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    Viruses, Plagues, and History: Past, Present, and Future
    Viruses, Plagues, and History: Past, Present, and Future
    Viruses, Plagues, and History: Past, Present, and Future
    Audiobook13 hours

    Viruses, Plagues, and History: Past, Present, and Future

    Written by Michael B.A. Oldstone

    Narrated by L. J. Ganser

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    The story of viruses and humanity is a story of fear and ignorance, of grief and heartbreak, and of great bravery and sacrifice. Michael Oldstone tells all these stories as he illuminates the history of the devastating diseases that have tormented humanity, focusing mostly on the most famous viruses.

    Oldstone begins with smallpox, polio, and measles. Nearly 300 million people were killed by smallpox in this century alone and the author presents a vivid account of the long campaign to eradicate this lethal killer. Oldstone then describes the fascinating viruses that have captured headlines in more recent years: Ebola, Hantavirus, mad cow disease (a frightening illness made worse by government mishandling and secrecy), and, of course, AIDS. And he tells us of the many scientists watching and waiting even now for the next great plague, monitoring influenza strains to see whether the deadly variant from 1918-a viral strain that killed over 20 million people in 1918-1919-will make a comeback. For this revised edition, Oldstone includes discussions of new viruses like SARS, bird flu, virally caused cancers, chronic wasting disease, and West Nile.

    Viruses, Plagues, and History paints a sweeping portrait of humanity's long-standing conflict with our unseen viral enemies. Oldstone's book is a vivid history of a fascinating field, and a highly reliable dispatch from an eminent researcher on the front line of this ongoing campaign.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateNov 13, 2018
    ISBN9781977334695
    Viruses, Plagues, and History: Past, Present, and Future
    Author

    Michael B.A. Oldstone

    Michael B.A. Oldstone, is world known for his contributions studying viruses and how they cause disease (election to the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Medicine and other National and International bodies, as well as recipient of multiple awards by international and national societies). He has lectured at multiple universities on the topic of Ebola and on hemorrhagic African fevers. He has authored several books. His last one, "Viruses, Plagues, & History" had favorable reviews in the lay press (NY Times Book Review, Nation, multiple newspapers and magazines in the US and in Europe, NPR interviews and profiles, etc.) and favorable reviews by the highest scientific journals (Science, Nature, etc.). The book was translated into five additional languages, elicited book signings, invited talks at museums and book stores, and sold over 45,000 copies. Further, the book was used and still is for teaching in several undergraduate colleges, graduate, and medical schools. Thus, name recognition of the author and the product delivered reflected both high standards and wide recognition.

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    Reviews for Viruses, Plagues, and History

    4/5

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    • 5/5
      I purchased Dr. Oldstone's excellent book about 10 years ago and I greatly enjoyed listening to the audiobook version on Scribd. A former professor of immunology and microbiology at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, Michael Oldstone was recently elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences. He has had an illustrious career in microbiology and immunology with a focus on emerging infections. This is an important scholarly book that is easy to read. Highly recommended.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 4/5
      The author is a Virologist’ not a historian or storyteller so do not expect a seat-of-your pants drama or comprehensive historical narrative.

      But as a little relevant reading for an education about viruses and how they are spread, and and a startling accurate prediction of the of the possibility of the current epidemic crises, it is certainly worth a read.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      This is a must have book that everyone should read and keep for reference.
    • 4/5
      I recommend this book for anyone who is interested in a brief history of virus (and prion) based diseases since the outbreak of smallpox. Michael Oldstone does not write about outbreaks like The Black Plague so, for those interested in that topic will have to look elsewhere. I do like his introductory chapters in which he describes the mechanism of infection. For those who would like to get a basic understanding of this mechanism, I recommend these chapters. The author has neatly divided the book into chapters in which he writes about each disease, the outbreak, and the search for medication. Michael Oldstone highlights the conflicts between business, politics and science. The one topic he mentions a few time is the possibility of viruses being used for bio-warfare. The prospect of bioterrorism is worrying and is something we should be prepared for.