Duel without end : mankind's battle with microbes / Stig S. Frøland and John Irons.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Frøland, Stig S., author.

Irons, John, 1942- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Communicable diseases.

Epidemics--History.

Epidemics.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (633 pages) : illustrations (some color)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

London, England : Reaktion Books, [2022]

Summary:

"From the bubonic plague to theoretical pathogens on other worlds, a sweeping look at the past, present, and future of mass infections-and how we battle them. In this panoramic and up-to-date account, we learn how the Black Death, smallpox, the 1918 influenza pandemic, and other great epidemics have not only led to enormous suffering and mass death but have also contributed to the fall of empires and changed the course of history. We also discover how new infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 emerge-and how we wage war against them. Humanity has struck back at the microbes: antibiotics and new vaccines have saved millions of lives. But the battle with these relentless, silent enemies is far from won. We face increasing threats from new and unavoidable pandemics, antibiotic resistance, and even potential extraterrestrial microbes. Duel Without End is a fascinating journey through the long history of infection, from the dawn of life to humanity's future exploration of deep space"-- Publisher's description.

Contents:

Prologue: the invisible enemy

The duellists

The third factor: ecology and the environment

A bird's-eye view of the history of human infection

Major epidemics and pandemics: examples from history

Mysterious epidemics in history

The contribution made by epidemics to the fall of empires

New infections, new challenges

When microbes are used as weapons

Homo sapiens strikes back

New challenges from the microbes

and possible countermeasures

Epilogue: the never-ending duel.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references.

Other Format:

Print version: øland, Stig S. Duel Without End

ISBN:

9781789145069

1789145066

OCLC:

1305913271