In December of 2013, an 18-month-old boy fell ill in a small village in Guinea. Although it was not initially apparent, he had been infected—most likely from a bat reservoir—with Zaire ebolavirus. Within months, the outbreak had spread to the major cities of neighboring countries and in August of 2014, the WHO declared the West […]
Learning From History: Conclusion
When reading history, I am always struck by the similarities with the present, but most of all, by the constancy of human emotion. The story of disease is intimately tied to the story of humanity and the grief, heroism, and horror run through this story as an unbroken thread. Our shared humanity does not change, […]
Learning From History Part 4: The Spanish Flu
In February of 1918, the world was embroiled in the bloodiest conflict in the history of civilization. Soldiers from around the globe were mobilized and sent to the front lines of the first world war, fighting battles so terrible that they believed that its conclusion would bring lasting peace and an end to all future […]
