Small businesses struggling under coronavirus pressures have been handed nearly £1.5 billion in government-backed loans in just a week - more than double the loans provided since the scheme began in March.

War veteran Captain Tom Moore, who has raised millions for the NHS by walking lengths of his garden, has thanked The Weeknd for his "kind gesture" after the singer urged his fans to support the 99-year-old's single.

Former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine today leads a chorus of business leaders and grandees urging Boris Johnson to feed the "hunger for hope" in locked-down Britain by mapping out a clear route back to prosperity.

Planning is fundamental for any business. We not only plan for good times, but also for bad. And these are indeed bad.

Thousands of Londoners were today urged to get tested for coronavirus to help get the capital "back on its feet" as the deadline loomed for the Government's target of 100,000 tests a day.

American astronauts will be back on the Moon within five years "by any means necessary," the US Vice President has announced.

Boris Johnson has been pictured beaming as he arrived back in Downing Street from hospital after the birth of his baby son .

Joe Wicks says he will be back for his PE class on Monday after undergoing hand surgery.

Piers Morgan has said he will temporarily step back from presenting ITV's Good Morning Britain after developing a "mild" coronavirus symptom.

Thousands of firms today rushed to get "bounce back" loans of up to £50,000 to avoid going bust within weeks as the coronavirus crisis wreaked havoc in the economy.

Military-style discipline will be needed from every individual to get the country safely back to work, the Defence Secretary said today as ministers started preparing to modify the two-metre social distancing rule.

Schools are installing hand-washing troughs in playgrounds and preparing to mark out two-metre lines to keep parents apart as they drop off their children in anticipation of the coronavirus lockdown ending.

Draft proposals for how to return to work safely have been leaked and they paint a very different picture of the workplace post lockdown.​

The House of Commons echoed with peals of laughter today as Matt Hancock complimented a fellow Tory MP on his lockdown hairdo.

EXCLUSIVE

In today's Diary: Comics set up support network / Liam Gallager's alternative career / The Londoner on VE Day / Priti Patel makes creative use of her Red Box

Most parents don't want to send their children back to school as soon as the coronavirus lockdown is lifted, a new study has found.

A solar-driven hydrogen-producing machine that makes more copies of itself.

YouTube, Facebook crack down on two viral videos for spreading medical misinformation.

