How Plagues Really Work

An anthropologist looks at the history of pandemics—from Ancient Athens to the 1918 influenza—to examine how plagues really spread. The answer is surprising, as she posits that the next Ebola will not emerge from the jungles, or as a result of contact with exotic animals. Instead, it is humans we should fear, specifically humans living in very close proximity, in what she terms “the disease factories” of hospitals, refugee camps and cities.

Source: Aeon
Published: Aug 22, 2014
Length: 10 minutes (2,551 words)
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