![]() ![]() Quammen is adept at describing the epidemiology, anthropology, and molecular biology of SARS, AIDS, Ebola, and a host of other frightening maladies. According to Quammen, diseases of this sort are responsible for %E2%80%9Cthe death of more than 29 million people since 1981.%E2%80%9D And, as he explains so well, these diseases %E2%80%9Crepresent the unintended results of things we are doing.%E2%80%9D Environmental destruction, burgeoning human populations, increased mobility, and extremely different patterns of food production are all part of his story. This cross-species transmission of disease%E2%80%94the %E2%80%9Cspillover%E2%80%9D of the book%E2%80%99s title%E2%80%94has happened for the 200,000 years modern humans have been present on the earth, but the frequency and consequences of such events have been increasing dramatically in recent years. ![]() He traverses the globe exploring cases in which animal-borne diseases somehow jump to humans, often with devastating consequences. Quammen (The Song of the Dodo) is a masterful writer who adroitly blends science and journalism, speculation and fact, as well as horror and humor in his latest tour de force. ![]()
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