McGill University team develops AI that can detect infection before symptoms appear

MONTRÉAL - Researchers at McGill University say they developed an artificial intelligence platform that can predict when someone is about to come down with a respiratory tract infection before they start to feel sick.

In what researchers are calling a "world first," the study involved participants who wore a ring, a watch and a T-shirt, all of which were equipped with censors that recorded their biometric data. By analyzing the data, researchers were able to accurately predict acute systemic inflammation — an early sign of a respiratory infection such as COVID-19.

Published in The Lancet Digital Health, the study says the AI platform can one day help doctors address health problems much earlier than they normally would, particularly in patients who are fragile and for whom a new infection could have serious consequences. It could also potentially reduce costs for the health-care system by preventing complications and hospitalizations.

"We were very interested to see if physiological data measured using wearable sensors … could be used to train an artificial intelligence system capable of detecting an infection or disease resulting from inflammation," explained the study's lead author, Prof. Dennis Jensen of McGill University's department of kinesiology and physical education.

More than 7,000 elms felled in Winnipeg last year due to disease

A city report reveals elm trees were chopped down more than expected last year due to Dutch elm disease.

CDC removes language that says healthy kids and pregnant women should get COVID shots

NEW YORK (AP) — The nation's top public health agency posted new recommendations that say healthy children and pregnant women may get COVID-19 vaccinations, removing stronger language that those groups should get the shots.

The change comes days after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that COVID-19 vaccines will no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women.

But the updated guidance on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website sends a more nuanced message, saying shots “may” be given to those groups.

“The announcement from earlier this week sounded like CDC was going to fully withdraw any statement that could be construed as a recommendation for these vaccines in these populations,” said Jason Schwartz, a Yale University health policy researcher. “It's not as bad as it could have been."

Manitoba bans cellphones for K-8 students

Manitoba has announced a ban on cellphones in elementary schools and strict rules to silence devices and keep them out of sight during Grade 9-12 lessons next month.

Kindergarten to Grade 8 students will be barred from using phones at any point in the school day, including during lunch and recess.

High schoolers will be asked to leave their phones in their locker, with a teacher or at the principal’s office when classes are in session.

Teenagers can access their devices on breaks and when a classroom teacher approves usage for educational purposes.

Canadian news engagement down significantly one year after Meta’s ban: study

MONTREAL - A new study is painting a grim portrait of how local Canadian news outlets are struggling to reach audiences one year after Meta began blocking Canadian news content on its Facebook and Instagram platforms.

The Media Ecosystem Observatory study published today finds that Canadians’ total engagement with news content on social media has been reduced by 43 per cent, despite efforts to increase social media engagement on other platforms.

The social media giant banned Canadian news content after Ottawa passed the Online News Act in June 2023, which compelled tech companies to enter into agreements with news publishers for the use of their content.

Local news outlets, many of which rely on Facebook, have been especially hit hard — 30 per cent of them are now inactive on social media, the study found.

Study shows ‘striking’ number who believe news misinforms

NEW YORK (AP) — Half of Americans in a recent survey indicated they believe national news organizations intend to mislead, misinform or persuade the public to adopt a particular point of view through their reporting.

The survey, released Wednesday by Gallup and the Knight Foundation, goes beyond others that have shown a low level of trust in the media to the startling point where many believe there is an intent to deceive.

Asked whether they agreed with the statement that national news organizations do not intend to mislead, 50% said they disagreed. Only 25% agreed, the study found.

Similarly, 52% disagreed with a statement that disseminators of national news “care about the best interests of their readers, viewers and listeners,” the study found. It said 23% of respondents believed the journalists were acting in the public's best interests.

Robot umpires are coming to MLB. Here’s how they work

NEW YORK (AP) — Robot umpires are coming to the big leagues this year.

The Automated Ball/Strike System will be introduced in the form of a challenge system in which the human umpire makes each call, which can be appealed to the computer. Robot umpires have been tested in the minor leagues since 2019, with recent testing done at Triple-A since 2022, MLB spring training last year and at the 2025 All-Star Game in Atlanta.

Here's what to know about MLB's robot umps.

How does the Automated Ball-Strike System work?

The autism strategy gap is already here

In Winnipeg classrooms, the autism strategy gap is not theoretical. It is visible every day.

Black people in Canada less likely to fill medication prescriptions due to cost, study says

TORONTO - A new study says the cost of medication is stopping Black people in Canada from filling their prescriptions at a higher rate than white people.

The research published Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that Black people are less likely to have drug plans to cover the cost.

Senior author Bukola Salami says the findings show the consequences of socioeconomic inequalities for Black people's health.

