Deadly Companions: How Microbes Shaped Our History
Dorothy H. Crawford
Apr 2018 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Jennifer M. Dixon
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7 hr 52 min
Unabridged
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About this audiobook
Ever since we started huddling together in communities, the story of human history has been inextricably entwined with the story of microbes. They have evolved and spread amongst us, shaping our culture through infection, disease, and pandemic. At the same time, our changing human culture has itself influenced the evolutionary path of microbes. Dorothy H. Crawford here shows that one cannot be truly understood without the other.
Beginning with a dramatic account of the SARS pandemic at the start of the twenty-first century, she takes us back in time to follow the interlinked history of microbes and man, taking an up-to-date look at ancient plagues and epidemics, and identifying key changes in the way humans have lived—such as our move from hunter-gatherer to farmer to city-dweller—which made us vulnerable to microbe attack.
Showing how we live our lives today—with increasing crowding and air travel—puts us once again at risk, Crawford asks whether we might ever conquer microbes completely, or whether we need to take a more microbe-centric view of the world. Among the possible answers, one thing becomes clear: that for generations to come, our deadly companions will continue to shape human history.
Beginning with a dramatic account of the SARS pandemic at the start of the twenty-first century, she takes us back in time to follow the interlinked history of microbes and man, taking an up-to-date look at ancient plagues and epidemics, and identifying key changes in the way humans have lived—such as our move from hunter-gatherer to farmer to city-dweller—which made us vulnerable to microbe attack.
Showing how we live our lives today—with increasing crowding and air travel—puts us once again at risk, Crawford asks whether we might ever conquer microbes completely, or whether we need to take a more microbe-centric view of the world. Among the possible answers, one thing becomes clear: that for generations to come, our deadly companions will continue to shape human history.
Ever since we started huddling together in communities, the story of human history has been inextricably entwined with the story of microbes. They have evolved and spread amongst us, shaping our culture through infection, disease, and pandemic. At the same time, our changing human culture has its...
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About the author
Dorothy H. Crawford was Professor of Medical Microbiology at the University of Edinburgh from 1997-2010 and Assistant Principal for Public Understanding of Medicine from 2005-2011. She is the author of The Invisible Enemy, Virus Hunt, Viruses: A Very Short Introduction, and Ebola.
As a retired board-certified music therapist, licensed counselor, and veteran of the Michigan Opera and several community theaters, Jennifer Dixon has explored the power of words and music to motivate, inspire, provoke, soothe, and heal. She brings this unique perspective to her work as an audiobook narrator.
Dorothy H. Crawford was Professor of Medical Microbiology at the University of Edinburgh from 1997-2010 and Assistant Principal for Public Understanding of Medicine from 2005-2011. She is the author of The Invisible Enemy, Virus Hunt, Viruses: A Very Short Introduction, and Ebola.
As a retired bo...
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