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Rock-hewn passage was found filled with soil accumulated over possibly thousands of years.

How Contagious Is Ebola?

More than 200 people are suspected to have died in Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, according to the latest figures published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on May 29.

The vast majority of these are in the DRC.

With no vaccine available for this strain, the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern on May 17.

As Statista's Anna Fleck details below, Ebola is a severe and often fatal disease which is spread through direct contact with blood, secretions or other bodily fluids of infected individuals or through contact with contaminated surfaces.

There are six strains of Ebola, four of which are known to cause disease in humans, with varying fatality rates.

The Zaire ebolavirus, commonly known as just the Ebola disease, is the most lethal strain, with historical case fatality rates reaching up to 90 percent among those who have not been treated.

The Bundibugyo strain of the ebolavirus is currently causing outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

While the Zaire ebolavirus' basic R₀ value, which is the measure for counting how easily disease spreads, is lower than several other diseases, transmission through close contact makes it highly dangerous in healthcare settings.

According to data published by Encyclopædia Britannica, the average number of people infected by an individual with the Ebola disease is 1.5 to 2.5.

You will find more infographics at Statista

By contrast, the Omicron variant of Covid-19 had a basic R₀ value of spreading to eight to 10 people from every infected individual.

Measles is even more contagious, with a value ranging from 12 to 18.

It is spread by droplets released into the air by coughing and sneezing, with the virus able to remain in the air for up to two hours.

Tyler Durden Tue, 06/02/2026 - 02:45

Britain's Nuclear Renaissance Faces Mounting Cost Pressures

Authored by Felicity Bradstock via OilPrice.com,

• Sizewell C and Hinkley Point C are expected to play a major role in expanding Britain’s nuclear generation capacity and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.

• Both projects have faced concerns over delays and rising costs, with Hinkley Point C’s estimated price nearly doubling from its original forecast.

• The U.K. aims to increase nuclear capacity to 24 GW by 2050, supported by large-scale reactors and emerging small modular reactor technologies.

The United Kingdom is focused on diversifying its energy mix away from fossil fuels to boost energy security and support decarbonisation aims.

This includes expanding its nuclear power capacity with the development of two large-scale nuclear plants - Sizewell C and Hinkley Point C, as well as developing small modular reactors (SMR).

However, its nuclear ambitions have not quite gone to plan, following years of delays and rising construction costs.

Sizewell C in Suffolk, eastern England, received its planning approval in 2022, was greenlit in 2025, and is expected to be operational by around the late 2030s. Investment for the development comes from the government, EDF Energy, Centrica, La Caisse, and Amber Infrastructure Limited. The project is expected to create 17,000 jobs during peak construction, including 7,900 in Suffolk. Once operational, the nuclear plant will produce up to 3.2 GW of clean electricity to power up to 6 million homes.

The government expects the plant to cost around £38 billion to develop and says it could provide around £2 billion a year in savings from the electricity system, compared to using other low-carbon technologies. However, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, the chair of the public accounts committee, which oversees the work of the National Audit Office (NAO), warned that “Sizewell C is a project of exceptional scale, complexity and significance for taxpayers… Experience from comparable nuclear projects in the UK and overseas highlights their vulnerability to delays and cost overruns.”

To date, the French nuclear firm EDF has invested £1.1 billion for a 12.5 percent stake in the project, while the U.K. government has invested £14.2 billion as the majority stakeholder. The NAO fears that if not properly managed, construction could run significantly over budget, as seen with other nuclear developments in recent years. This would make the break-even time much longer for consumers footing the construction costs through their taxes. 

The NAO has, therefore, urged the government to mitigate the risk by using “close monitoring, greater transparency to parliament, and by securing value for money from the significant public and private investment”.

Lessons for building Sizewell C come from the construction of EDF’s Hinkley Point C plant, the first nuclear plant to be developed in the U.K. in over a decade. Hinkley Point C was approved by the U.K. government in 2013 and was greenlit in 2016. It is expected to begin operations in 2030, a year later than originally planned.

