Diseases can be essentially stored in certain species for thousands of years. Central Asian tribes have rules for dealing with certain animals that might carry diseases. The word quarantine actually just is kind of a play off the word 40 because when ships, merchant ships would come to Italy way back in the day, 40 days was about as long or longer than it took for people on that ship to develop symptoms.
Pathogenesis: A History of the World in Eight Plagues author Jonathan Kennedy joins us to discuss how microscopic pathogens have shaped our world.
What We Discuss with Jonathan Kennedy:
- If we were to weigh all the bacteria on Earth, their mass would be about 1,000 times more than all humans. If all of the viruses on the planet were laid end to end, they would stretch for 100 million light years.
- About eight percent of the human genome's DNA comes from retroviral infections we've endured over our evolution. From them, we've inherited memory and the ability to give birth to live young.
- Our gut microbiota communicates with our brains and can directly affect our mood and influence our behavior.
- We modern humans have our ancestors' romantic soirees with Neanderthals to thank for genetic defenses against countless viral diseases.
- How the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture was a double-edged sword that brought us innovative progress and population-decimating pandemics.
- And much more...
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