Libyan Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah's car was targeted by gunfire overnight, local media reported, without specifying whether he had been inside.

The reports were not confirmed by officials.

The prime minister's social media feeds had published nothing on the subject, and spokesman Mohamed Hamouda did not respond to several attempts by AFP to contact him.

A police official told AFP on condition of anonymity that security services had received "no indication of gunfire in Tripoli".

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The news came as the wartorn country's parliament, based in eastern Libya hundreds of miles (kilometres) from the capital, prepared to vote on a replacement for Dbeibah.

The premier, who had a mandate to lead the country to elections set for December last year but which were ultimately abandoned, has said he will only cede power to an elected government.

Hours before the reported shooting, Dbeibah had met dozens of supporters who had gathered at Martyrs' Square in Tripoli to protest against the parliament's attempts to remove him.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/anti-jewish-hate-incidents-hit-new-record-high-in-uk-report-452103">Anti-jewish hate incidents hit new record high in UK: Report</a>

Libya has been torn apart by regional, tribal and ideological divisions since the 2011 revolt that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi.&nbsp;

A landmark ceasefire in late 2020 had cleared the way for&nbsp;United&nbsp;Nations-led efforts to bring an end to a decade of violence.

Dbeibah's unity government took office in early 2021 but when December 24 elections were cancelled amid deep divisions over their legal basis and several controversial candidates, his rivals charged that his mandate had ended.

The push to remove him has triggered fears of a return to east-west divisions and parallel governments.&nbsp;

Libyan Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah's car was targeted by gunfire overnight, local media reported, without specifying whether he had been inside. The reports were not confirmed by officials.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah's car was targeted by gunfire overnight, local media reported, without specifying whether he had been inside. The reports were not confirmed by officials. The prime minister's social media feeds had published nothing on the subject, and spokesman Mohamed Hamouda did not respond to several attempts by AFP to contact him. A police official told AFP on condition of anonymity that security services had received "no indication of gunfire in Tripoli". Also read | Ultimatums, threats from West on Ukraine won’t work against Russia, says foreign minister The news came as the wartorn country's parliament, based in eastern Libya hundreds of miles (kilometres) from the capital, prepared to vote on a replacement for Dbeibah. The premier, who had a mandate to lead the country to elections set for December last year but which were ultimately abandoned, has said he will only cede power to an elected government. Hours before the reported shooting, Dbeibah had met dozens of supporters who had gathered at Martyrs' Square in Tripoli to protest against the parliament's attempts to remove him. Also read | Anti-jewish hate incidents hit new record high in UK: Report Libya has been torn apart by regional, tribal and ideological divisions since the 2011 revolt that toppled dictator Moamer Kadhafi. A landmark ceasefire in late 2020 had cleared the way for United Nations-led efforts to bring an end to a decade of violence. Dbeibah's unity government took office in early 2021 but when December 24 elections were cancelled amid deep divisions over their legal basis and several controversial candidates, his rivals charged that his mandate had ended. The push to remove him has triggered fears of a return to east-west divisions and parallel governments.

Libya media report shooting targeting PM's car

A&nbsp;record&nbsp;number of international patents were filed last year, indicating that innovation had not been stymied by the pandemic, the United Nations said Thursday.

Even as Covid-19 took a vast human and economic toll, international&nbsp;patent&nbsp;applications continued to grow, with Asia, and China in particular, cementing their leading positions.

A&nbsp;record&nbsp;277,500 international patents were filed in&nbsp;2021, marking a 0.9-percent increase from 2020, the&nbsp;UN's World Intellectual Property Organisation said in its annual overview.

"These figures show that human ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit remain strong despite the disruptions caused by the pandemic." WIPO Director-General Daren Tang said in a statement.

Last year marked the 12th consecutive year of growth in international&nbsp;patent&nbsp;filings.

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WIPO's chief economist Carsten Fink highlighted how remarkable it was that "international&nbsp;patent&nbsp;filings&nbsp;continued to grow in 2020 and&nbsp;2021&nbsp;as the&nbsp;global&nbsp;pandemic unfolded and upended economies around the world."

"This experience is notably different compared to previous economic crises," he told reporters, pointing to how international&nbsp;patent&nbsp;filings&nbsp;fell during the&nbsp;global&nbsp;financial crisis in 2009.

WIPO's complex system of registering international patents involves multiple categories, including&nbsp;global&nbsp;trademarks and design filing systems.

China on top

In the main category -- the&nbsp;Patent&nbsp;Cooperation Treaty, or PCT -- China remained at the top of the rankings with 69,540&nbsp;filings.

That marks a mere 0.9-percent increase over 2020.&nbsp;

But a year earlier, China registered a 16-percent jump over 2019, when it for the first time overtook the United States as the world's top international&nbsp;patent&nbsp;filer.

The United States remained in second place in&nbsp;2021, with 59,570&nbsp;filings, followed by Japan with 50,260, South Korea with 20,678 and Germany with 17,322.

The&nbsp;UN&nbsp;agency highlighted significant growth in applications by several smaller filers as well.

Singapore, for instance, saw its international&nbsp;patent&nbsp;applications swell by 23 percent to 1,617, while Finland and Turkey each saw jumps of over 13 percent.

WIPO's report showed that Asia-based applicants accounted for 54.1 percent of all&nbsp;filings&nbsp;last year, up from 38.5 percent a decade earlier.

For the fifth consecutive year, China-based telecoms giant Huawei Technologies topped the&nbsp;global&nbsp;ranking in&nbsp;2021, with 6,952 PCT applications.

