The Netherlands: Bees in the Netherlands trained to detect COVID-19 infections- by Bart Biesemans

utch researchers have trained bees, which have an unusually keen sense of smell, to identify samples infected with COVID-19, a finding they said could cut waiting times for test results to just seconds.

To train the bees, scientists in the bio-veterinary research laboratory at Wageningen University gave them sugary water as a reward after showing them samples infected with COVID-19. They would get no reward after being shown a non-infected sample.

Read more at: Bees in the Netherlands trained to detect COVID-19 infections | Reuters

Diplomacy is back′: G7 foreign ministers present united front despite COVID setback

There's nothing quite like being face-to-face, or mask-to-mask," quipped US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as a three-day meeting of foreign ministers from the world's seven largest so-called advanced economies got underway in London on Monday.

Like the rest of us, G7 foreign ministers have been holding meetings online since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, with this week's talks marking the first opportunity for representatives of the group of industrialized nations to meet face-to-face in over two years.

Read more at: ′Diplomacy is back′: G7 foreign ministers present united front despite COVID setback | News | DW | 05.05.2021

Coronavirus Vaccine: Pfizer vaccine sofar effective against Variants says developer

One of the people behind the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine says he has yet to see any evidence that emerging variants of the disease have found a way to defeat it.

Dr. Ugur Sahin, who founded BioNTech with his wife Dr. Özlem Türeci, told CBC News Network's Power & Politics today that scientists have two main concerns when it comes to variants of the COVID-19 virus.

Read more at: Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine not troubled by variants so far, says CEO | CBC News

The Netherlands: Bee population steady in Dutch cities thanks to pollinator strategy | Bees

Bee hotels, bee stops and a honey highway are some of the techniques the Dutch are crediting with keeping their urban bee population steady in recent years, after a period of worrying decline.

Last week, more than 11,000 people from across the Netherlands participated in a bee-counting exercise as part of the fourth edition of the national bee census.

The enthusiastic volunteers, armed with a list depicting the most common bees at this time of the year, spent 30 minutes in their gardens recording their apian visitors. At the close of data submission on Sunday 18 April, more than 200,000 bees and hoverflies had been counted.

Read more at: Bee population steady in Dutch cities thanks to pollinator strategy | Bees | The Guardian

Netherlands - USA Criminal cooperation: Netherlands seeking extradition of former Miss. deputy in connection to murder

The Netherlands is seeking the extradition of a former Mississippi sheriff’s deputy in connection to the murder of a German national living in the Netherlands in November 2019.

William Lyle Johnson, of Hattiesburg, was arrested by federal authorities Wednesday after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Southern Mississippi filed an extradition complaint Tuesday.

According to the complaint, Johnson is wanted in the Netherlands on several charges, including preparation of murder, incitement and/or accessory to murder, preparation of extortion resulting in death and hostage-taking.

Johnson is accused of being involved in the murder of Thomas Schwarz, whose body was found in a pool of blood in his Limburg home in the Netherlands on Nov. 26, 2019.

Read more at: Netherlands seeking extradition of former Miss. deputy in connection to murder

May Day 2021: Know history and significance of Labour Day

May 1 is the International Day of Workers or International Labour Day dedicated to workers and labourers across the world. This day celebrates labourers and encourages them to be aware of their rights. The day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement. Popularly known as May Day, the day is observed in countries such as India, Cuba and China among other countries.

Read more at: May Day 2021: Know history and significance of Labour Day | Hindustan Times

The Netherlands: Fitch Affirms Netherlands at 'AAA'; Outlook Stable

The Netherlands' 'AAA' rating is supported by a high value-added, flexible and open economy, a structurally strong external position and effective institutions, as reflected in the World Bank's governance indicators. The Netherlands' public debt ratio has risen further above the 'AAA' median as a result of the policy response to the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Nevertheless, a strong record of sound fiscal management and the authorities' plans to narrow the deficit beginning in 2022 gives confidence that the debt ratio will decline over the medium term after the coronavirus pandemic subsides.

Read more at: Fitch Affirms Netherlands at 'AAA'; Outlook Stable