at: hard, specific language here. Yet nonetheless,

as I said, the value set, the worldview and all those things, set up a

number of follow-on activities that we can - that we can move out with. I

mean, one of those is just simple freedom of movement and navigation."

BY 2021, AS MANY AS 150 MN PEOPLE LIKELY TO BE IN EXTREME POVERTY DUE TO

COVID-19: WORLD BANK

The World Bank on Wednesday warned that by 2021, as many as 150 million

people are likely to be in extreme poverty because of the coronavirus

pandemic and countries will have to prepare for a "different economy"

post-COVID by allowing capital, labour, skills and innovation to move into

new businesses and sectors.

The COVID-19 pandemic is estimated to push an additional 88 million to 115

million people into extreme poverty this year, with the total rising to as

many as 150 million by 2021, depending on the severity of the economic

contraction, according to the Washington-based global lender.

This would represent a regression to the rate of 9.2 per cent in 2017,

according to the biennial Poverty and Shared Prosperity Report.

Had the pandemic not convulsed the globe, the poverty rate would have been

expected to drop to 7.9 per cent in 2020, it said.

"The pandemic and global recession may cause over 1.4 per cent of the

world's population to fall into extreme poverty," World Bank Group President

David Malpass said.

"In order to reverse this serious setback to development progress and

poverty reduction, countries will need to prepare for a different economy

post-COVID, by allowing capital, labour, skills and innovation to move into

new businesses and sectors," he said.

TRUMP IS SYMPTOM-FREE AND STABLE: WHITE HOUSE DOCTOR

US President Donald Trump has had no COVID-19 symptoms for the past 24

hours, with a physical examination and his vital signs showing his condition

remains stable, White House physician Sean Conley said on Wednesday.

Conley, in a statement released with Trump's permission, said the president

has been fever-free for more than four days and had not needed or received

any supplemental oxygen since his initial hospitalization.

Trump was hospitalised on Friday after tests showed he had contracted

COVID-19. He returned to the White House on Monday.

RUSSIA TOUTS TEST LAUNCH OF HYPERSONIC MISSILE ON PUTIN'S BIRTHDAY

Russia has test launched its Tsirkon hypersonic cruise missile and

successfully hit a target in the Barents Sea, a senior commander told

Vladimir Putin on the Russian leader's 68th birthday on Wednesday.

Speaking to Putin by video link, Valery Gerasimov, chief of the army's

general staff, said the test strike on Tuesday was carried out from the

Admiral Gorshkov vessel which was located in the White Sea in northern

Russia.

Putin, who has pledged to beef up Russia's military presence in the Arctic,

talked up hypersonic missiles and a new generation of Russian weapons in a

March 2018 speech. He praised the test launch on Wednesday.

"This is a big event not only for the life of the armed forces, but also for

all of Russia, for the whole country," Putin told Gerasimov.

The Tsirkon test comes amid tensions over arms control between Russia and

the United States. New START, the last major nuclear arms pact in place

between the two countries, is due to expire in February.

Gerasimov said the missile hit its target at a distance of 450 kilometres

(280 miles) in four and a half minutes after reaching hypersonic speeds of

more than Mach 8.

He added that tests would continue and that Russian surface vessels and

submarines would be armed with the missile when those tests are completed.

Russia reportedly test-launched the missile successfully from a military

vessel for the first time in January.

NAVALNY DEMANDS EU CRACKDOWN ON OLIGARCHS CLOSE TO KREMLIN

Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny called on the European Union on Wednesday to

take tough action against oligarchs close to the Kremlin as he continues his

recovery in Germany after being poisoned by a nerve agent in the banned

Novichok family.

Germany said on Tuesday it was discussing with its partners what action to

take after the global chemicals watchdog confirmed Navalny had been poisoned

with a new and undeclared variant in the Novichok family.

Several Western governments have said Russia, which has denied accusations

by Navalny that it was involved in the poisoning, must help in

investigations or face consequences.

"Sanctions against the whole country don't work. The most important thing is

to impose entry bans on profiteers of the regime and freeze their assets,"

Navalny told top-selling German daily Bild.

"They embezzle money, steal billions and at the weekend they fly to Berlin

or London, buy expensive apartments and sit in cafes," he said.

He singled out Valery Gergiev, chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic as

a target for sanctions, saying he was a supporter of Russian President

Vladimir Putin.

Options for action include targeted asset freezes or travel bans on Russians

deemed to be involved in the Navalny case, economic sanctions and halting

the Nord Stream 2 pipeline that is being built to carry gas directly from

Russia to Germany.

He was scathing about what he said was Russia's failure to help in the

investigation.

"There is not even an attempt to make it look like they are investigating,"

Navalny told Bild, reiterating his view that his poisoning was a direct

order from Putin.

Navalny also criticised former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, a friend

of Putin and lobbyist for Russian energy firms, calling him "an errand boy

for Putin who protects murderers".