The company thus applied for more international patents than all the&nbsp;filings&nbsp;out of Britain in&nbsp;2021, Fink pointed out.

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It was followed by US firm Qualcomm Inc at 3,931; South Korea's Samsung Electronics at 3,041 and LG Electronics at 2,855; and Mitsubishi Electric Corp of Japan at 2,673.

Computer technology accounted for the largest share of published PCT applications, making up 9.9 percent of the total, followed by digital communication and medical technology.

The pharmaceutical field recorded the strongest growth rate for&nbsp;filings, seeing a 12.8-percent jump, followed by biotechnology, which was up 9.5 percent.

Fink pointed out that it takes around 18 months for patents to be published after they are filed, warning that the official&nbsp;2021&nbsp;figures might not yet completely reflect pandemic-fuelled technology trends.

However, he said, "we have definitely seen greater dynamism in the health-related technology fields."

A record number of international patents were filed last year, indicating that innovation had not been stymied by the pandemic, the United Nations said Thursday.

A record number of international patents were filed last year, indicating that innovation had not been stymied by the pandemic, the United Nations said Thursday. Even as Covid-19 took a vast human and economic toll, international patent applications continued to grow, with Asia, and China in particular, cementing their leading positions. A record 277,500 international patents were filed in 2021, marking a 0.9-percent increase from 2020, the UN's World Intellectual Property Organisation said in its annual overview. "These figures show that human ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit remain strong despite the disruptions caused by the pandemic." WIPO Director-General Daren Tang said in a statement. Last year marked the 12th consecutive year of growth in international patent filings. Also read | Tsirkon 'serial production': Russia's race for hypersonic missiles revealed WIPO's chief economist Carsten Fink highlighted how remarkable it was that "international patent filings continued to grow in 2020 and 2021 as the global pandemic unfolded and upended economies around the world." "This experience is notably different compared to previous economic crises," he told reporters, pointing to how international patent filings fell during the global financial crisis in 2009. WIPO's complex system of registering international patents involves multiple categories, including global trademarks and design filing systems. China on top In the main category -- the Patent Cooperation Treaty, or PCT -- China remained at the top of the rankings with 69,540 filings. That marks a mere 0.9-percent increase over 2020. But a year earlier, China registered a 16-percent jump over 2019, when it for the first time overtook the United States as the world's top international patent filer. The United States remained in second place in 2021, with 59,570 filings, followed by Japan with 50,260, South Korea with 20,678 and Germany with 17,322. The UN agency highlighted significant growth in applications by several smaller filers as well. Singapore, for instance, saw its international patent applications swell by 23 percent to 1,617, while Finland and Turkey each saw jumps of over 13 percent. WIPO's report showed that Asia-based applicants accounted for 54.1 percent of all filings last year, up from 38.5 percent a decade earlier. For the fifth consecutive year, China-based telecoms giant Huawei Technologies topped the global ranking in 2021, with 6,952 PCT applications. The company thus applied for more international patents than all the filings out of Britain in 2021, Fink pointed out. Also read | One menacing call after another: Threats against lawmakers surge It was followed by US firm Qualcomm Inc at 3,931; South Korea's Samsung Electronics at 3,041 and LG Electronics at 2,855; and Mitsubishi Electric Corp of Japan at 2,673. Computer technology accounted for the largest share of published PCT applications, making up 9.9 percent of the total, followed by digital communication and medical technology. The pharmaceutical field recorded the strongest growth rate for filings, seeing a 12.8-percent jump, followed by biotechnology, which was up 9.5 percent. Fink pointed out that it takes around 18 months for patents to be published after they are filed, warning that the official 2021 figures might not yet completely reflect pandemic-fuelled technology trends. However, he said, "we have definitely seen greater dynamism in the health-related technology fields."

Global patent filings surged to record high in 2021: UN

Global water scarcity might worsen, if a new study is accurate.

The glaciers of the world seem to be containing significantly less ice than thought previously, according to the&nbsp;study. &nbsp;

The revelation was made with the help of advanced&nbsp;satellite technology. &nbsp;

The study was published in Nature Geoscience on Monday. &nbsp;

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If all glaciers melt, the global sea level will rise by 3 inches (7.62 centimetres), as per the revised estimate. &nbsp;

Romain Millan, glaciologist, Université Grenoble Alpes, said, “We’ve had quite a poor understanding of how much ice is actually stored in glaciers.” Millan is also the lead author of the study. &nbsp;

For example, the past analyses had double-counted glaciers along the peripheries of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, which led to overestimating ice volume. &nbsp;

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It assessed how quickly the glaciers are moving across the landscape, or their velocity. It helps scientists to measure volume more accurately as the flow of the glaciers&nbsp;indicates that ice is thick or thin.

In recent years, high-resolution satellites helped to conduct the analysis of how 98% of the world’s glaciers are moving, “from small glaciers in the Andes up to massive glaciers in Svalbard and Patagonia,” said Millan. &nbsp;

“Our study does not include the Greenland and the Antarctica, which in the long-term will be the major drivers of sea-level rise,” Millan told Al Jazeera from Grenoble. &nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Global water scarcity might worsen, if a new study is accurate. The glaciers of the world seem to be containing significantly less ice than thought previously, according to the study.

