meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Unexpected Elements

The impossibility of social distancing and even handwashing in crowded refugee camps

Unexpected Elements

BBC

Science

4.4570 Ratings

🗓️ 12 April 2020

⏱️ 54 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Massively over crowded Moria refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos has seen numbers grow from 5 to 20 thousand in a matter of months. Hundreds of people share taps and toilets, there is little chance to implement measures designed to stop the spread of covid 19. So far the camp has not been hit by the epidemic, but aid agencies fear for the most vulnerable in the camp.

Covid 19 jumped from bats to humans, possibly via another wild animal. A study of zoonotic diseases has identified many other viruses that could do the same.

The skies are clearer, levels of pollution from traffic have dropped by up to 50 percent but how long will cleaner air remain?

And Comet Borisov makes a spectacular exit.

Listener Keith from Lincolnshire wants to know how to reduce stress as he is under extreme pressure as a firefighter. Not only does he have to cope with the stress of responding to emergency situations but he has to do it while wearing challenging breathing equipment. We all experience times of stress, especially given the current situation, our chest starts to feel tight and our breathing becomes shallow. Claudia Hammond – presenter of BBC World Service programme Health Check – explains steps we can take to protect our mental health during this pandemic. How should we alter our breathing to manage stress? Presenter Anand Jagatia speaks to breathing experts to find techniques to help listener Keith, and everyone else.

(Image: Moria refugee camp, Lesvos, Greece. Credit: Getty Images)

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

In 2019, we began investigating the disappearance of Dr. Ruzha Ignatva.

0:08.0

I believe we are a very special network.

0:10.0

A scammer who stole billions from investors around the world.

0:15.0

She's on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list.

0:18.0

And now, we have some unmissable updates. She has money and when you have

0:23.0

money you have power. Join me, Jamie Bartlett, as the hunt for the missing crypto queen continues.

0:29.5

Listen first on BBC Sounds. Thank you for downloading the science hour from the BBC World Service.

0:35.3

I'm Roland Pease and take a deep breath because in these

0:39.2

testing times, crowd science later in the hour is going to have some tips on reducing your stress

0:44.8

levels. I actually want you to exhale forcefully, or at least with intention, where your middle

0:51.4

of your body narrows hard. So you narrow as much as you can.

0:56.4

And on the inhale, you widen as much as you can.

1:00.0

And Anne Jagotty will have more breathing exercises and stress tips in half an hour.

1:04.6

Before that, on science and action, we're returning to coronavirus,

1:08.0

asking in a moment about the difficulties of keeping coronavirus out of

1:12.9

the refugee camps around the world. We're also getting the bigger picture about the way diseases like

1:18.7

COVID-19 emerge out of the animal kingdom. For these viruses that are zoonotic, we found 142 cases

1:26.4

where there's good evidence about how animals and humans

1:30.2

have shared these viruses. It's a pretty rare event, and it's especially rare that a virus

1:35.8

will emerge and cause a pandemic of this scale, thankfully. But what we're concerned about is it's

1:41.7

becoming increasingly common. I'll be hearing about how much the atmosphere has cleared because of the worldwide lockdowns.

1:49.5

And the alien comet from another solar system, Borisov, has split apart, revealing just what it's made of.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.