"Russian health authorities have taken precautionary measures in response to the death of a woman who worked at an anti-plague research facility," reports Axios, "but have not confirmed that she contracted plague." On Sept. 25, 28-year-old Daria Shipilova, who worked at an anti-plague research institute in Russia's Irkutsk region, broke a test tube containing the pneumonic plague pathogen, local reports said. Shipilova was admitted to a hospital on Sept. 29 with symptoms of severe pneumonia and died overnight between Oct. 1 and Oct. 2. After her death, authorities imposed quarantines at several medical facilities in the region and placed nearly 200 people who had come into contact with Shipilova under medical observation. Irkutsk Gov. Igor Kobzev said those being monitored showed no signs of illness and had tested negative... Russia's public health agency said Shipilova had "pneumonia of unknown etiology" and that further testing found no microorganisms linked to her work. The agency said the epidemiological situation in the region remains stable. Plague is a potentially life-threatening bacterial disease but can be cured with antibiotics when treated promptly, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CNN reports that according to Russian state media agency TASS, it remains unclear exactly what was released: The head of the neighboring republic of Buryatia, Alexei Tsydenov, said earlier that the employee — a 28-year old woman — died "possibly from the plague." He also noted that "there are no plague outbreaks" in Buryatia. The governor of Irkutsk, Igor Kobzev, urged calm on Friday, saying that an extraordinary meeting of the regional anti-epidemic commission was held with Russia's chief state doctor. The meeting was in connection with a "suspected case of a particularly dangerous infection affecting a resident of the region," Kobzev said on Telegram.... The infection in the Irkutsk region is "most likely not the plague, but even if confirmed, there will be no spread of this disease," a previous head of Rospotrebnadzor, Gennady Onishchenko, said on Friday. Onishchenko told the state news agency TASS that the onset of cold weather would likely prevent transmission. Thanks to long-time Slashdot reader schwit1 for sharing the news.

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Raspberry Pi has raised prices for the 2 GB Pi 4 and Pi 5, citing rapidly rising memory costs. Both models now cost $12.50 more, taking the 2 GB Pi 4 to $67.50 and the equivalent Pi 5 to $77.50. Readers with long memories may recall the $35 Pi 4. Its price "temporarily" rose to $45 during the pandemic and has since climbed further. The board maker reported a 90 percent increase in first-half revenue to $256.9 million, while gross profit rose 79 percent to $59.4 million. Gross profit per board increased 53 percent to $12.20, helped by price rises and stocks of memory bought at lower prices in 2025. Raspberry Pi says that inventory advantage has largely been exhausted. Its advice to customers facing higher prices is to consider older models, such as the Pi 3B, 3A+, or 3B+, and check how much RAM their projects actually need. Price rises have become a way of life for Pi customers. In April 2026, much of the Pi 4 and Pi 5 range saw substantial price increases. A 16 GB Pi 5, for example, currently costs $305 at PiShop – a far cry from its $120 launch price in January 2025, when we wondered whether even that was a bit steep for a Pi. The 2 GB Pi 4 and Pi 5 escaped April's increases, but that reprieve has ended. Prices for other products remain unchanged, including the 1 GB Pi 4 and Pi 5 and the 2 GB Compute Module 4 and 5. The latest round of increases comes as enthusiasts and vendors alike ponder ways to upgrade the memory soldered to the boards. Raspberry Pi engineer Phil Elwell took to the firm's support forums earlier this year to state that newer firmware locked the devices to their original RAM capacity. Pi boss Eben Upton said: "The price of memory will eventually subside, and we look forward to reversing our own price increases when it does." Customers may be waiting a while. Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra warned earlier this week that RAM shortages would persist into 2028 and possibly beyond. He added: "We do not have line of sight to when supply and demand will return to balance." ®