Global water scarcity might worsen, if a new study is accurate. The glaciers of the world seem to be containing significantly less ice than thought previously, according to the study. The revelation was made with the help of advanced satellite technology. The study was published in Nature Geoscience on Monday. Also Read: UK’s 1,200-year-old pub shutters over Covid-induced issues If all glaciers melt, the global sea level will rise by 3 inches (7.62 centimetres), as per the revised estimate. Romain Millan, glaciologist, Université Grenoble Alpes, said, “We’ve had quite a poor understanding of how much ice is actually stored in glaciers.” Millan is also the lead author of the study. For example, the past analyses had double-counted glaciers along the peripheries of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, which led to overestimating ice volume. Also Read | Watch: Implant helps paralysed man with severed spinal cord to walk again It assessed how quickly the glaciers are moving across the landscape, or their velocity. It helps scientists to measure volume more accurately as the flow of the glaciers indicates that ice is thick or thin. In recent years, high-resolution satellites helped to conduct the analysis of how 98% of the world’s glaciers are moving, “from small glaciers in the Andes up to massive glaciers in Svalbard and Patagonia,” said Millan. “Our study does not include the Greenland and the Antarctica, which in the long-term will be the major drivers of sea-level rise,” Millan told Al Jazeera from Grenoble. (With inputs from agencies)

World Glacier melting update: There's less ice in them than estimated earlier, says study

A new study has revealed that only 15.5 per cent of the world’s coastal regions are ecologically intact. Led by researchers from the University of Queensland, the research calls for conservation measures in a bid to protect the remaining coastal regions.&nbsp; 
The team of researchers used satellite data to properly analyse the extent to which human activities have affected coastlines across the globe.&nbsp;

The small areas of the coast that remain undamaged were mostly located in Canada, Russia, Greenland, Chile, Australia and the US. Very few such coastlines are also located in Europe, and countries including Vietnam, India and Singapore.

Brooke Williams, the study’s lead author and a conservation ecologist at the University of Queensland, in a report by The Guardian, said, "Our paper really advocates for coastal region restoration quite urgently. That such a low proportion is at the higher spectrum of the intactness scale is alarming. It’s not good news.”

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/worlds-top-companies-failing-to-meet-their-own-targets-on-tackling-climate-change-451243">Also read |&nbsp;World's top companies failing to meet their own targets on tackling climate change</a>

Meanwhile, another report revealed that the many big companies are failing to meet their own targets on tackling climate change.&nbsp;

The climate pledges of 25 of the world's largest companies in reality only commit to reducing their emissions by 40 per cent on average, not 100 per cent as suggested by their "net zero" and "carbon neutral" claims.&nbsp;

The study evaluates 25 major companies – operating across different sectors and geographies – to determine the transparency and integrity of their headline climate pledges.&nbsp;

As per the study, Google, Amazon, Ikea, Apple and Nestle are among those failing to change quickly enough.&nbsp;

As per the report, only one company's net-zero pledge was evaluated as having "reasonable integrity"; three with "moderate", ten with "low". The remaining 12 were rated as having "very low" integrity.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

A new study has revealed that only 15.5 per cent of the world’s coastal regions are ecologically intact. Led by researchers from the University of Queensland, the research calls for conservation measures in a bid to protect the remaining coastal regions.

A new study has revealed that only 15.5 per cent of the world’s coastal regions are ecologically intact. Led by researchers from the University of Queensland, the research calls for conservation measures in a bid to protect the remaining coastal regions. The team of researchers used satellite data to properly analyse the extent to which human activities have affected coastlines across the globe. The small areas of the coast that remain undamaged were mostly located in Canada, Russia, Greenland, Chile, Australia and the US. Very few such coastlines are also located in Europe, and countries including Vietnam, India and Singapore. Brooke Williams, the study’s lead author and a conservation ecologist at the University of Queensland, in a report by The Guardian, said, "Our paper really advocates for coastal region restoration quite urgently. That such a low proportion is at the higher spectrum of the intactness scale is alarming. It’s not good news.” Also read | World's top companies failing to meet their own targets on tackling climate change Meanwhile, another report revealed that the many big companies are failing to meet their own targets on tackling climate change. The climate pledges of 25 of the world's largest companies in reality only commit to reducing their emissions by 40 per cent on average, not 100 per cent as suggested by their "net zero" and "carbon neutral" claims. The study evaluates 25 major companies – operating across different sectors and geographies – to determine the transparency and integrity of their headline climate pledges. As per the study, Google, Amazon, Ikea, Apple and Nestle are among those failing to change quickly enough. As per the report, only one company's net-zero pledge was evaluated as having "reasonable integrity"; three with "moderate", ten with "low". The remaining 12 were rated as having "very low" integrity. (With inputs from agencies)

Just 15 per cent of world’s coastal regions remain unharmed: Study

Countries around the globe are battling with a fresh wave of the pandemic and the highly contagious omicron variant. While some have ramped up testing and vaccinations, many are bringing back stricter restrictions in an attempt to quell the surge. Several others have ditched restrictions and are gradually moving towards normality.

COVID: While some countries are bringing back restrictions, Several others are ditching them

WION's Sports editor Digvijay Singh Deo spoke to India's former national team coach Nandan Bal who is also chairman of selectors for the all India tennis association.

Australian Open 2022: WION's Digvijay Singh Deo speaks to Nandan Bal on men's singles final

WION's Digvijay Singh Deo speaks to Nandan Bal on women's singles final of Australian Open 2022

Travelling around the world in a private jet and owning several mansions, this 9-year-old boy is truly living the billionaire life. Coming from Nigeria, Muhammed Awal Mustapha owns multiple supercars and a private jet.

