Day: September 14, 2020

At opposite ends of the country, President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden presented vastly different views Monday about the cause of the historic, destructive wildfires in the Western United States, which have killed at least 35 people.In California, the president — brushing aside concerns about climate change as a catalyst for the increasing number and intensity of such fires — reiterated his call for Western states to practice better forest management.“When trees fall down after a short period of time, they become very dry — really like a matchstick,” said Trump on arrival in California. “And they can explode. Also leaves. When you have dried leaves on the ground, it’s just fuel for the fires.” Trump’s “climate denial” did not cause the fires, Biden said in his home state of Delaware. But if the president gets a second term, “These hellish events will continue to become more common, more devastating and more deadly.”Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden speaks about climate change and wildfires affecting Western states, Sept. 14, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.Speaking outdoors with a field of wheat as the backdrop fewer than 50 days before the national election, Biden added, “If you give a climate arsonist four more years in the White House, why would anyone be surprised if we have more of America ablaze?”The former vice president said Trump’s approach is to ignore the facts and “deny reality,” calling that a full surrender to the effects of climate change.Amid the real peril, this is also a time of extraordinary possibilities, said Biden, adding that as president he would take “urgent action” to combat global warming.  Trump has stayed mostly silent about the widespread devastation in the three solidly Democratic states — California, Oregon and Washington — where more than a million hectares (2.5 million acres) of land has burned.  Among those briefing Trump in California on Monday was Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, a vocal critic of the president.  U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a briefing on wildfires in McClellan Park, California, Sept. 14, 2020.Newsom noted that 56% of the land in California is federally owned, so the federal government has a major responsibility in improved forest management along with the state.  “It’s a big problem, and it will get solved,” said the president.  Newsom told Trump, “We feel very strongly the hots are getting hotter, the dries are getting dryer. Something has happened to the plumbing of the world, and we come from a perspective, humbly, that we assert the science that climate change is real. Please respect the difference of opinion out here with respect to the fundamental issue of climate change.”  California Gov. Gavin Newsom listens during a briefing with President Donald Trump at Sacramento McClellan Airport, in McClellan Park, Calif., Sept. 14, 2020, on the western wildfires.Trump replied, “Absolutely.”  The president, however, also predicted that the climate “will start getting cooler.””Just watch. I don’t think science knows, actually.”  Trump has often questioned the science of climate change, instead blaming poor forest management for the spread of the fires and their intensity. His visit to California, where polls show the majority of voters sharply oppose his reelection, gave the president an opportunity to offer sympathy for the victims of the fires and emphasize the federal firefighting assistance he has approved.  “We say God bless you to those who were killed in this serious fire. We are showing and give support to the people of California,” Trump said.  The president has dispatched more than 26,000 federal personnel and 230 helicopters to fight the fires, according to the White House.U.S. President Donald Trump awards the Distinguished Flying Cross to California National Guard Sergeant Cameron Powell during a ceremony to honor Powell and six other helicopter crew members at McClellan Park, California, Sept. 14, 2020.Trump also presided Monday over a ceremony to award seven members of a California National Guard helicopter crew the Distinguished Flying Cross for rescuing hundreds of stranded campers who had become surrounded by fire. Smoke and flames have combined to envelop the cities of San Francisco, Seattle and Portland with some of the worst air quality in the world.   The massive clouds of smoke blanketing the region have endangered the health of millions of residents. Air quality across the Pacific Northwest state of Oregon was characterized by state environmental officials as “hazardous” or “very unhealthy.”  Tens of thousands of people have fled their homes.  Visibility has been less than a half kilometer in some places, according to the National Weather Service, making it dangerous to drive.  Ken Bredemeier in Washington contributed to this report.  
