The US is unfairly targeting Chinese scientists

How these US schools reopened without sparking a covid outbreak 

Sponsored by Dassault Systèmes The Download Your daily dose of what's up in emerging technology Anti-Chinese bias 09.22.21 Good morning! Today: a new study provides proof that the US unfairly targets Chinese scientists over industrial spying. Also: how to safely reopen schools. Get your friends to sign up here to get The Download every day. The US is unfairly targeting Chinese scientists over industrial spying   A vindication: For years, civil rights groups have accused the US Department of Justice of racial profiling against scientists of Chinese descent. Now, a new report provides data that may quantify some of their claims. The study found that individuals of Chinese heritage were more likely than others to be charged under the Economic Espionage Act—and significantly less likely to be convicted.  The details: The study, which looked at data from economic espionage cases brought by the US from 1996 to 2020, found that just under half of all defendants were accused of stealing secrets that would benefit China. That is significantly lower than the 80% promised by US officials to justify the Department of Justice’s flagship China Initiative.  Lack of evidence: The report also found that 89% of defendants with Western names who were charged with economic espionage were eventually convicted, versus 74% of defendants with Asian names. This strongly suggests the Justice Department is levying charges against people of Asian heritage with less evidence. Read the full story. —Eileen Guo How these US schools reopened without sparking a covid outbreak It’s impossible to overstate how controversial school reopening has become in the US. After a spring of universal Zoom school, opinions diverged: some administrators, parents, and scientists pushed to get kids back in classrooms, while others lobbied for covid safety above all else. Despite the headlines, many districts managed to bring most students back to classrooms last year without sparking a dreaded covid outbreak. We studied five such districts across the US, and they had a few things in common: they collaborated closely with public health departments, kept in constant communication with parents, required masks and regular testing, and improved ventilation.  The delta variant may have upended existing calculations, but the basics of a solid strategy are there for any school to adopt. Read the full story. —Betsy Ladyzhets If you're interested in delving deeper into the topics we cover, from artificial intelligence to ransomware to climate change, I hope you might consider joining us next week at EmTech MIT 2021, our annual three-day conference, from 28-30 September. I'd especially love it if you popped over to wave a virtual hello during one of the sessions I'm chairing, at 1pm ET each day! I'll be talking to experts about technology as a force for good in the developing world, discussing the crazy world of cryptocurrencies, and learning about where synthetic biology could go next. There's even a special discount just for Download readers. Get your tickets! We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction in these weird times. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or tweet 'em at me.)   + In case you need yet another reason to love sea otters… they help to combat climate change! (On the other hand, there’s this charge sheet.)   + If you want to understand British food, bakeries are a good place to start.   + Historians reveal their most surprising discoveries.   + If the piece about crispy foods we included yesterday was up your street, you need these recipes.   + There's a sweet spot for how much you should be moving your body: 7,000 to 8,000 steps a day, or about 30-45 minutes of exercise most days. (NYT $)   + Some artists collected Helsinki residents' complaints and turned them into choral music.    + This slide guitar solo was good enough for BB King, so it's good enough for me.  Sponsor Message Join Our Scientific Communities and Discover the Age of Experience Join Dassault Systèmes at Science in the Age of Experience – a virtual science and technology event, September 28th, 2021. Join thought leaders and influencers from around the world to explore the newest dynamics in science. Learn how the age of experience allows us to create, test and iterate in a virtual world innovative solutions to our greatest challenges. Some of the most highly sought-after leaders in science and technology will join us – including our conference keynote, George Church, PhD., from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University. Join now. The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 How to think about the pandemic now A lot has changed since the start of the year. It may be time to update your assumptions. (The Atlantic $)   + Covid-19 has now killed more Americans than the 1918 flu. (CNBC)   + The delta variant is decimating rural communities in the US. (STAT)   + Johnson & Johnson said a second dose of its vaccine substantially increases protection. (NYT $)   + The US needs a way to prove people are vaccinated. Here's how to build it. (NYT $)  2 China has pledged to stop building coal power plants abroad As China is the main source of financing for such projects, this should have a major impact. (Politico)   + Meanwhile, Biden has promised to double US aid to help low-income countries tackle the climate crisis. (Quartz)  3 How big can the global population get? 🌍 The UN says just under 11 billion. Plenty of researchers furiously disagree. (Nature)   4 The NFT community is fighting back against the scammers Unfortunately it's very tricky to do… and there's an awful lot of them out there. (The Verge)   + The US Treasury is going to sanction a cryptocurrency exchange for allegedly helping to launder money from ransomware attacks. (CNBC)    + The battle between the US and ransomware hackers is escalating. (NBC)  5 How gig work is changing the world 🛵 It can occasionally pay well, but it's stressful, fragile, and rarely as flexible as the companies make out. (Rest of World)   + Uber is set to report its first-ever profitable quarter. (FT $)   + But its core business model is under threat in Europe. (Politico)   + Drivers say they're getting increasingly frustrated with Lyft. (WP $)  6 How medical bias kills Doctors see differences where none exist, and fail to see differences where they do. (The Guardian)   7 Facebook is pushing positive stories about Facebook into peoples' feeds It's doubling down on its strategy of prizing PR over actual, substantive improvements. (NYT $)   + I dunno, maybe they should sort the troll farms first. (TR)   + Oh, and the addiction to misinformation. (TR)   + The case for Facebook pulling out of some countries. (NYT $)   + Facebook has rolled out a website change that makes it harder to study. (The Markup)  8 Where the US/China tech race is headed It's not a single competition, but lots of smaller ones across individual sectors. (WP $)   9 A cure for bipolar disorder may be on its way. Will people want to take it? For now, it's mostly a philosophical question—but an interesting one nonetheless. (Slate)   10 What are offices actually for? We might be more productive at home. But it's a lonelier, more siloed existence. (The Atlantic $) EmTech MIT kicks off next week! Don't miss this opportunity hear from some of the most brilliant minds in science and technology on global trends in biotech, cryptocurrencies, extended reality, AI, power, and more. Register now. Quote of the day "You never expected that if they went to live in America, you wouldn’t be able to get to them. You never think in a million years things like this will happen." —Katie Wait tells the New York Times about the pain of being separated from her family due to the US travel ban (which is set to be lifted in November.) Top image credit: MS TECH Please send choral complaints to hi@technologyreview.com. Follow me on Twitter at @charlottejee. Thanks for reading! —Charlotte Was this newsletter forwarded to you, and you'd like to see more? Sign up today Advancing the promise of technology Make MIT Technology Review your go-to resource for thought-provoking insights, analysis, and news about the world of technology. Get unlimited access when you subscribe today. Subscribe now   Follow us: MIT Technology Review One Main Street Cambridge, MA 02142

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