Travelling around the world in a private jet and owning several mansions, this 9-year-old boy is truly living the billionaire life. Coming from Nigeria, Muhammed Awal Mustapha owns multiple supercars and a private jet. The influencer has been nicknamed the world's 'youngest billionaire' and has over 25K followers on Instagram with only 9 posts. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Muhammed Awal Mustapha (@momphajnr) × View this post on Instagram A post shared by Muhammed Awal Mustapha (@momphajnr) × The young boy is the son of multimillionaire Nigerian internet celebrity Ismailia Mustapha, who is popularly known as Mompha. The 9-year-old boy goes by the name Mompha Junior and was given his first mansion when he was 6. He was given the mansion by his father. “It reassures you that after all the ups and downs you have a place to go to…. A place that will never judge you and always invite you with open arms… Congrats My Son on your New Home. Ur birthday Gift from Daddy," he reportedly wrote on social media at the time. Also read | Aeronautics enthusiast forced to abandon chance to board SpaceX flight. Find out why Mompha Junior usually shares pictures on his Instagram handle, showing off his lavish lifestyle. Earlier, he shared an image of his private jet where he wrote, "Never look down on any broke nigga, Real Hustlers go broke but never stay broke ..... Hustlers are different from Ritualists!!! God Bless all Hustlers (Amin)." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Muhammed Awal Mustapha (@momphajnr) × Mompha, who is the CEO of a Lagos Bureau De Change, has been accused of laundering over £10million. A court, earlier this month, heard claims by Nigeria's anti-corruption agency which claimed that Mompha hid his wealth in 'movable assets'. However, the multimillionaire pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

This 9-year-old is world's youngest billionaire and owns a mansion, private jet

Tattoo ole is the world's oldest tattoo parlour that was established back in 1884. Meanwhile, EU rules ban certain chemical inks.

Denmark: World's oldest tattoo parlour established in 1884

When Gang Chen returned to his laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Friday, the day after the government had dismissed charges of lying on grant applications, he was surrounded by well-wishers, offering hugs and congratulations.

There were invitations, too. Colleagues were asking him to join funded research studies, resuming the work that has occupied his adult life.

Chen studies heat transfer; he hopes to develop a semiconductor that could convert heat from car exhaust into electricity, or fabric for clothing that could cool the body. During the year since his arrest, that had been the hardest thing — tearing himself away from research.

Chen said thank you, but no. After the experience of the past year — the early-morning arrest, the handcuffs and shackles, being described, in a news conference, as loyal to China — he is uncertain if he will ever feel safe applying for U.S. government funds for research again.

“You work hard; you have good output; you build a reputation,” Chen said in a 3 1/2-hour interview at his MIT office, the first he has given about the case. “The government gets what they want, right? But in the end, you’re treated like a spy. That just breaks your heart. It breaks your confidence.”

Last week, the government dismissed the case against Chen, which alleged that he had concealed seven Chinese affiliations in applications for $2.7 million in grants from the U.S. Energy Department. Prosecutors announced that they had received new information indicating that Chen had not been obliged to disclose those affiliations, undercutting the basis of the case.

“We understand that our charging decisions deeply impact people’s lives,” said Rachael Rollins, who was sworn in this month as the new U.S. attorney in Massachusetts. “As United States attorney, I will always encourage the prosecutors in our office to engage in this type of rigorous and continued review at every stage of a proceeding. Today’s dismissal is a result of that process.”

The dismissal is a setback to the China Initiative, an effort started in 2018 to crack down on economic and scientific espionage by China. Many of the prosecutions, like the case against Chen, do not allege espionage or theft of information, but something narrower: failing to disclose Chinese affiliations in grant applications to U.S. agencies. Critics say it has instilled a pervasive atmosphere of fear among scientists of Chinese descent.

Chen described the experience of the past year as traumatic and deeply disillusioning.

In recent months, prosecutors floated an agreement in which the government would have dropped the criminal charges in exchange for acknowledgment of some links to China, he said. He refused it, he said.

“That’s just my mentality,” he said. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”

The son of two mathematics teachers who were sent to teach on farms during China’s Cultural Revolution, Chen grew up without any hope of becoming a scientist. His parents, the descendants of landowners, had a “bad classification” from the Chinese government and were viewed suspiciously. His father warned him he would probably spend his life as a farmer.

But then Mao Zedong died. Chen was one of the first classes of Chinese students to take standardized tests, and his scores vaulted him into an academic elite. He immigrated to the United States at 25 and became a naturalized citizen in 2000.

During his years at MIT, he added, he had often dissuaded scientists who were being recruited to take their research out of the United States. The prosecutions of scientists in the United States have shaken him so deeply, he said, that he isn’t sure he would do that again.

“I don’t know whether I could give the same advice,” he said. “I don’t know how this is going to develop. I think the country must wake up. We are killing ourselves. We are committing a real suicidal act, right? I really don’t know how to advise people now on this. Maybe give it some time. I don’t know. It’s hard to say.”

An Early-morning Arrest

By 2019, the Department of Justice had begun to announce charges against scientists collaborating with Chinese institutions. Chen followed the cases casually, through friends and colleagues. He decided against taking a sabbatical year in China, for fear it would make him a target.

In January 2020, he was alarmed by the arrest of Charles M. Lieber, head of Harvard’s chemistry department, who was charged with hiding his participation in China’s Thousand Talents recruitment program. But neither Chen nor his colleagues saw parallels with their own activities, he said.

