These days, data breaches that expose personal information seem to happen so often that consumers have come to expect such failures. “There is data fatigue,” said Terry Ray, chief technology officer for Imperva, a data security firm. When a company announces a security breach, “it almost doesn’t even hit the stock anymore,” he said, and […]
Perspective
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Five myths about climate change
The Fourth National Climate Assessment- the work of 13 federal agencies and more than 350 scientists, including myself – is clear: The Earth is warming faster than at any time in human history, and we’re the ones causing it. Climate change is already affecting people, and the more carbon we produce, the more dangerous the […]
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How small groups of vaccine refusers can make large groups of people sick
Infectious diseases such as chickenpox and measles — once a rite of passage for American children — have been made uncommon because of vaccines. However, in recent years, an increasing number of parents are refusing vaccines, resulting in outbreaks. The overall vaccination rate in the United States is still high, fortunately, despite this worrisome trend. […]
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Vaccinate yourself from ?u shot misconceptions
Every year as flu season emerges, so too do myths and misconceptions about the flu shot. Some people avoid getting the vaccine because they don’t think it works well enough to be worth it. Some think they are too healthy to need it. And some worry it will make them sick, possibly remembering a time […]
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How to make voting go more smoothly
It has now been two weeks since the midterm election, and in some states, ballots are still being counted. President Donald Trump says that is evidence of something seriously amiss. He has trafficked in wild and unsubstantiated theories, claiming that some ballots showed up “out of nowhere” while others were forged or went missing. He […]
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What has President Trump learned from defeat?
All presidents suffer defeats and setbacks, whether through elections, legislative battles, international events or scandals. Most learn from them and adapt. Will President Donald Trump be an exception? That’s the question ahead for the president: Will the second two years of his first term be any different from the first two years? His actions and […]
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The FBI reports a surge of hate crimes last year but it missed a lot
On Tuesday, the FBI released its annual report on the number of hate crimes committed in the United States. The tally for 2017, 7,175 hate crimes, is the highest figure recorded in a decade, according to one analysis, and represents a 17 percent increase from 2016. The data show hate is intensifying nationwide. But it’s […]
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In the final hours of World War I, a terrible toll
VRIGNE-MEUSE, France (AP) — Augustin Trebuchon is buried beneath a white lie. His tiny plot is almost on the front line where the guns finally fell silent at 11 a.m. on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, after a four-year war that had already killed millions. A simple white cross says: “Died […]
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What are the questions on the ballot?
There are five questions before Maine voters Nov. 6. One is a citizen intiative that proposes increasing taxes on higher incomes to pay for home health care workers, and the other four are bond issues. The five ballot questions are: Question 1: Citizen Initiative Do you want to create the Universal Home Care Program to […]
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Question 1 asks Robin Hood to fund home health care
Whoever coined the phrase “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” must have had the Maine People’s Alliance in mind. The Alliance’s modus operandi is to identify a big socio-economic problem, then gather enough signatures to place a citizen’s initiative proposal on the ballot to solve the problem — typically via a program […]