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Unexpected Elements

Factual: Science & Nature

Factual: Science & Nature: Science & Technology

The news you know, the science you don’t.

The news you know, the science you don’t. Unexpected Elements looks beyond everyday narratives to discover a goldmine of scientific stories and connections from around the globe. From Afronauts, to why we argue, to a deep dive on animal lifespans: see the world in a new way.

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Unexpected Elements: Deadly pneumonic plague in Madagascar, importance of carnivores, time travelling clues on the internet.

Roof Rat.jpg

11/01/2014

Deadly pneumonic plague in Madagascar, importance of carnivores, time travelling clues on the internet.

BBC World Service - Unexpected Elements, Deadly pneumonic plague in Madagascar, importance of carnivores, time travelling clues on the internet.

Deadly pneumonic plague in Madagascar, surprising importance of carnivores to humans, looking for time travelling clues on the internet.

At least 40 people have died from recent plague outbreaks in Madagascar - including 30 in just one week - in early September. Most cases are thought to have been pneumonic or pulmonary plague, which is much more serious than bubonic plague because it spreads rapidly from person to person and can kill within two or three days. Latest reports suggest that the epidemic is now under control, but there are fears that future outbreaks will occur. 

What happens to the entire ecosystem when you take out the top carnivorous predators? A new review of current research shows that many of the world’s largest carnivore species are threatened and in decline. Furthermore, removing them from their natural ecosystems can have wide-ranging and unexpected effects, including on humans. 

Gamification has become synonymous with employing video-type games to make your life more enjoyable and like a game. Orin Gordon reports on how some gamers are determined to make their lives more of a challenge by gamifying them. With wearable technologies increasingly being used, the screen and the console are no longer essential when playing such games. But big business is also looking to cash in on the trend, employing the techniques of gamification to lure in and retain potential consumers.

BBC Science’s Andrew Luck-Baker tells the story of the how the Australasian Antarctic Expedition became stuck in the ice and the eventual rescue of the tourists and scientists to another ship via a Chinese helicopter. 

Picture credit: Roof Rat (Rattus Rattus), a reservoir host of bubonic plague

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