“Most of us, when we looked at the government accusation, we said, ‘Wow, he did that?’ ” he said. “You see, you tend to believe in government.”

But he, too, was under investigation. That same month, Chen was detained for two or three hours at Logan International Airport in Boston as he returned from a trip to China, Egypt and Morocco. He answered questions from a Homeland Security agent, balking only at the end of the interview, when the agents asked for the passwords to his devices.

MIT provided him an outside counsel, Robert Fisher, a former prosecutor who met with him eight times over the course of the next year. Still, Chen said, he had little concern that the investigation would result in anything.

“My thinking is, I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said. “So whatever they look at, they won’t find that I did anything wrong.”

At 6:30 a.m. Jan. 14, 2021, he was making coffee when someone came to the door. He opened it to see between 10 and 20 federal agents. He was told to stand in a corner while agents went to wake his wife and daughter. When his wife saw that he was being handcuffed and led away, she began to speak to the FBI agents, and he considered calling out to her, to tell her to stop, but was afraid to speak.

“I didn’t dare use Chinese — because I spoke with her in Mandarin, right, most of the time — but I didn’t dare to use Chinese,” he said. “I regret so much, once they took me away, because I should have shouted in Chinese to her, ‘Anything you say can be used against you.’ ”

Chen spent the next few hours in custody, pacing in his cell and then doing yoga. He remembers asking the FBI agents whether they had been asked to make sure he did not kill himself and reassuring them that he did not intend to. When he was finally released, around 2 p.m., and was in a car on the way home, he began shaking.

Chen, who has experimented with standup comedy, joked — half-joked — that the experience had so disgusted them that both he and his wife lost weight.

“We were both of us so disgusted,” he said. “We didn’t know what this word really meant. It’s real. Disgust is biological. We used to see this word, but it’s a biological reaction after everything that has happened.”

Chen was put on paid leave, so he was not allowed on campus or to have contact with MIT employees. He had five or six active research projects, and during the months that followed, they slowed and faltered. The 15 postdoctoral students he worked with were transferred to other research groups, taking their knowledge with them.

“We are all losers, right?” Chen said. “My reputation got ruined. My students, my post-docs, they changed their career. They changed to other groups. MIT, the country, the U.S., we lose. I can’t calculate the loss. That loss cannot be calculated.”

In September, he got good news. Prosecutors had floated the idea of a deferred prosecution agreement, which would have allowed him to return to work and apply for government grants in the future. In return, said his lawyer, Fisher, he would have to admit to having some ties to China, none of them a violation of the law.

Such a deal, Fisher said, is “very, very rare” and would have insulated Chen from the risk of going to trial, something Fisher tried to impress on Chen.

“A lot of people would view that as a win,” he said. “I told him, ‘God, this is going to be crushing for me if we get a guilty at trial and I’m sitting with you in the courtroom.’ ”

Chen said he considered the deal seriously. But he feared that there would be lingering questions about his innocence or that he would be asked to speak to prosecutors about his colleagues.

“I would never incriminate anybody,” he said. “And seeing how terribly they can stretch the facts, I have zero confidence in them. Absolute zero.”

When the government’s motion to dismiss charges was made public Thursday, Chen was inundated with congratulations from colleagues. But he was somber.

“It’s hard to tell them directly that there is nothing to congratulate,” he said. “It’s just a sad history, sad for the country.”

He is not certain how he will resume his scientific career. Without a research group or a funding stream, he has been working on individual research papers. On Thursday, the day the charges were dropped, he woke up at 4:30 a.m. to finish a paper on energy transfer in water.

But he said speaking out about the China Initiative felt like an obligation. In an editorial in The Boston Globe this week, Chen has called for Congress and the Department of Justice to review his case and hold people involved in the prosecution accountable.

And for now, at least, he has no interest in research grants from the U.S. government.

“I am angry; I am afraid,” he said. “My love is science. I did not want politics, right? I saw that, and I got away from it. I do my devotion to science. I help people, I support. But I learned that you can’t get away. Politics impacts everybody. So if there are things that are not right, we all need to speak out.”

When Gang Chen returned to his laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Friday, the day after the government had dismissed charges of lying on grant applications, he was surrounded by well-wishers, offering hugs and congratulations.