For Jeff Anderson, 61, working from home during the coronavirus pandemic has been a respite from office politics and the chatter around the copy machine.But as the push to reopen the country's economy intensifies, so do feelings of dread at the idea of returning to the office, said Anderson, a self-described introvert and anthropology professor at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York."Just walking from the parking lot to my office I feel like I could be sick," he said. "It's that bad."In wanting to work alone, Anderson is not alone. People other than introverts view a return to the office with sadness and anxiety, and not just because they still risk getting infected. A Gallup poll found a majority of U.S. adults working from home would prefer to continue doing so "as much as possible" after the pandemic.These fans of online work worry that they -- and the country itself -- will lose important benefits discovered during this unprecedented experiment in mass remote work. People who have never liked schmoozing with colleagues have found new heights of productivity away from meetings and office chitchat. People worried about climate change are eager to reduce their carbon footprints by avoiding commutes by car. And while many parents are desperate for schools and day care centers to reopen, some working parents are appreciating more time with their children.Before the pandemic, Christine Reilley had to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to catch an early bus to Manhattan where she works as senior director of strategy and innovation for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers."I'm better rested. I can devote more time to my work," she said. "Just saving the time and money of commuting, I really like this personally."Impossible for Some and 'Overrated' for OthersIt did not take long for naysayers to declare that working from home was "overrated."And yes, it is an option mostly for white-collar office workers. Telecommuting is rarely possible for people in manufacturing or service jobs, and for the health workers, emergency responders, grocery store clerks and delivery people who have been deemed essential personnel. And the more than 30 million Americans who have lost their jobs since March may be impatient about complaints from people still drawing paychecks.Nor can the other downsides be denied. Trying to meet on Zoom from a kitchen table with bored children and annoyed spouses complaining in the background is hardly good for productivity. Women say that video calls make it harder for them to get in a word during meetings dominated by men. This crisis has also increased the burdens on working mothers.Telecommuting was already a growing trend that left out many low-wage workers and was viewed warily by employers who worried that people were slacking off at home. Researchers warned that problem solving and creativity suffer when workers are isolated from one another. Isolated work can lead to loneliness and boredom. Remote workers have also reported they have had to work even longer hours.OK, So What Are the Benefits?For remote work to be successful, employers need to provide the right equipment and other support, said Laurel Farrer, chief executive of Distribute Consulting, a business consulting firm. And the employees must be able to get work done without supervision. If set up properly, experts and advocates say, remote work has many benefits:-- Less time on the road. Commuting by car has been linked to increased stress, more pollution and respiratory problems. The average American who drives to work spends 54 hours per year stuck in traffic, according to an analysis by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute.-- Greater productivity. One well-known study from 2014 led by Stanford professor Nicholas Bloom examined remote workers at a Chinese travel agency and found that they were 13% more efficient than their office-based peers.-- A cleaner environment (maybe). According to estimates from Global Workplace Analytics, a research and consulting firm, if everyone in the United States worked remotely half the time, it could reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicle travel by more than 51 million metric tons a year. Graphics showing the reduction in air pollution and pictures of clearer skies over cities like Los Angeles have been among the silver linings of the pandemic. Of course, when people return to work, the roads may fill up again, especially if people fear getting the virus on public transit. And even if more people start working remotely, they might use their cars more for errands closer to home, said Bill Eisele, a senior research engineer at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. Office commuters make up only about 18% of all traffic, he said.-- Money saved. Global Workplace Analytics estimated that people could save, on average, $2,000 to $6,500 every year by not spending on things like gasoline and day care. Companies could spend less on real estate. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office estimated it saved more than $38 million in 2015 by not using as much office space, according to a Harvard Business School working paper from November.-- More job satisfaction. A 2005 study found that job satisfaction increased with each additional hour people spent working remotely. But it stopped increasing beyond 15 hours worked remotely.-- Less sickness. Even as companies consider reconfiguring workplaces with plexiglass barriers on desks and special air filters, letting employees work from home can help keep them safe from communicable diseases (and not just COVID-19).-- More time for fitness. You may be able to squeeze in more workouts. "Having a little more time, if you're using it wisely, can be very beneficial," said Marilyn Skarbek, an assistant professor of exercise science at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. "There are a lot of other things you can do around the house to keep you moving: laundry, cleaning -- all of that keeps you active. My house is definitely cleaner than normal." But there is a risk you could be more sedentary, she warned.Kate Lister, president of Global Workplace Analytics, predicted that workers will be looking for the "happy medium," splitting time between remote work and showing up at the office. The hope is that the pandemic will have shown managers that workers can be trusted to do their jobs without constant supervision."Any kind of flexibility is something that people are really, really ripe for, just some control over where and when they work," she said.Happy Tales From the Home OfficeMany people who had never considered this kind of working life have now had a taste of it, and they love it.Jacquie Benetua-Rolens, communications and engagement coordinator at Santa Cruz Community Health Centers in Santa Cruz, California, has a 2-year-old son who has become a daily part of Zoom meetings with colleagues, waving at them in his pajamas."There is this softened, unfiltered, more honest version of ourselves that I'm enjoying getting to know," Benetua-Rolens said. "There is room to be forgiving and understanding with each other and ourselves. And it's because we've all had to juggle."Benetua-Rolens said she often thinks of her small cubicle back at the office, which she decorated with plants and pictures of her two children."I used to love it," she said. "But I don't miss it at all. I don't want to go back to that even though my house is filthy."Jessica Keup, a 37-year-old single mother and a computer programmer in Ann Arbor, Michigan, moved to her parents' home in rural Tennessee with her 3-year-old son in mid-March, after her company told employees to work from home.Since then, she has been coding from the deck while her son plays with the goats, chickens and peacocks that roost on the vast property.Keup said the solitude has made her more focused and more productive. Her work is not interrupted by chatty colleagues who want to say hi or need help fixing a computer glitch."The people who are in the office who are extroverts stand out and talk a lot and can take the oxygen out of the room," she said.At least one poll from early in the pandemic suggests a strong preference for remote work. Gallup found that almost 60% of Americans working from home would prefer to work remotely "as much as possible" after restrictions are lifted, with 40% saying they preferred to return to the workplace. The online survey of 2,276 randomly selected adults was conducted from March 14 through April 2. It had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.At the very least, some workers would like to see employers put lessons of the pandemic into practice, including more compassionate management in general.Rico Sisney, who works for Greenpeace USA, said he would like to continue seeing the kinds of emails his organization has been sending lately encouraging employees to take walks and small breaks."Organizations can continue that even when there is not a pandemic," Sisney said. "Highlight mental health."Christine de Denus, a chemistry professor at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, said she has relished the quiet of working from her porch. She thinks workplaces should adapt to all styles of working."Go to the people and say, 'How can I help you thrive?'" de Denus said. "Just because I'm quiet in a meeting doesn't mean I don't have ideas."When the time comes to return to the office, Keup said she plans to ask if she can work two to four weeks a year from Tennessee."It's beautiful. It's resting and restorative," she said. "And I'll miss that."This article originally appeared in The New York Times.(C) 2020 The New York Times Company

Certain habitats can help dampen the spread of ash dieback, which threatens ash trees.

