A Deadly Tick Virus, Extreme Seasonal Weirdness, and More News

A deadly tick can make you allergic to bacon and carries a mystery virus, cities are turning to Waze for help with car accidents, and you might be paying too much for your Playstation 4. Here’s the news you need to know, in two minutes or less.

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Today’s Headlines

This meat-allergy tick also carries a mysterious killer virus

The Lonestar tick, famous for making people suddenly allergic to red meat, has a new weapon: the Bourbon virus. Scientists know little about how the Bourbon virus behaves, but they do know it can kill you, and they worry that it could be silently spreading through human populations, getting noticed only when it causes severe symptoms in an unlucky few.

Waze data may be able to help predict car crashes

Computer-based models aren’t great at predicting rare events like car crashes, but the navigation app Waze may be able to help. Waze allows users to report accidents happening around them, and the user base is now so large and active that Waze users notify the app of crashes an average of 2 minutes, 41 seconds before anyone alerts law enforcement. More cities are starting to use data from the app to try to help predict crashes, and cut response time when they happen.

Cocktail Conversation

Is social media interfering with childhood? Maybe. But is the problem that children forget to have childhoods, or that they have childhoods that can’t be forgotten? Children now create their own worlds in technology, leaving hard-to-erase digital trails that leave them potentially vulnerable as they move into adulthood. Is social media making it impossible to grow up?

WIRED Recommends: Playstation 4 Bundles + Deals

Been wanting a PS4 for awhile, but haven’t been able to pull the trigger? Or maybe you’ve already got one, but are looking for more accessories or games? WIRED compiled the best deals on the internet for one of the most popular gaming systems on earth.

More News You Can Use

This summer’s weird weather is the death of predictability.

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