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Hurricane Sally, one of five storms lined up as if on a conveyor belt across the Atlantic, churned toward the Louisiana-Mississippi coast Monday with rapidly strengthening winds of at least 145 kph (90 mph) and the potential for as much as 60 centimeters (23.5 inches) of rain that could bring severe flooding. Storm-weary Gulf Coast residents rushed to buy bottled water and other supplies ahead of the storm, which was expected to reach Louisiana’s southeastern tip around daybreak Tuesday and make its way sluggishly northward into Mississippi on a path that could menace the New Orleans metropolitan area and cause a long, slow drenching. Forecasters said it could be a Category 2 hurricane with winds of 169 kph (105 mph) by the time it nears the coast. It would be Louisiana’s second pounding from a hurricane in less than three weeks. Jeremy Burke lifted things off the floor in case of flooding in his Bay Books bookstore in the Old Town neighborhood of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, a popular weekend getaway from New Orleans, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) to the west. The streets outside were emptying fast.”It’s turning into a ghost town,” he said. “Everybody’s biggest fear is the storm surge, and the worst possible scenario being that it just stalls out. That would be a dicey situation for everybody.” FILE – Bradley Beard digs as he searches in vain for his water shutoff valve, next to his heavily damaged home and the destroyed trailer home of his daughter in Hackberry, La., in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, Aug. 29, 2020.Sally is perhaps the least welcome guest among lots of company: For only the second time on record, meteorologist Philip Klotzbach said, five tropical cyclones were churning simultaneously in the Atlantic basin.  In addition to Sally were Hurricane Paulette, which passed over a well-fortified Bermuda on Monday and was expected to peel harmlessly out into the North Atlantic, and Tropical Storms Rene, Teddy and Vicky, all of them out at sea. As of midafternoon, Sally was about 260 kilometers (161 miles) southeast of Biloxi, Mississippi. Sally’s sluggish track could give it more time to drench the Mississippi Delta with rain and push storm surge ashore. People in New Orleans watched the storm’s track intently. A more easterly course could bring torrential rain and damaging winds to Mississippi. A more westerly track would pose another test for the low-lying city, where heavy rains have to be pumped out through a century-old drainage system. FILE – Remnants of the half-destroyed mobile home of James Townley, who is living in the standing half, are seen in Lake Charles, La., in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, Aug. 30, 2020.Even with a push toward the east, New Orleans, which is on Lake Pontchartrain, will be in the storm surge area, said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy. He said New Orleans “should be very concerned in terms of track.” The National Hurricane Center forecast storm surges of up to 11 feet (3.4 meters), including 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8 meters) in Lake Pontchartrain and 6 feet in downtown Mobile, Alabama, a city of about 189,000 people. In eastern New Orleans, drainage canals were lowered in anticipation of torrential rains, Mayor LaToya Cantrell said. New Orleans police went on 12-hour shifts, and rescue boats, barricades, backup generators and other equipment were readied, Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson said. On Aug. 27, Hurricane Laura blew ashore in southwestern Louisiana along the Texas line, well west of New Orleans, tearing off roofs and leaving large parts of the city of Lake Charles uninhabitable. The storm was blamed for 32 deaths in the two states, the vast majority of them in Louisiana.  Other Gulf Coast states urged residents to prepare for Sally. In Jackson, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said the hurricane could dump up 51 centimeters (20 inches) of rain in the southern part of the state. Shelters opened, but officials urged people who are evacuating to stay with friends or relatives or in hotels, if possible, because of the coronavirus.  People in shelters will be required to wear masks and other protective equipment, authorities said. “Planning for a Cat 1 or Cat 2 hurricane is always complicated,” Reeves said. “Planning for it during 2020 and the life of COVID makes it even more challenging.” Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey closed beaches and called for evacuations. 
