When the severity of coronavirus became apparent, China used a drastic method to forestall its rapid spread: quarantine. Now the same method is being applied to cruise ships, with mixed results.
Two ships are stranded at sea — housing nearly 5,000 crew and passengers. One, with 1,400 passengers, has finally found a home — after being turned away from five international ports. Holland America's Westerdam was refused entry by Japan, Guam, Taiwan, and the Philippines.
On Wednesday, Cambodia said it would allow the ship — which does not appear to have any cases of the virus at this time — to dock, the cruise line confirmed in a statement.
The World Health Organization's Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on a Wednesday conference call with journalists said the body, along with the International Maritime Organization, "will issue a communiqué to all countries to respect the principle of 'free pratique' for ships and the principle of proper care for all travelers, in accordance with the International Health Regulations."
He said Cambodia's acceptance "is an example of the international solidarity we have consistently been calling for. Outbreaks can bring out the best and worst in people."
Crisis management experts have raised concerns about the methods of shutting in cruise ship passengers and crew.
"I know it's a very stressful situation for the people that are onboard the ship. They are in a confined environment. They are essentially being isolated from each other," Brian Salerno, SVP of maritime policy for Cruise Lines International Association, told Cheddar Wednesday afternoon. He said the goal is to "minimize contact among people."
The cruise ship experiment also may have been for naught as the virus jumped to shore through a Japanese official, who tested positive for the virus after surveying passengers held in quarantine in the port of Yokohama.
The Diamond Princess, which has been quarantined for a week after a passenger who disembarked in Hong Kong tested positive, has reported 175 infected individuals so far among the 3,600 crew and passengers. That makes the floating city home to the largest concentration of cases of the recently named COVID-19 disease outside of China.
"There have been instances in the last decade or two of global health emergencies and the industry is well-practiced in ramping up its procedures," Salerno said."We've been through this type of procedure before."
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A rare magnum of Dom Pérignon Vintage 1961 champagne that was specially produced for the 1981 wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana has failed to sell during an auction. Danish auction house Bruun Rasmussen handled the bidding Thursday. The auction's house website lists the bottle as not sold. It was expected to fetch up to around $93,000. It is one of 12 bottles made to celebrate the royal wedding. Little was revealed about the seller. The auction house says the bids did not receive the desired minimum price.
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
