—Jessica Hamzelou
This story is from The Checkup, Jessica’s weekly newsletter giving you the inside track on all things biotech. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Thursday.
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The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 A new covid subvariant is sweeping across the US
But there’s no evidence to suggest it’s more severe than its predecessors. (The Atlantic $)
+ The WHO said it’s monitoring its spread closely. (Sky News)
+ Demand for covid drugs is soaring on China’s black market. (Rest of World)
+ The European Union “strongly” recommends member states test arrivals from China. (BBC)
2 Former Twitter workers are still waiting for severance pay
Many of them have been waiting for over two months. (Bloomberg $)
+ Hackers have shared 200 million Twitter users’ data. (The Register)
+ We’re witnessing the brain death of Twitter. (MIT Technology Review)
3 It’s unlikely that Celsius customers will get their money back
Unfortunately for them, they didn’t really own most of their cryptocurrency—the collapsed lender did. (WP $)
+ New York’s attorney general is suing Celsius’s founder. (NYT $)
4 Taiwan wants to build its own satellite network
In a bid to safeguard the country from potential attacks from China. (FT $)
+ Satellite-to-mobile phones are gaining traction at this year’s CES. (WSJ $)
5Two Wikipedia administrators have been jailed in Saudi Arabia
In a draconian attempt to control the website’s information around the country. (The Guardian)
6 Inside Facebook’s political nightmare
Demoting “sensitive” newsfeed topics was far from smooth sailing. (WSJ $)
+ Meta management moving overseas has been a headache, too. (The Information $)
7 Encouraging people to donate kidneys is tough
Offering donors a financial incentive is one solution to lowering waiting lists. (Wired $)