The project has faced several delays and price increases, the most recent of which was announced by EDF in February, adding a projected £2.16 billion. The plant is now expected to cost around £35 billion in total, almost double the original £18 billion 2016 estimate. EDF’s CEO, Bernard Fontana, said the new forecasts were “more realistic” and said that the 2030 launch of operations was “within a range that has not changed” since 2024, when it said operations would start between 2029 and 2031.

Once operational, Hinkley Point C is expected to provide around 7 percent of Britain’s electricity demand. While EDF’s two U.K. nuclear projects could help diversify the country’s energy mix and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, critics worry that the development of the two plants will face further delays and come in significantly over budget. EDF’s only other nuclear project using the same reactor type, at Flamanville in France, became fully operational in December after a delay of over 12 years; meanwhile, costs soared from an initial estimate of £2.85 billion to over £11.4 billion.

In 2025, the U.K. was deemed the “most expensive place in the world” to build nuclear power plants in a government review.

This was largely owing to “overly complex” bureaucracy around the sector. Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce said that “radical reset” of the rules around nuclear power could save Britain “tens of billions” in costs and reverse the industry’s “decline” in recent years. This suggests that the government must work to streamline bureaucratic processes without compromising safety and consider other cost-cutting options to avoid cost increases in nuclear development.

At the time, the Taskforce chair, John Fingleton, stated, “Our solutions are radical, but necessary. By simplifying regulation, we can maintain or enhance safety standards while finally delivering nuclear capacity safely, quickly, and affordably.”

In 2024, the U.K. government announced a target to increase the country’s nuclear power capacity fourfold, to 24 GW by 2050.

This will be achieved through the development of Sizewell C and Hinkley Point C, as well as through the deployment of innovative small-scale nuclear technologies.

This is an ambitious target, but through the development of a wide range of nuclear technologies, it could be achievable.

Tyler Durden Tue, 06/02/2026 - 02:00

Pitching was supposed to carry USC in the postseason, and it hasn’t disappointed. But oh, those Trojans bats. They’ve stirred reminders of the teams in cardinal and gold that once ruled college baseball. Thanks to another offensive barrage Monday night in the NCAA Tournament, these Trojans might just join them. USC is headed to a...

An explosion and fire occurred at a defense company in South Korea on Monday, killing five people and injuring two others, officials said.

"For those of you f--king booing us, some of us are not afraid."

"For those of you f--king booing us, some of us are not afraid."

We've got the inside scoop!

It's a little early this year, but the summer deals are sure to be just as sizzling.

It's a little early this year, but the summer deals are sure to be just as sizzling.

Red Sox legend David Ortiz told the Associated Press that despite his old ballclub’s current position in the standings, owner John Henry really does care about his team. 

Two hits over nine innings were enough to give them a chance Monday night, but the Mets weren’t going to extend their winning streak without a third. That hit never arrived.

The Dodgers' bats were quiet in a series-opening loss to the resurgent Arizona Diamondbacks, who won on the back of three home runs

"Literally, it took me until the second year of ‘Cheers’ when I decided, 'You know what? Keep your mouth shut, Ted.'"

"Literally, it took me until the second year of ‘Cheers’ when I decided, 'You know what? Keep your mouth shut, Ted.'"

Aaron Paulsen is facing child neglect charges for the death of his 2-year-old son, Dane, who was reported missing in the small town of Siletz on March 1, 2025 and later found dead in a river.

Senate Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer got the cold shoulder from fellow New York pols Brad Lander and Rep. Dan Goldman.

Authorities have yet to release the names of the victims and any details about them.

The 61-year-old superfan has been accused of "stalking" and "harassing" cast members at Disney World

This summer marks a historic milestone as the nation commemorates and celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding. As Americans reflect on the patriotism, ingenuity, and progress that have shaped the country, it would be remiss to not recognize the pivotal role that chemistry has played in its development. From the materials that built the...