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1 oeuvres 81 utilisateurs 3 critiques

A propos de l'auteur

Wendy Orent holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Michigan. She is a leading freelance science journalist

Œuvres de Wendy Orent

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Orent has written a readable, engaging book about humans' investigation of Plague. She spends a great deal of time talking about bioweapons research in the Soviet Union, but also gives a good overview of the historical implications and consequences of plague epidemics through history. Emperor Justinian and Genghis Khan are both indirectly responsible, through increased trade and travel, for plague epidemics that then wiped out swaths of their societies. I was shocked to realize that I'd never heard of the Justinian Plague, or the Third Pandemic.
Though humans have lived with Plague for centuries, we know surprisingly little about it. Only in the late nineteenth century that anyone saw the bacteria (Alexandre Yersin, hence the name of Yersinia pestis). It was only in the early twentieth century that fleas-as-carriers became a widely accepted theory. Even now, no one knows why some instances of plague are so much more virulant than others, or why some become pneumonic instead of bubonic. Some scientists still refuse to believe that Yersinia pestis was the cause of the Black Death. We have antibiotics to treat plague, but there are still no vaccines.
… (plus d'informations)
 
Signalé
wealhtheowwylfing | 2 autres critiques | Feb 29, 2016 |
It's a good read and Orent makes a good case for her theory about the reason for the differences in the three plague epidemics that there is a written record for. She also gives proper references which is always good in a science book. I feel she writes better about the historical plagues better than she writes about the science. I also feel she's far too willing to take statements by her sources at face value.

All that being said, I recommend the book to anyone interested in Yersina pestis, historical plagues and epidemiology.… (plus d'informations)
½
 
Signalé
redfiona | 2 autres critiques | Jul 7, 2013 |
If you have a background in health care or curiosity about historical pathologies this book might be of interest. This book is authored by a science journalist who traces the various plague outbreaks and examines the means by which they were tamed (i.e. quarantine and isolation of those with the contagion). The chapters loosely follow a detective plot where clues are given but definitive conclusions about the plague's virulence and transmissiblity were hard to come by. Nowadays, this topic is headed under epidemiology and public health organizations. This book reveals how there was an outbreak of the pneumonic plague in Los Angeles in 1924 by infected rats, killing 31 people. Well written, but at times overly convoluted to the detriment of comprehension.… (plus d'informations)
 
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sacredheart25 | 2 autres critiques | Mar 14, 2011 |

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Œuvres
1
Membres
81
Popularité
#222,754
Évaluation
3.8
Critiques
3
ISBN
3

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