Biology
This combination of photos shows promotional art for "LFG," o documentary premiering June 24 on HBO Max, left, "The Mysterious Benedict Society," a series on Disney Plus premiering June 25 and "Fathom," a documentary premiering June 25 on Apple TV Plus. (HBO Max/Disney+/Apple TV+ via AP)
New this week: Whales, 'LFG,' 'Mysterious Benedict Society'

By The Associated Press Jun. 21, 2021 12:11 PM EDT

Munni Kol, 70, in white, with his son Bishambar Kol, daughters-in-law, Asha and Manju, and his grandchildren pose for a photograph in front of their home, in Jamsoti village, Uttar Pradesh state, India, on June 8, 2021. Kol got himself vaccinated against the coronavirus, where as his family has refused to. India's vaccination efforts are being undermined by widespread hesitancy and fear of the jabs, fueled by misinformation and mistrust. That's especially true in rural India, where two-thirds of the country’s nearly 1.4 billion people live. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)
Vaccine hesitancy puts India's gains against virus at risk

By Rajesh Kumar Singh Jun. 21, 2021 01:10 AM EDT

Andrea Cattabriga, President of the Association for Biodiversity and Conservation, walks amongst his homegrown rare cacti at his greenhouse in San Lazzaro di Savena, Italy, Saturday, June 5, 2021. Cattabriga, a top expect on rare cacti, was called by the Carabinieri Military Police in February 2020 as a consultant to examine thousands of cacti stolen from from the Atacama Desert in Chile, confiscated when police conducted a massive cactus bust at a greenhouse along the Adriatic Coast in Italy. (AP Photo/Trisha Thomas)
Rare poached cacti found in Italy sent home to native Chile

By Trisha Thomas Jun. 18, 2021 07:00 AM EDT

FILE- This Jan. 7, 2021, file photo, shows the Curevac company headquarters in Tuebingen, Germany. German vaccine maker CureVac said Wednesday, June 16, 2021, that interim data from late-stage testing of its coronavirus shot show a comparatively low effectiveness in protecting people against COVID-19. (Sebastian Gollnow/dpa via AP, File)
Interim trial data shows low effectiveness for CureVac shot

By Frank Jordans Jun. 16, 2021 06:50 PM EDT

FILE - This 2020 electron microscope image made available by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the spherical coronavirus particles from what was believed to be the first U.S. case of COVID-19. A new analysis of blood samples from 24,000 Americans taken early last year is the latest and largest study to suggest that the coronavirus popped up in the U.S. in December 2019 — weeks before cases were first recognized by health officials. (C.S. Goldsmith, A. Tamin/CDC via AP)
More evidence suggests COVID-19 was in US by Christmas 2019

By Mike Stobbe Jun. 15, 2021 09:34 AM EDT

FILE - In this May 26, 2021 file photo, Dr. Anthony Fauci, speaks during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee looking into the budget estimates for NIH and the state of medical research, on Capitol Hill in Washington. On Friday, June 11, The Associated Press reported on stories circulating online incorrectly claiming people should stop wearing masks because leaked emails written by Fauci said masks aren’t effective against COVID-19. (Sarah Silbiger/Pool via AP, File)
NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn't happen this week

By The Associated Press Jun. 11, 2021 01:42 PM EDT

An Impact Genome/AP-NORC poll finds 18% of Americans say they have only one person or no one they can rely on for personal support. Black and Hispanic Americans are especially likely to say so.
Poll: Millions in US struggle through life with few to trust

By Alexandra Olson Jun. 10, 2021 08:00 AM EDT

Residents wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus line up to receive the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine at the Central Business District in Beijing, Wednesday, June 2, 2021. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
EXPLAINER: The US investigation into COVID-19 origins

By Christina Larson And Nomaan Merchant Jun. 09, 2021 12:15 AM EDT

Variants blamed for COVID-19 spike in northern Missouri

By Jim Salter Jun. 02, 2021 03:08 PM EDT
O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Two neighboring counties in rural northern Missouri are seeing big increases in COVID-19 cases, spikes blamed in part on new variants of...

