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800 years before the Black Death, the very same bacteria ravaged Rome, killing 60%+ of the population in many areas.Also, back-to-back volcanic eruptions caused a mini Ice Age, leaving Rome devastated by famine and disease.I chatted with historian Kyle Harper about this and much else:* Rome as a massive slave society* Why humans are more disease-prone than other animals* How agriculture made us physically smaller (Caesar at 5'5" was considered tall)Watch on Youtube; listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.----------SPONSORS* WorkOS makes it easy to become enterprise-ready. They have APIs for all the most common enterprise requirements—things like authentication, permissions, and encryption—so you can quickly plug them in and get back to building your core product. If you want to make your product enterprise-ready, join companies like Cursor, Perplexity and OpenAI, and head to workos.com.* Scale's Data Foundry gives major AI labs access to high-quality data to fuel post-training, including advanced reasoning capabilities. If you're an AI researcher or engineer, learn how Scale's Data Foundry and research lab, SEAL, can help you go beyond the current frontier of capabilities at scale.com/dwarkeshTo sponsor a future episode, visit dwarkesh.com/advertise.----------KYLE'S BOOKS* The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire* Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History* Slavery in the Late Roman World, AD 275-425----------TIMESTAMPS(00:00:00) - Plague's impact on Rome's collapse(00:06:24) - Rome's little Ice Age(00:11:51) - Why did progress stall in Rome's Golden Age?(00:23:55) - Slavery in Rome(00:36:22) - Was agriculture a mistake?(00:47:42) - Disease's impact on cognitive function(00:59:46) - Plague in India and Central Asia(01:05:16) - The next pandemic(01:16:48) - How Kyle uses LLMs(01:18:51) - De-extinction of lost species Get full access to Dwarkesh Podcast at www.dwarkesh.com/subscribe
BONUS DISCUSSION: Dr. Kyle Harper, G.T. And Libby Blankenship Chair in The History Of Liberty and Professor Of Classics And Letters at the University Of Oklahoma, joins the "ROI" panelists to discuss Plagues Upon The Earth: Disease And The Course Of Human History.The host for the 579th edition in this series is Jay Swords. The history buffs for this episode are Terri Toppler and Brett Monnard.Opinions expressed in this program are those of the hosts and the guest(s), and not necessarily those of KALA-FM or St. Ambrose University. This program is recorded at KALA-FM, St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa, USA!
Dr. Kyle Harper, G.T. And Libby Blankenship Chair in The History Of Liberty and Professor Of Classics And Letters at the University Of Oklahoma, joins the "ROI" panelists to discuss Plagues Upon The Earth: Disease And The Course Of Human History.The host for the 579th edition in this series is Jay Swords. The history buffs for this episode are Terri Toppler and Brett Monnard.Opinions expressed in this program are those of the hosts and the guest(s), and not necessarily those of KALA-FM or St. Ambrose University. This program is recorded at KALA-FM, St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa, USA!
Over the course of history, as human civilization has developed and advanced, so have our microbial enemies. This has led to a vast and diverse disease pool dating all the way back to the last Ice Age. Kyle Harper is a professor of Classics and Letters at the University of Oklahoma. In his books, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History and The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire, he examines the history of disease and its impact on the human race. Kyle and Greg discuss how Rome was both a rich and sick society, the common misconceptions about disease, and what history should have taught us about COVID-19. *unSILOed Podcast is produced by University FM.*Episode Quotes:The two basic problems of parasites16:05: Every microparasite has a couple of really basic problems. The two most basic problems are: how do I survive the immune system of a host? Because our immune system is absolutely amazing. I mean, it wins 99.99999% of the time. They're incredible at picking out foreign cells or particles and getting rid of them. And so that's a really hard problem. The other really hard problem that every germ has is: how do I get from one host to the next? Because if I want to pass on my genes to future generations, I can get a few generations inside a host, but I've ultimately got to keep going to the next host, or my children's, children's children have to go to the next host.The human body is responsive to things around it06:06: The human body is responsive to things around it, things we put into it. And so, the human body changes over time, and it can be a crude yet really, really powerful way of thinking about changes in human health.How can human societies bring infectious disease under control49:37: Human societies are able to bring infectious diseases under control through the deployment of a number of always-overlapping mechanisms. And so you need all of it. You need good nutrition; you need economic growth and development that give particularly children high levels of nutrition to survive infection. You also need good policy. This would include number one, clean water, and number two, mandatory vaccination.Infections hinder growth development07:58: If your whole childhood is fighting off nasty infections, your body doesn't have the energy budget to invest in growth. So it's not just what you eat—protein is one thing. It's also eating away your energy, like little microparasites that you're fighting off constantly. And then other things—social stress, the kind of work environment— So bones. Tell a big story.Show Links:Recommended Resources:Edward GibbonPlagues and Peoples Edward JennerGuest Profile:Faculty Profile at University of OklahomaFaculty Profile at Sante Fe InstituteProfessional Profile on AcademiaKyle Harper's WebsiteKyle Harper on TwitterHis Work:Article on AeonKyle Harper on Google ScholarPlagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human HistoryThe Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an EmpireFrom Shame to Sin: The Christian Transformation of Sexual Morality in Late AntiquitySlavery in the Late Roman World, AD 275–425