Letter seeks to dispel view that Prof Neil Ferguson was single architect of lockdown idea

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A group of leading UK scientists have insisted that the scientific basis for the coronavirus lockdown is the work of a large group of experts, and that epidemiologist Prof Neil Ferguson is just one voice among many.

In a letter co-ordinated by Dr Thibaut Jombart, an associate professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, more than 25 prominent scientists said debates after Ferguson’s “individual error” – in which he flouted lockdown rules by receiving visits at home from his lover – had amplified a misconception that he alone persuaded the government to change policy.

‘Challenge’ studies would deliberately give coronavirus to healthy volunteers

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Controversial trials in which volunteers are intentionally infected with Covid-19 could accelerate vaccine development, according to the World Health Organization, which has released new guidance on how the approach could be ethically justified despite the potential dangers for participants.

So-called challenge trials are a mainstream approach in vaccine development and have been used in malaria, typhoid and flu, but there are treatments available for these diseases if a volunteer becomes severely ill. For Covid-19, a safe dose of the virus has not been established and there are no failsafe treatments if things go wrong.

While the White House looks ahead to reopening houses of worship, most Americans think in-person religious services should be barred or allowed only with limits during the coronavirus pandemic — and only about a third say that prohibiting in-person services violates religious freedom, a new poll finds. States have taken different approaches to resuming gatherings as the coronavirus continues to spread, raising tough questions for religious leaders and the faithful about the appropriate time to return. Among that group is 54-year-old Andre Harris of Chicago, a onetime Sunday school teacher who has shifted his routine from physical worship to the conference calls his church is holding during the pandemic.

It will be important to one day learn the true origin story of the global pandemic to defend against similar outbreaks in the future, Health Minister Patty Hajdu acknowledged Monday.

Some 30,000 patients added to waitlist as hospital beds held open for possible pandemic surge. 

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Gov. Tom Wolf hopes a New Deal-inspired plan will help get the state's more than 1.7 million unemployed residents working again.

Zephyr Teachout

The post Democracy Wins in New York—and Bernie’s Back on the Ballot! appeared first on The Nation.

OTTAWA - Canada has backed an American-led effort to allow Taiwan to be granted observer status at the World Health Organization because of its early success in containing COVID-19. The move is politically sensitive because China considers Taiwan a breakaway province and views any overture of

"There is a leadership vacuum in the company, because they made the wrong choice of CEO three years ago and that is playing out right now."

Hundreds of worried fans of ailing Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan today performed a yagna here to pray for his speedy recovery.

As many provinces move towards slowly reopening non-essential businesses, employers and employees are looking ahead to plan what the new normal could look like in the workplace, including whether those who have tested positive for COVID-19 will have to provide a doctor's note to return to work.

“Are you ready for the ride of your life?”

Over the course of his 30-year WWE career, Mark Calaway rarely let the world see the man behind "The Undertaker" -- until he decided to open his life to a camera crew.

Professional poker player Phil Galfond overcame a €900,000 deficit in a 25,000-hand head-to-head challenge against a pot-limit Omaha regular known as "VeniVidi1993" online.

Big East commissioner Val Ackerman discussed the hurdles for sports to return to her league in 2020-21.

With almost all football off because of the coronavirus, star players have found themselves at a loose end. How are they filling their time?

Kevin Love's Cavs became one of the first teams in the NBA to reopen their practice facility for voluntary individual workouts, a process that Love described as "weird" but also "pretty uplifting."

Apple capitalized on the Federal Reserve's emergency measures in response to the coronavirus outbreak to issue its cheapest bonds in year

In anticipation for a technical event that may be a new catalyst, Bitcoin has rallied to more than US$9,000 from around US$6,000 just a month ago

Larger retailers like Heinz and Loblaw signing up with Shopify

Gov. Tom Wolf hopes a New Deal-inspired plan will help get the state's more than 1.7 million unemployed residents working again.

Just a few short months ago, Trump planned to campaign for reelection on the back of a robust economy. That’s now a distant memory.

Canada has backed an American-led effort to allow Taiwan to be granted observer status at the World Health Organization because of its early success in containing COVID-19.

Celebrities have backed calls for Home Secretary Priti Patel to end restrictions that prevent thousands of migrants in the UK from accessing financial support during the coronavirus crisis.

Trump said that the death toll would be lower than projected due to mitigation despite states beginning to reopen even though they're falling short of suggested federal guidelines.

From 1918 to 1920, the Spanish flu pandemic killed hundreds of thousands of Americans and millions worldwide. Yet the U.S. emerged with a roaring economy in what became known as the Roaring ’20s. What lessons can we take away from that crisis 100 years ago?