When Gang Chen returned to his laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Friday, the day after the government had dismissed charges of lying on grant applications, he was surrounded by well-wishers, offering hugs and congratulations. There were invitations, too. Colleagues were asking him to join funded research studies, resuming the work that has occupied his adult life. Chen studies heat transfer; he hopes to develop a semiconductor that could convert heat from car exhaust into electricity, or fabric for clothing that could cool the body. During the year since his arrest, that had been the hardest thing — tearing himself away from research. Chen said thank you, but no. After the experience of the past year — the early-morning arrest, the handcuffs and shackles, being described, in a news conference, as loyal to China — he is uncertain if he will ever feel safe applying for U.S. government funds for research again. “You work hard; you have good output; you build a reputation,” Chen said in a 3 1/2-hour interview at his MIT office, the first he has given about the case. “The government gets what they want, right? But in the end, you’re treated like a spy. That just breaks your heart. It breaks your confidence.” Last week, the government dismissed the case against Chen, which alleged that he had concealed seven Chinese affiliations in applications for $2.7 million in grants from the U.S. Energy Department. Prosecutors announced that they had received new information indicating that Chen had not been obliged to disclose those affiliations, undercutting the basis of the case. “We understand that our charging decisions deeply impact people’s lives,” said Rachael Rollins, who was sworn in this month as the new U.S. attorney in Massachusetts. “As United States attorney, I will always encourage the prosecutors in our office to engage in this type of rigorous and continued review at every stage of a proceeding. Today’s dismissal is a result of that process.” The dismissal is a setback to the China Initiative, an effort started in 2018 to crack down on economic and scientific espionage by China. Many of the prosecutions, like the case against Chen, do not allege espionage or theft of information, but something narrower: failing to disclose Chinese affiliations in grant applications to U.S. agencies. Critics say it has instilled a pervasive atmosphere of fear among scientists of Chinese descent. Chen described the experience of the past year as traumatic and deeply disillusioning. In recent months, prosecutors floated an agreement in which the government would have dropped the criminal charges in exchange for acknowledgment of some links to China, he said. He refused it, he said. “That’s just my mentality,” he said. “I didn’t do anything wrong.” The son of two mathematics teachers who were sent to teach on farms during China’s Cultural Revolution, Chen grew up without any hope of becoming a scientist. His parents, the descendants of landowners, had a “bad classification” from the Chinese government and were viewed suspiciously. His father warned him he would probably spend his life as a farmer. But then Mao Zedong died. Chen was one of the first classes of Chinese students to take standardized tests, and his scores vaulted him into an academic elite. He immigrated to the United States at 25 and became a naturalized citizen in 2000. During his years at MIT, he added, he had often dissuaded scientists who were being recruited to take their research out of the United States. The prosecutions of scientists in the United States have shaken him so deeply, he said, that he isn’t sure he would do that again. “I don’t know whether I could give the same advice,” he said. “I don’t know how this is going to develop. I think the country must wake up. We are killing ourselves. We are committing a real suicidal act, right? I really don’t know how to advise people now on this. Maybe give it some time. I don’t know. It’s hard to say.” An Early-morning Arrest By 2019, the Department of Justice had begun to announce charges against scientists collaborating with Chinese institutions. Chen followed the cases casually, through friends and colleagues. He decided against taking a sabbatical year in China, for fear it would make him a target. In January 2020, he was alarmed by the arrest of Charles M. Lieber, head of Harvard’s chemistry department, who was charged with hiding his participation in China’s Thousand Talents recruitment program. But neither Chen nor his colleagues saw parallels with their own activities, he said. “Most of us, when we looked at the government accusation, we said, ‘Wow, he did that?’ ” he said. “You see, you tend to believe in government.” But he, too, was under investigation. That same month, Chen was detained for two or three hours at Logan International Airport in Boston as he returned from a trip to China, Egypt and Morocco. He answered questions from a Homeland Security agent, balking only at the end of the interview, when the agents asked for the passwords to his devices. MIT provided him an outside counsel, Robert Fisher, a former prosecutor who met with him eight times over the course of the next year. Still, Chen said, he had little concern that the investigation would result in anything. “My thinking is, I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said. “So whatever they look at, they won’t find that I did anything wrong.” At 6:30 a.m. Jan. 14, 2021, he was making coffee when someone came to the door. He opened it to see between 10 and 20 federal agents. He was told to stand in a corner while agents went to wake his wife and daughter. When his wife saw that he was being handcuffed and led away, she began to speak to the FBI agents, and he considered calling out to her, to tell her to stop, but was afraid to speak. “I didn’t dare use Chinese — because I spoke with her in Mandarin, right, most of the time — but I didn’t dare to use Chinese,” he said. “I regret so much, once they took me away, because I should have shouted in Chinese to her, ‘Anything you say can be used against you.’ ” Chen spent the next few hours in custody, pacing in his cell and then doing yoga. He remembers asking the FBI agents whether they had been asked to make sure he did not kill himself and reassuring them that he did not intend to. When he was finally released, around 2 p.m., and was in a car on the way home, he began shaking. Chen, who has experimented with standup comedy, joked — half-joked — that the experience had so disgusted them that both he and his wife lost weight. “We were both of us so disgusted,” he said. “We didn’t know what this word really meant. It’s real. Disgust is biological. We used to see this word, but it’s a biological reaction after everything that has happened.” Chen was put on paid leave, so he was not allowed on campus or to have contact with MIT employees. He had five or six active research projects, and during the months that followed, they slowed and faltered. The 15 postdoctoral students he worked with were transferred to other research groups, taking their knowledge with them. “We are all losers, right?” Chen said. “My reputation got ruined. My students, my post-docs, they changed their career. They changed to other groups. MIT, the country, the U.S., we lose. I can’t calculate the loss. That loss cannot be calculated.” In September, he got good news. Prosecutors had floated the idea of a deferred prosecution agreement, which would have allowed him to return to work and apply for government grants in the future. In return, said his lawyer, Fisher, he would have to admit to having some ties to China, none of them a violation of the law. Such a deal, Fisher said, is “very, very rare” and would have insulated Chen from the risk of going to trial, something Fisher tried to impress on Chen. “A lot of people would view that as a win,” he said. “I told him, ‘God, this is going to be crushing for me if we get a guilty at trial and I’m sitting with you in the courtroom.’ ” Chen said he considered the deal seriously. But he feared that there would be lingering questions about his innocence or that he would be asked to speak to prosecutors about his colleagues. “I would never incriminate anybody,” he said. “And seeing how terribly they can stretch the facts, I have zero confidence in them. Absolute zero.” When the government’s motion to dismiss charges was made public Thursday, Chen was inundated with congratulations from colleagues. But he was somber. “It’s hard to tell them directly that there is nothing to congratulate,” he said. “It’s just a sad history, sad for the country.” He is not certain how he will resume his scientific career. Without a research group or a funding stream, he has been working on individual research papers. On Thursday, the day the charges were dropped, he woke up at 4:30 a.m. to finish a paper on energy transfer in water. But he said speaking out about the China Initiative felt like an obligation. In an editorial in The Boston Globe this week, Chen has called for Congress and the Department of Justice to review his case and hold people involved in the prosecution accountable. And for now, at least, he has no interest in research grants from the U.S. government. “I am angry; I am afraid,” he said. “My love is science. I did not want politics, right? I saw that, and I got away from it. I do my devotion to science. I help people, I support. But I learned that you can’t get away. Politics impacts everybody. So if there are things that are not right, we all need to speak out.”