The researchers analyzed data from five years of the Canadian Community Health Survey and found that about 10 to 15 per cent of Black adults hadn't filled their prescriptions or had skipped doses, compared to about six per cent of white adults.

‘A life-or-death program’: non-profit’s successful at-risk youth training awaits Ottawa funding decision

An inner-city non-profit that helps at-risk youth in Winnipeg has warned it will be forced to end an employment and training program March 31 unless government funding comes through.

A year of federal funding is set to run out for Resource Assistance for Youth’s Level Up! program, which has educated and secured work experience for more than 350 young people since 2020.

“We’re in that moment where no level of government has said, ‘We want to continue to support this going forward,’” said Kate Sjoberg, RaY’s executive director.

The paid training program involves six weeks of in-class learning and 12 weeks of work experience with a local employer. Participants also receive housing and mental-health and other supports.

‘Give ourselves the means to achieve our ambitions’: province gets feedback on French plan

Hiring more bilingual employees for the province’s public service, providing more services in French and making the history of the Francophonie a part of school curriculum could help make Manitoba a “truly” bilingual province.

That was the consensus from a survey taken by Manitobans aimed at shaping the NDP government’s francophone strategy. The results of the survey, which polled 1,600 Manitobans, was released Friday with a timeline for the government’s planned strategy.

Asked what a “truly bilingual province” means to them, 50 per cent of respondents answered “services.”

Bilingualism in the classroom was the top priority among respondents, followed by bilingualism in the health-care and social services systems and government bilingualism.

‘Wake up people’: mom says proposed drunk-driving law falls short

The mother of a designated driver who was killed by an impaired driver says proposed legislation to prohibit school bus and semi drivers from having booze in their system doesn’t go far enough.

“Wake up people, it should be zero for everybody,” said Karen Reimer, whose daughter Jordyn Reimer, 24, was killed in 2022 after being hit by a pickup travelling at 108 kilometres an hour on a residential street in Transcona.

Under Bill 31 (The Highway Traffic Amendment Act), drivers of class 1 to 4 vehicles — including semi-truck and bus operators — would not be allowed to have any alcohol in their blood.

Reimer told a legislative committee Wednesday laws aren’t moving the needle when it comes to impaired driving deaths and injuries. The province had 13 impaired driving fatalities in 2025, the same number that it had a decade ago. Last year, there were 62 serious injuries, an increase from 60 in 2015, as reported by Manitoba Public Insurance.

More than 20 per cent of Manitobans think the U.S. could invade Canada in the next two years, poll conducted for the Free Press reveals

It has been more than two centuries since American troops crossed the international border in 1812 and invaded what was then the British colony of Canada — but that feeling of everlasting peace is fading.

Against the backdrop of the U.S. war with Iran, its forced removal of Venezuela’s president and President Donald Trump’s musing about annexing Greenland and making Canada the 51st state, some Manitobans are beginning to fear the spectre of armed conflict between this country and its neighbour to the south.

More than one out of five Manitobans believe an American invasion of Canada is possible in the next two years, according to a new Probe Research poll commissioned by the Free Press. Of those, 18 per cent of respondents said the prospect was somewhat likely, and four per cent felt it was very likely.

“The idea of the U.S. invading, for a long time, seemed preposterous. This certainly isn’t a question that we would’ve expected to ask people even a couple of years ago, but we wanted to understand with all of the things that have been happening in the last few months… if this is something that people think is a possibility,” said Curtis Brown, principal of Probe Research.

Minister promises $14M more for corrections after union complains about overcrowding

Manitoba’s justice minister has promised more resources after the union for corrections officers said Friday inmate overcrowding and chronic short staffing is putting lives at risk.

“Help’s on the way, our government has focused on hiring up as many new corrections officers as we can and we want to continue to build on that work,” Matt Wiebe told reporters.

Wiebe revealed the province will spend an additional $14 million on corrections in the 2026-27 budget, which is to be unveiled next week.

On Friday, the union released the results of a survey of corrections officers and other jail staff that suggests there’s widespread discontent and concern about inmate overcrowding and short staffing.

Records shattered as summer heat hits Southwest in March; ‘This is what climate change looks like’

WASHINGTON (AP) — The dangerous heat wave shattering March records all over the U.S. Southwest is more than just another extreme weather blip. It’s the latest next-level weather wildness that is occurring ever more frequently as Earth’s warming builds.

Experts said unprecedented and deadly weather extremes that sometimes strike at abnormal times and in unusual places are putting more people in danger. For example, the Southwest is used to coping with deadly heat, but not months ahead of schedule, including a 112 degrees Fahrenheit (44.4 degrees Celsius) reading in two Arizona communities on Friday that smashed the highest March temperature recorded in the U.S. Two places in Southern California also hit that same temperature. All four spots are clustered within about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) of each other.