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An international team of astronomers Monday announced the discovery of a rare gas molecule — phosphine — in the clouds of Venus, which may be the first solid evidence of extraterrestrial life in the solar system.  The researchers say on Earth, phosphine is only made industrially or by microbes that thrive in oxygen-free environments. The international team, which includes researchers from Britain, the U.S. and Japan, published their findings in two papers — the science journal Nature on Monday, and Astrobiology journal on Saturday.Phosphine was first spotted in observations that were made by Cardiff University astronomer Jane Greaves using the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) in Hawaii. The discovery was then confirmed using a more sensitive radio telescope, the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile.  FILE – Radio telescope antennas of the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) project, in the Atacama desert, Chile, March 12,2013.The team estimates that phosphine exists in Venus’ clouds at a small concentration, only about 20 molecules in every billion. Still, after running several calculations, they determined there were no non-biological sources on the planet that could account for the levels of phosphine they discovered in the atmosphere. Astronomers have speculated for decades that high clouds on Venus could offer a home for microbes — floating free of the scorching surface but needing to tolerate very high acidity. They say detection of phosphine could point to such extra-terrestrial “aerial” life. Another member of the team, Massachusetts Institute of Technology molecular astrophysicist Clara Sousa Silva, has investigated phosphine as a “biosignature” gas of non-oxygen-using life on planets around other stars. She said finding it on Venus is exciting and extraordinary.  But she said it raises many questions regarding how any organisms, if they exist, could survive in the planet’s atmosphere, where clouds are made up of about 90% sulphuric acid. So, team members acknowledge that confirming the presence of “life” needs a lot more work. 
 
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Starting Sept. 15, China’s telecom giant Huawei — once a symbol of Chinese technology prowess — will be cut off from essential supplies of semiconductors. Without those chips, Huawei cannot make the smartphones or 5G equipment on which its business depends, business analysts say.The sanctions against one of China’s most successful technology companies were announced in August, when the United States introduced a new set of rules that prohibit foreign chipmakers that rely on U.S. technology from selling any chips to Huawei without first obtaining a special license.In recent weeks, suppliers from South Korea and Taiwan have all indicated they will comply with the sanctions and cease their supply of semiconductors to Huawei on Tuesday, the day the new moves against the Chinese company comes into force.“Unfortunately, in the second round of U.S. sanctions, our chip producers only accepted orders until May 15. Production of the chip will stop on Sept. 15,” Richard Yu, chief executive of Huawei’s consumer business, said last month. “Because there is no Chinese chip manufacturing industry to support, Huawei is faced with the problem of no chips.”Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei Technologies Consumer Business Group, holds a Huawei Mate Xs foldable smartphone, as he talks to the audience during Huawei stream product launch event in Barcelona, Spain, Feb. 24, 2020.MicrochipsFor all of China’s efforts to become a global leader in high-technology, the factory of the world is yet not able to manufacture top-level contenders in one crucial area — the microchip, the nervous system that runs just about every electronic device.An important mark of a microchip’s level of sophistication is how many transistors can be placed on its surface. The smaller the size, measured in nanometers, the more advanced the microchip.China’s best manufacturing process is believed to be able to make 14-nanometer microchips, which are several generations behind Samsung and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). Samsung reached this standard in 2014. TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, is already making 5-nanometer chips.Kunpeng 920 chipset is on display at Huawei’s booth during the 2020 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) in Beijing, Sept. 4, 2020.While some of the most advanced semiconductor manufacturers are based outside the U.S., the industry is heavily dependent upon U.S. suppliers to provide everything from design software to manufacturing equipment.Washington first placed Huawei on a trade blacklist in May 2019, citing national security concerns. However, this ban did not include most foreign-produced chips. In May, the U.S. extended the ban to cut off Huawei from its non-American suppliers, which affects China’s own semiconductor companies whose market is in China.Early last month, China’s leading chipmaker, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), indicated it will abide by the U.S. rules and stop selling chips to Huawei. Like all of the semiconductor foundries, SMIC relies on U.S.