‘In the end, you’re treated like a spy,’ says MIT scientist

Meanwhile, the world is witnessing a new wave of covid-19 pandemic infections while Omicron is considered a relatively mild variant, but the rising name of cases shows that the new variant shouldn't be dealt lightly.

Omicron is mild but serious, Here's why Covid-19 variant shouldn't be neglected

In a big blow to World's no. 1 Tennis player, a 3-Judge bench unanimously rejected Novak Djokovic's appeal against deportation.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic: 'Extremely Disappointed' over losing legal battle against deportation

Australia: Federal court unanimously reject Novak Djokovic's appeal

Before I begin talking about the new product that I have been using for the last two weeks, here's a confession. I love my AirPods. I am so accustomed to them that I don't even realise when I wear them to work, to the washroom, sometimes while watching the TV and even during serious conversations.

Before I begin talking about the new product that I have been using for the last two weeks, here's a confession. I love my AirPods. I am so accustomed to them that I don't even realise when I wear them to work, to the washroom, sometimes while watching the TV and even during serious conversations. They have become a habit. So, can a new set of in-ears make me ditch my AirPods? Let it be said that I don't use the noise-cancelling AirPods Pro, so this may be an unfair comparison. But even so, the new Sony WF-1000XM4 is slowly, steadily motivating me to make the switch. Price: Rs 19,990 Battery life: 5.5 hours with ANC Weight: 41g Waterproof rating: IPX4 App: Sony Headphones Connect Lo and behold, the new noise-cancelling earbuds from Sony with yet another complicated name. Sony, it's 2022, it's time to revamp your nomenclature for your superior gadgets! For the purpose of this review, we'll just call them then new Sony earbuds. The pricing is quite competitive for the segment at Rs 19,990. Right at the onset, pair them with the Sony Headphones Connect app which will guide you on how to set up your new earbuds. DESIGN The new Sony earbuds look sleek and stylish and are lighter than previous iterations. The grey colour with dull gold accents makes them look elegant and are light enough to carry anywhere. If you're an AirPods user, you may feel a bit overwhelmed about the size of the Sony earbuds which is why getting the right fit into your ear is essential to enjoy the sound quality. It may take you a few minutes to get accustomed to the new earbuds but once you do, you won't have to worry about losing an earbud. They are smaller and lighter and pretty comfortable once fitted in. You also get an extra pair of seals in the box which is quite useful. PERFORMANCE I paired the Sony earbuds with my iPhone and was setting myself up for disappointment since I knew I'd be missing out on quite a few features. For one, only Android phones can make use of Sony's use of the LDAC codec to transmit music wirelessly. Confused? LDAC is Sony's proprietary audio technology which allows you to enjoy high-quality wireless audio via Bluetooth. So, Apple users who invest in the new Sony earbuds will miss out on this feature. Having said that, the new processor called V1 provides crystal-clear audio. Consuming content solely on my phone is something I am guilty of and whether it was an action film, a melodrama or documentary, the Sony earbuds made consuming content a delight. The noise-cancelling works so well that my husband was seen flailing his arms desperately to catch my attention as I drowned out the world while watching a new Netflix documentary! Don't get me wrong, the noise cancellation is not so overwhelming that you feel you're sitting in a bubble. Here's a suggestion, turn on the ANC if you're in public and don't want to hear the noise and humdrum of daily life; turn it off in the office unless you want your co-workers to have to yell for attention. A word of praise for the Speak-to-Chat feature which lets you have conversations with earbuds in. What this means is that if someone wants to talk to you while you're immersed in your favourite tunes, the earbuds pause the music without any prompt and you can continue talking. This feature is quite intuitive and worked well 6 out of 10 times for me which isn't bad at all. There's also something called "Adaptive Sound Control", a feature which will keep popping up on the Headphones Connect app. The new Sony earbuds can adapt to the environment of the listener for an "ideal listening experience". As I shuttled from home to office, there were noticeable changes in the sound quality and while they were not much of value addition, there's some great software innovation here. I also travelled to the hills with these earbuds and boy, oh boy, there's something so liberating about listening to Prateek Kuhad's melodies on the Sony earbuds with the ANC turned on, watching the hills and valleys roll by. I won't lie, the Sony earbuds performed better than my AirPods. The fit gets more comfortable over time and listening for long hours feels like a breeze. But how long is long enough? BATTERY LIFE Sony claims the new earbuds will offer you uninterrupted 32 hours of listening WITH noise-cancellation activated. Now that's one big claim. And Sony wins big on this front. If battery life is a deal-clincher for you, then these are the best ANC earbuds in the market. You get nearly 5.5 hours of charge with ANC after which you can click them back into the sleek charging case for a whopping 20 hours of listening. At this price point, it beats the competition and Sony deserves applause for that. WORTH THE PRICE TAG? They say audio quality is subjective. What sounds great to me may sound mediocre to you. But even then, the new Sony earbuds leave little room for complaint. The sound quality is superior and gives the AirPods stiff competition. The comfort fit, stellar battery life and added features nearly justify the price tag of Rs 19,990. As always, it all trickles down to the age-old Apple versus Android debate. Apple loyalists may still lean towards the AirPods Pro but if they give the Sony WF-1000XM4 a listen, even they may be convinced to make the switch!