Britain's Health Secretary Matt Hancock delivers a speech on the COVID-19 vaccine programme at the Jenner institute in Oxford, England, Wednesday, June 2, 2021. (Jacob King/Pool Photo via AP)
UK hits vaccine milestone, warns of 'deadly' misinformation

By Jill Lawless Jun. 02, 2021 01:25 PM EDT

FILE - In this Wednesday, March 31, 2021 file photo, Cole Smith receives a Moderna variant vaccine shot from clinical research nurse Tigisty Girmay at Emory University's Hope Clinic in Decatur, Ga. As of June 2021, scientists have found clues that the world’s leading COVID-19 vaccines offer lasting protection that could diminish the need for frequent booster shots, but they caution that more research is needed and that virus mutations are still a wild card. (AP Photo/Ben Gray, File)
Vaccine protection may diminish need for yearly boosters

By Lauran Neergaard Jun. 02, 2021 11:52 AM EDT

A temporary coronavirus testing centre is set up in Bolton, England, one of the areas of the UK where the Covid variant first identified in India is spreading fastest, Tuesday May 25, 2021. The British government on Tuesday is facing accusations of introducing local lockdowns by stealth after it published new guidelines for eight areas in England including Bolton, that it says are hotspots for the coronavirus variant first identified in India.Peter Byrne/PA via AP)
Rise in UK coronavirus cases stoke concerns over 3rd wave

By Pan Pylas May. 28, 2021 08:29 AM EDT

In this image provided by AquaBounty Technologies Inc., company CEO Sylvia Wulf, poses for a photo with processing associates Skyler Miller, back left, and Jacob Clawson with genetically modified salmon from the company's indoor aquaculture farm, Wednesday, May 26, 2021, in Albany, Ind. These are the first such altered animal to be cleared for human consumption in the United States. (AquaBounty Technologies vis AP)
Genetically modified salmon head to US dinner plates

By Casey Smith May. 27, 2021 04:35 PM EDT

FILE - In this Thursday, May 20, 2021 file photo, President Joe Biden speaks in the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington. Biden is asking U.S. intelligence agencies to “redouble” efforts to investigate the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. He says there is insufficient evidence to conclude “whether it emerged from human contact with an infected animal or from a laboratory accident.” (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Biden orders more intel investigation of COVID-19 origin

By Zeke Miller And Aamer Madhani May. 27, 2021 12:10 AM EDT

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, listens during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing Wednesday, May 26, 2021, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Stefani Reynolds/Pool via AP)
Biden orders more intel investigation of COVID-19 origin

By Zeke Miller And Aamer Madhani May. 26, 2021 01:00 PM EDT

Belgian military arrive at the entrance of the National Park Hoge Kempen in Maasmechelen, Belgium, Friday, May 21, 2021. Specialized forces on Friday continued their manhunt for an armed soldier who is on a Belgian anti terror watch list because of his extreme right sympathies but was still able to hoard heavy arms in army barracks before disappearing early this week. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Far right Belgian soldier who hoarded weapons still at large

By Raf Casert May. 21, 2021 01:23 PM EDT

Bobby, a Labrador Retriever in training, sits front of a human sweat sample after detecting the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Veterinary Faculty of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand Friday, May 21, 2021. Thailand has deployed a canine virus detection squad to help provide a fast and effective way of identifying people with COVID-19 as the country faces a surge in cases, with clusters found in several crowded slum communities and large markets. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Sniffing Labrador retrievers join Thai coronavirus fight

By Tassanee Vejpongsa May. 21, 2021 10:12 AM EDT

FILE - This undated image provided by Merck in October 2018 shows a vial and packaging for the Gardasil 9 vaccine. According to a study released on Wednesday, May 19, 2021, screening and the HPV vaccine have led to dramatic drops in cervical cancers over the last two decades in the U.S., but the gains are almost offset by a rise in other tumors caused by the virus. (Merck via AP)
US cervical cancers fall but other sex-related cancers rise

By Carla K. Johnson May. 19, 2021 05:08 PM EDT

FILE - Belgian top virologist Marc Van Ranst looks into a microscope at his lab in Leuven, Belgium, Feb. 19, 2020. The hunt for an armed man who is on a Belgian terror watch list because of his extreme right sympathies and who had threatened several people, including top virologist Marc Van Ranst, entered a second day on Wednesday, May 19, 2021. Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne described the man as an "acute threat" and is known for his extreme right sympathies. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Belgian manhunt for soldier on terror-watch list goes on

By Raf Casert May. 19, 2021 01:35 AM EDT

Movie prop master Scott Reeder displays a retractable stunt syringe and needle at his shop in Austin, Texas, on April 26, 2021. Reeder's TikTok video about prop retractable needles was used without his permission to spread false claims about politicians getting fake vaccinations. Individuals across the country, like Reeder, have found themselves swept into the misinformation maelstrom, their online posts or their very identities hijacked by anti-vaccine activists and others peddling lies about the COVID-19 outbreak. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
The unwitting are the target of COVID-19 falsehoods online

By Ali Swenson And Beatrice Dupuy May. 14, 2021 11:59 AM EDT