-based companies to obtain key production equipment.”The dominance of U.S.-origin technology in upstream sectors of the global semiconductor supply chain means that Chinese ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) firms across the board are exposed to U.S. export controls, regardless of what happens to SMIC or Huawei as individual companies,” John Lee, a senior analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), told VOA.China’s failed attemptsBeijing has a long history of angst about the country’s dependence on foreign semiconductors. Its strategic planning related to this key industry dates back to the 1950s, when the State Council convened a group of scientists to develop an “Outline for Science and Technology Development, 1956–1967,” which identified semiconductor technology as a “key priority.”In recent decades, from the “531 Development Plan” launched in 1986 to the multibillion-dollar National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund that was explicitly established for the chip sector in 2014, the country has poured considerable state resources into its semiconductor aspirations.A report released in July 2019 by U.S. International Trade Commission said the fund, along with provincial and municipal Integrated Circuit-related funds, are well on their way to reaching the goal of $150 billion.James Andrew Lewis, senior vice president and director of the Technology Policy Program at CSIS, told CNBC last week that China might outspend the U.S. “1,000 to 1″ when it comes to investing in semiconductors.In 2016, China’s President Xi Jinping noted, “The fact that core technology is controlled by others is our greatest hidden danger.”Xi emphasized the point again last Friday when chairing a symposium of scientists on the development of science and technology during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) period.“Some key core technologies are subject to others,” he said.Last week, in response to the new U.S. restrictions on Huawei, China announced a sweeping new set of government policies to expand its domestic semiconductor industry by providing extensive support for the next generation of semiconductors in the 14th Five-Year Plan.In hopes that key technologies from the foreign firms will get transferred to Chinese companies, Beijing has also encouraged U.S. chipmakers to form joint ventures with domestic firms. According to MERICS, the think tank based in Germany, China’s quest for foreign technology at times even targets entire industries.A visitor is seen at a Huawei P40 Pro+ stand at the IFA consumer technology fair in Berlin, Germany, Sept. 3, 2020.“Almost all of the large semiconductor enterprises in the United States have received investment offers from Chinese state actors,” a research report by MERICS said.On the other hand, Douglas Fuller, a professor at City University of Hong Kong who studies the technology industry, said China should not be viewed as a failure.”There are only four firms ahead of SMIC in foundry services — two from Taiwan (TSMC and UMC), Korea’s Samsung, and U.S./UAE’s GloFo,” Fuller told VOA in an email.As for mass manufacturing, there are only two places with the leading technology —- TSMC in Taiwan and Samsung in Korea, he said.”Intel is even playing catch-up. Thus, other than Taiwan and Korea, the whole rest of the world is behind the cutting edge of manufacturing tech in this industry, including the U.S., Japan, Israel and all of Europe,” said Fuller.Will Huawei survive?It remains unclear where Huawei will be able to buy its chips. Taiwanese chipmaker MediaTek said last month it had applied to the U.S. government for permission to continue supplying Huawei after new U.S. rules take effect. In the meantime, Huawei has reportedly stockpiled up to two years’ worth of silicon to keep its business running.”In the short term, it is difficult to see any effective options available to Chinese firms targeted by U.S. export controls on semiconductors,” said Lee, whose research focuses on the rise of Chinese digital technology.As for the future, analysts say the U.S. will unlikely be able to stop China from making basic semiconductors. Given enough time, the country’s vast consumer market for electronics and decades of investment will eventually make it a chip producer.”In the medium to long term, China will probably be able to substitute U.S. technology and develop a complete domestic semiconductor supply chain (though whether it can catch up to foreign firms at the technological cutting edge is another issue).” Lee said in an email.James Lewis, director of the Technology Policy Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), wrote in May that Huawei has been harmed by the U.S. effort, “but the Chinese government will not allow it to collapse — Huawei is too important.” 
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Some people stuck inside during coronavirus lockdown are playing video games. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, entrepreneurs are catering to young people who want to share the gaming experience. From Kinshasa, Anasthasie Tudieshe has the story.