“This is what climate change looks like in real time: extremes pushing beyond the bounds we once thought possible,” said University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew Weaver. “What used to be unprecedented events are now recurring features of a warming world.”

March's heat would have been virtually impossible without human-caused climate change, according to a report Friday by World Weather Attribution, an international group of scientists who study the causes of extreme weather events.

‘Extreme’ workouts drive spike in ‘rhabdo’ cases among young N.L. women, says doctor

ST. JOHN'S - Intense workouts and social media pressure are driving a spike in rhabdomyolysis cases in young women in Newfoundland and Labrador, a physician with the province's health authority said Thursday.

Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services said it confirmed about 20 cases in the eastern part of the province in the past six months. Doctors typically expect to see a few cases a year, said Dr. Richard Barter, the clinical chief of emergency medicine in the authority's eastern urban zone.

"The cases that we've seen have been exclusively exertional rhabdomyolysis, and this is when a person takes their physical workouts to an extreme level," Barter said in an interview.

Rhabdomyolysis, or "rhabdo," occurs when muscle tissue is severely damaged and breaks down, leaking enzymes and other substances into the blood. The painful condition can cause urine to turn the colour of black tea and it can lead to kidney damage, Barter said.

Consumers favouring combustion engine cars as interest in EVs wanes: report

TORONTO - A new report shows consumers are increasingly favouring internal combustion engine cars for their next car purchase rather than an electric vehicle.

The latest EY mobility consumer index for 2025 shows only seven per cent of those planning to buy a car in the next 24 months intended to buy an EV, down from 15 per cent in the previous report from 2024.

Meanwhile, 58 per cent said they preferred an internal combustion engine vehicle, up from 44 per cent in 2024.

The report, published on Thursday, found 30 per cent of Canadians hoping to buy a car soon are delaying or reconsidering an EV purchase in light of recent geopolitical issues.

Proactive planning for a future with more seniors

They’re supposed to be “the golden years.” But for many Manitobans in the ever-expanding 65-plus age bracket, life is anything but a warm and gentle journey toward a tranquil, glowing sunset.

Canada’s population has dropped for the first time since Confederation: StatCan

OTTAWA - Statistics Canada's latest estimates suggest Canada's population declined last year for the first time since Confederation, due primarily to a drop in the number of non-permanent immigrants.

The estimates suggest Canada's population lost about 102,000 people in 2025.

That loss came after the non-permanent resident population fell by more than 171,000 individuals between Oct. 1, 2025, and Jan. 1, 2026.

Cristobal D'Alessio, a spokesperson for Statistics Canada, said 2025 was the first calendar year to see an estimated decrease in the population since Confederation.

David Suzuki is turning 90. Environmentalists may have ‘lost, big time,’ but he still has hope

David Suzuki admits defeat — at least in some respects.

The geneticist-turned-environmentalist, who is days away from his 90th birthday, reflected on his legacy as he prepared to release his latest book, "Lessons from a Lifetime," which compiles photos and stories from his life, as well as testimonials written by those he inspired.

"To me, the important legacy that I want to tell my grandchildren is, look, I tried. I love you. I did the best I could for you. And I tried," he said on a video call last month.

"The measure of a person is not whether they succeeded — because we've lost, environmentalists have lost, big time — but that we tried."

Government votes down autism strategy bill proposed by Liberal MLA

Mark Jackson paused as he questioned when his daughter got her autism diagnosis — maybe one year, maybe two, from the first doctor referral.

“The wait times are not great,” he said.

He joined about two dozen people at the legislature Tuesday to show support for an autism strategy, as proposed by Liberal Cindy Lamoureux in a private member’s bill that was introduced Monday.

The strategy would make wait times for diagnosis and supports for autistic people and their families as top priorities.

Muslim community reflects on decades worth of growth

As Manitoba Muslims enter the last days of the holy month of Ramadan, they are counting their blessings, including the growth of their community since the establishment of the first mosque in the province 50 years ago.

“That was a great accomplishment,” said Abdo el-Tassi, who was among the 10 or so families who started the Pioneer Mosque in St. Vital in 1976.

El-Tassi — a prominent Winnipeg business leader and philanthropist — said he feels “very proud” of what the Muslim community has accomplished since that time.

Today there are as many as 20 mosques or prayer centres in the province, including in Thompson, Brandon, Niverville, Steinbach and Winkler. The most recent one to open was the Al-Haqq Masjid in Winnipeg, which serves the Nigerian Muslim community.