Drown out of the world with the new Sony earbuds

More trouble for controversy-hit Novak Djokovic as Australia cancels his visa for the 2nd time. Meanwhile, Greek tennis star Stefanos Tsitsipas wades into the Novak Djokovic vaccination controversy. The world no. 4 tells WION's Digvijay Singh Deo that the world no. 1 is playing by his own rules.

More trouble for controversy-hit Novak Djokovic as Australia cancels his visa for the 2nd time

Australia is all set to decide if it will deport Novak Djokovic after a sensational legal battle over the tennis superstar's arrival in the country without a COVID-19 vaccine.

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Animations to video clips sales of NFTs reached some 25 billion dollars in 2021, as the cumulative crypto-asset exploded in popularity. However, reports say there are signs of growth slowing towards the end of the year.

Non-Fungible token sales hit $25 Billion dollars in 2021

Registering its second annual decline in a row Mexico's auto production fell by almost two percent last year in comparison to 2022. This is Mexico's flagship industrial sector struggling to pull past the pandemic shocks and also a global semiconductor shortage.

World Business Watch: Mexico's flagship industrial sector struggles

There's been another wave of Covid19 infections across India driven by the Omicron variant of the Coronavirus, and this, of course, had a serious impact on India's aviation sector.

World Business Watch: Air passengers numbers in India decline

Tennis star Novak Djokovic has been detained in a hotel after he failed to produce required papers for entry into Australia. He is being hauled up at a Melbourne immigration detention facility.

Djokovic VS Australia: Support grows for world's no. 1

Although the number of Omicron cases has witnessed huge spike,&nbsp;there is actually a lot more than meets the eye. &nbsp;&nbsp;

The new variant of coronavirus has caused numerous illnesses but the severity is not too high and there seems to have been less hospitalisations, said some new studies. &nbsp;

The data accumulated till now shows this may be not the worse part of the pandemic. &nbsp;

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/lockdown-imposed-in-chinese-city-after-detection-of-three-asymptomatic-covid-cases-442119" hreflang="en">Lockdown imposed in Chinese city after detection of three asymptomatic Covid cases</a>

Monica Gandhi, immunologist, University of California, San Francisco, said, "We're now in a totally different phase. The virus is always going to be with us, but my hope is this variant causes so much immunity that it will quell the pandemic."&nbsp;

Still, there is still plenty of time for the situation to change, said the experts. &nbsp;&nbsp;

In a study in South Africa, the patients in the Omicron-dominated fourth wave were 73% less likely to be severe than patients in Delta-dominated third wave. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indian-states-chief-minister-arvind-kejriwal-contracts-covid-isolates-self-at-home-442092">Indian state’s CM Arvind Kejriwal contracts Covid, isolates self at home</a>

Wendy Burgers, immunologist, University of Cape Town, said "The data is quite solid now that hospitalisations and cases are decoupled." &nbsp;

What makes it less severe is that this variant does not infect the lungs as easily as previous variants. &nbsp;&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)&nbsp;

Although the number of Omicron cases has witnessed huge spike, there is actually a lot more than meets the eye. The new variant of coronavirus has caused numerous illnesses but the severity is not too high and there seems to have been less hospitalisations, said some new studies.

Although the number of Omicron cases has witnessed huge spike, there is actually a lot more than meets the eye. The new variant of coronavirus has caused numerous illnesses but the severity is not too high and there seems to have been less hospitalisations, said some new studies. The data accumulated till now shows this may be not the worse part of the pandemic. Also Read: Lockdown imposed in Chinese city after detection of three asymptomatic Covid cases Monica Gandhi, immunologist, University of California, San Francisco, said, "We're now in a totally different phase. The virus is always going to be with us, but my hope is this variant causes so much immunity that it will quell the pandemic." Still, there is still plenty of time for the situation to change, said the experts. In a study in South Africa, the patients in the Omicron-dominated fourth wave were 73% less likely to be severe than patients in Delta-dominated third wave. Also Read: Indian state’s CM Arvind Kejriwal contracts Covid, isolates self at home Wendy Burgers, immunologist, University of Cape Town, said "The data is quite solid now that hospitalisations and cases are decoupled." What makes it less severe is that this variant does not infect the lungs as easily as previous variants. (With inputs from agencies)

Omicron variant cases soar around world, but still there’s a catch    

The Philippines will tighten restrictions in the capital city of Manila with an exponential surge in the COVID-19 infections led by the omicron mutant variant.

COVID-19 updates from around the world amid Omicron scare

The world is preparing to ring in the new year's eve, but the ongoing spread of the new variant has dashed these hopes, at least in some parts of the world.

Omicron spread around the world dashes hope for grand New Year celebrations

World prepares to usher in New Year in style. Check out intriguing pics.

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