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Tropical Storm Sally slowed down Sunday as it churned northward toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, increasing the risk of heavy rain and dangerous storm surge before an expected strike as a Category 2 hurricane in southern Louisiana. “I know for a lot of people this storm seemed to come out of nowhere,” said Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards. “We need everybody to pay attention to this storm. Let’s take this one seriously.” Forecasters from the National Hurricane Center in Miami said Sally is expected to become a hurricane Monday and reach shore by early Tuesday, bringing dangerous weather conditions, including risk of flooding, to a region stretching from Morgan City, Louisiana, to Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  Edwards urged people to prepare for the storm immediately. He also said there are still many from southwestern Louisiana who evacuated from Hurricane Laura into New Orleans — exactly the area that could be hit by Sally. “Based on all of the available information, we have every reason to believe this storm represents a significant threat,” he said, adding that the coronavirus adds a layer of complexity to storm preparations. There are still about 5,400 members of the state’s National Guard mobilized from Laura, and they will assist with Sally. In Mandeville, a city about 56 Kilometers north of New Orleans, resident Chris Yandle has purchased a week’s worth of groceries and moved all his patio furniture into his family’s house and shed in preparation for the storm. “I’m mostly trying to stay calm — especially with a family of four and a dog to worry about,” Yandle said. “I’ve lived through many hurricanes growing up in Louisiana, but I haven’t felt this anxious about a hurricane in my life.” Mississippi officials warned that the storm was expected to coincide with high tide, leading to significant storm surge. “It needs to be understood by all of our friends in the coastal region and in south Mississippi that if you live in low-lying areas, the time to get out is early tomorrow morning,” Gov. Tate Reeves said late Sunday. In Waveland, Mississippi, Joey Chauvin used rope to tie down a tall wooden post topped with a statue of a pelican serving as a marker at the driveway leading to his weekend camp. He said a matching pelican marker on the opposite side of the driveway was washed away in Tropical Storm Cristobal earlier this summer. That storm pushed more than 3 feet of water into the area.  “If this one hits the coast as a Cat 2, I’m thinking we’re gonna have at least 6 to 7 feet (1.8 to 2.1 meters)of water where we’re standing at,” Chauvin said. “So, yeah, we’re definitely not going to stay.” The system was moving west-northwest at 15 kph on Sunday evening. It was centered 265 kilometers south of Panama City, Florida, and 315 kilometers east-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. On Sunday, Florida’s Gulf Coast was battered with windy, wet weather. Pensacola, on Florida’s Panhandle, was bracing for 25 to 38 centimeters of rain. Sally could produce rain totals up to 51 centimeters by the middle of the week, forecasters said. Its maximum sustained winds Sunday evening were 95 kph. “That system is forecast to bring not only damaging winds but a dangerous storm surge,” said Daniel Brown of the Hurricane Center. “Because it’s slowing down, it could produce a tremendous amount of rainfall over the coming days.” This isn’t the only storm in the Atlantic basin. Paulette gained hurricane status late Saturday and was expected to bring storm surge, coastal flooding and high winds to Bermuda, according to a U.S. National Hurricane Center advisory. On Sunday evening, it was about 195 kilometers southeast of Bermuda. Its maximum sustained winds were 137 kph. Once a tropical storm, Rene was forecast to become a remnant low Monday. Tropical Depression Twenty was expected to strengthen this week and become a tropical storm by Tuesday, forecasters said. “This week is essentially the peak of the hurricane season,” said Brown. “It is quite active across the tropics today.” 
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ByteDance, the Chinese company behind the wildly popular video sharing app TikTok, has rejected Microsoft’s bid to buy the app and appears to be leaning toward a deal with investors led by Oracle.  The Trump administration has given ByteDance until September 20 to make a deal or stop operating inside the U.S.  On Sunday, the Microsoft’s corporate headquarters in Redmond, Washington. (Photo: Diaa Bekheet)In a statement, Microsoft said its proposal “would have been good for TikTok’s users, while protecting national security interests. To do this, we would have made significant changes to ensure the service met the highest standards for security, privacy, online safety, and combatting disinformation.”The fate of TikTok in the U.S. hangs in the balance as it approaches the Trump administration deadline. In recent months, the video app has become a focus of U.S.-China tensions with the administration accusing the company of being answerable to the Chinese government, a claim that TikTok has denied. In August, President Donald Trump issued an executive order banning TikTok and WeChat, the Chinese messaging app. But even with security concerns about TikTok, Americans have continued to download the app. By end of first quarter 2020, TikTok saw more than 300 million downloads in the U.S., according to Go.Verizon’s data.  Microsoft together with Walmart pursued a deal with ByteDance. A second group of investors led by Oracle emerged as a possible bidder. Oracle is one of the few Silicon Valley firms with top executives who have held fundraisers for President Trump. As the negotiations progressed, the Chinese government changed its export rules stopping TikTok from selling its valuable recommendation algorithm, dubbed “For You,” which queued up the next video for a user to watch. It’s unclear if any deal with Oracle would involve the algorithm. 
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