South African authorities try to force as many as 4,000 illegal miners - known as zama zamas - to return to the surface, by denying them food and water. The miners, who have been stuck underground, fear they will be arrested. Who are they? And could the government's hardline operation be challenged in the courts?
What next for Mali - now that the multinational UN peacekeeping force, MINUSMA, has officially ended its mission after being ordered out of the country by the military government.
And Miss Somalia, Khadija Omar, tells us about her journey from the stifling heat of a refugee camp to making history on a global stage as the first hijab-wearing beauty queen to take part in the Miss Universe pageant.
Presenter: Audrey Brown
Producers: Nyasha Michelle and Amie Liebowitz in London. Susan Gachuhi in Nairobi, and Blessing Aderogba in Lagos
Technical Producer: Nick Randell
Senior Journalist: Patricia Whitehorne
Editors: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi
It’s been 24 years since the release of Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, which left audiences captivated by the story of Maximus the gladiator, played by Russell Crowe. Now, Gladiator II is hitting the cinemas, so this week we enter the arena to take a look at some gladiatorial science.
We hear about an angry little fish that fights off its rivals in mouth-to-mouth combat, we discover how humans have looked to nature to design better armour, and we find out about the perfume that Julius Caesar would have worn.
We also speak to Dr Chris Nowinski, a former WWE professional wrestler who's now a pioneering neuroscientist. He’s leading some research into how to prevent concussions in sport, and is co-founder of The Concussion Legacy Foundation.
That, plus many more Unexpected Elements.
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Christine Yohannes and Chhavi Sachdev
Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Dan Welsh and Imaan Moin
Sound engineer: Dyfan Rose
Before December, the United Nations aims to have a global treaty in place covering efforts to limit global plastic production and pollution. In a paper in the journal Science, a team of scientists have used machine learning to estimate what happens by 2050 if we do nothing. But they have also found that the problem is solvable, with the right political will, and as marine ecologist Neil Nathan of UCSB points out, with surprisingly little new rules, waste could be reduced by 91%.
Machine learning this week has also helped in the creation of Evo, a tool that has created a sort of chat-GPT for the language of life, DNA. Patrick Hsu, of the University of California at Berkeley is very optimistic that the power of this tool both to predict function and one day even design whole organisms is a foundational new approach.
Migratory birds navigate vast distances without GPS. It’s long been strongly suspected that they use the earth’s magnetic field to find their way, but Richard Holland of Bangor University and colleagues have found nuance in the way they do, and publish their findings in Proceedings of the Royal Society B this week. Using electromagnetic cages they have fooled individual warblers into acting as if they were in Russia, whilst actually still being in Austria.
Meanwhile, Daniele Sorini, a cosmologist at Durham University has been thinking about dark energy and the possibility of our existence. In a thought experiment wondering what changing the density of dark energy would do to the likelihood of our being here to even think about it. Slightly contrary to what many reason is the fine-tuning of universal constants to allow us, as intelligent observers, to exist, Daniele and colleagues calculate that actually our observed density of dark energy is not the most likely to allow intelligent life. If there are other universes in the multiverse, most observers would think there was much more dark energy than we do. You can read up about it in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, if you are an intelligent observer yourself.
Presenter: Roland Pease
Producer: Alex Mansfield with Eliane Glaser
Production Coordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth
(Image: Plastic waste issues in Philippines. Credit: Daniel Ceng/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The European Union has announced it will not renew its fishing agreement with Senegal, citing concerns over the country’s efforts to curb illegal fishing. European officials pointed to inadequate monitoring and surveillance systems in Dakar. Without a renewed agreement European vessels will be required to exit Senegalese waters when the deal expires on Sunday. What are the reasons behind this decision?
Also, did you know that two in three children endure violent punishment or discipline at home and at school?
And making the case for tourism in Africa...it's not only about the fauna and the flora!
Presenter: Audrey Brown
Producers: Sunita Nahar, Joseph Keen and Nyasha Michelle in London
Technical Producer: Nick Randell
Senior Journalist: Karnie Sharp
Editors: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi
Republicans secure total control of US congress after winning the House of Representatives. Also: climate impact of jet condensation trails and the kidults rediscovering the joy of toys.
As COP 29- the climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan focuses on finance. What is the status of the loss and damage fund?
Meanwhile a UN panel in Sudan to investigate possible war crimes in Darfur
And is Lakurawa really a new jihadist group in Nigeria? How does it operate?
Presenter: Audrey Brown
Producers: Charles Gitonga, Susan Gachuhi and Bella Hassan
Technical Producer: Philip Bull
Senior Producer: Paul Bakibinga
Editor: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi
Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia, will hold its general election tomorrow. The incumbent president, Muse Bihi Abdi, is seeking re-election. Somaliland says it would like to be recognised by the international community. Why isn't it recognised and what will the elections mean for the region?
Also we'll get reaction as Nigeria allows women free access to c-sections.
And we'll meet one of the world's smartest mathematicians, from Cameroon!
Presenter: Audrey Brown
Producers: Nyasha Michelle, Sunita Nahar and Victor Sylver in London. Blessing Aderogba in Lagos
Technical Producer: Jonathan Greer
Senior Journalist: Karnie Sharp
Editors: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi
The ECOWAS Court recently declared Sierra Leone’s loitering laws discriminatory and ordered their amendment or repeal
A BBC investigation sees evidence that devastating flood water in South Sudan is spreading pollution from the oil industry.
And why is there a dispute over uranium production in Niger ?
Presenter: Audrey Brown
Producers: Patricia Whitehorne, Bella Hassan, Joseph Keen and Paul Bakibinga.
Technical Producer: Jonathan Greer
Editors: Andre Lombard and Alice Muthengi
Roman Abramovich was known as the "stealth oligarch" before he stepped into the limelight as Chelsea football club’s sugar daddy owner. The man loves a yacht: his largest cost $427m, and has bullet-proof windows and an escape submarine. Abramovich made his fortune from post-Soviet privatisation, aided by a man known as the “Godfather of the Kremlin”, Boris Berezovsky, and close ties to Vladimir Putin in the early years of his presidency. But with recent reports of a suspected poisoning and sanctions against him in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war, Abramovich’s luck might be changing.
BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng track Abramovich’s meteoric rise from being a hard-up orphan to making billions from oil and aluminium. Then they decide if they think he’s good, bad, or just another billionaire.
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We hear about innovative environmental projects awarded millions of dollars in this year's Earthshot prizes. Also: the twins cleaning streets for free; detecting tumours with graphene; and a remarkable Himalayan rescue.
Presenter: Andrew Peach. Music composed by Iona Hampson.