Tuberculosis has been around for thousands of years, and it still infects millions per year. This hour, we look back at how tuberculosis has shaped history and how it is still impacting health today. Plus, a look at the history of tuberculosis treatment, how tuberculosis has shaped modern architecture, and the impact of tuberculosis on art and artists. GUESTS: Heran Darwin: Professor in the Department of Microbiology at New York University Beatriz Colomina: Author of X-Ray Architecture Carolyn Day: Author of Consumptive Chic: A History of Beauty, Fashion and Disease Kyle Harper: Author of Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History Tara Knapp: Vice president of external affairs at Gaylord Specialty Healthcare Elizabeth Lee: Author of The Medicine of Art: Disease and the Aesthetic Object in Gilded Age America The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode! Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show. Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter. Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired September 1, 2022.Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Kyle Harper is an historian who focuses on how humanity has shaped nature, and vice versa. He's a Professor of Classics and Letters at the University of Oklahoma and the author of several books, including The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire, and his latest, Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History. His mastery of the science is only matched by the ease of his prose. If I were to nominate a book of the year, it would be this one (alongside Jamie Kirchick's Secret City).For two clips of our convo — on the zombie bloodsucking fleas of the Black Death, and on how Covid doomed the careers of Trump and Boris — pop over to our YouTube page. Other topics: the bubonic plague's role in the fall of the Roman Empire, the Black Death, flagellants and anti-Semitism, the plague in 17th century London, the Spanish flu, the AIDS crisis, Thucydides, Camus' La Peste, “The Roses of Eyam,” monkeypox, lab leak, and the uprising over China's ghastly Covid policy. Get full access to The Weekly Dish at andrewsullivan.substack.com/subscribe
Tuberculosis has been around for thousands of years, and still infects millions per year. This hour, we look back at how tuberculosis has shaped history, and how it is still impacting health today. We will also learn about the history of tuberculosis treatment, how tuberculosis has shaped modern architecture, and the impact of tuberculosis on art and artists. GUESTS: Heran Darwin: Professor in the Department of Microbiology at New York University, whose lab studies Mycobacterium tuberculosis Kyle Harper: Chair in the History of Liberty and a Professor of Classics and Letters at the University of Oklahoma, author of Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History Beatriz Colomina: Professor of the History of Architecture at Princeton University, and author of X-Ray Architecture Tara Knapp: Vice President of External Affairs at Gaylord Specialty Healthcare Carolyn Day: Associate Professor of History at Furman University, author of Consumptive Chic: A History of Beauty, Fashion and Disease Elizabeth Lee: Associate Professor of Art History at Dickinson College, author of The Medicine of Art: Disease and the Aesthetic Object in Gilded Age America Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Join Health Affairs Insider.In the fourth and final episode of The Earth Disease, journalist Jared Downing explores the carrots and sticks that the federal government can use to curb climate change.Jared produced this series in 2021 as part of the Health Affairs Podcast Fellowship Program.Guests on this episode include Dr. Ashish Jha, Howard Frumkin from the University of Washington School of Public Health, and Arsenio Mataka from the Office of Climate Change and Health Equity at the Department of Health and Human Services.At the time of this recording, Dr. Jha was the Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health. He is currently the White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator and Counselor to the President. The views represented in this podcast are his own.Works Cited: Department of Health and Human Services FY 2021 Budget in Brief (HHS) HHS Climate Adaption Plan - 2014 (HHS) Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (Office of Community Services) Music produced by Seth Kennedy.
Join Health Affairs Insider.In the third episode of The Earth Disease, journalist Jared Downing discusses how social determinants of health programs intersect with climate and health policy.Jared produced this series in 2021 as part of the Health Affairs Podcast Fellowship Program.Guests in this episode include Aaron Bernstein from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Megan Sandel from Boston Medical Center, Adam Abdul Musawir from Good Food Markets, and Gary Cohen from Healthcare Without Harm.Works Cited: Boston Neighborhoods Impacted By Urban Heat (The Scope Boston) A City Divided In Life And Death (The Margins) Health Spending In Most OECD Countries Rises, With the US Far Outstripping All Other (OECD Health Data) Music produced by Seth Kennedy.
Join Health Affairs Insider.The health care industry is among the most carbon-intensive service sectors in the industrialized world. It is responsible for 4.4–4.6 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions and similar fractions of toxic air pollutants, largely stemming from fossil fuel combustion.In the second episode of The Earth Disease, journalist Jared Downing explores ways that the health care industry is working to curb its carbon footprint.Jared produced this series in 2021 as part of the Health Affairs Podcast Fellowship Program.Guests on this episode include Dr. Ashish Jha, Bob Biggio from Boston Medical Center, Jeff Thompson formerly from the Gundersen Health System.At the time of this recording, Dr. Jha was the Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health. He is currently the White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator and Counselor to the President. The views represented in this podcast are his own.Works Cited: National Health Care Spending In 2020: Growth Driven By Federal Spending In Response To The COVID-19 Pandemic (Health Affairs) Health Care Pollution and Public Health Damage In The United States: An Update (Health Affairs) Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Environmental Protection Agency) Budget of the United States Government Music produced by Seth Kennedy.
Join Health Affairs Insider.Health Affairs Pathways explores the avenues and alleyways of the health care system through a variety of storytelling – from investigative journalism and health policy explainers to long-form interviews.Unique series are created by fellows at the Health Affairs Podcast Fellowship Program, designed to support early to mid-stage professionals pursue an audio project, tell a unique health care story, and highlight voices that may not be heard otherwise.Our third and final series for the 2021 cohort, The Earth Disease, is from Jared Downing, a journalist based in New York City. In this series, Jared Downing explores the intersection of climate change and health policy. Jared produced this series in 2021 as part of the Health Affairs Podcast Fellowship Program.Guests on this episode include Ashish Jha, Aaron Bernstein from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Mariel Fonteyn from Americares, and Ed Gerber from the Lestonnac Free Clinic.At the time of this recording, Dr. Jha was the Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health. He is currently the White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator and Counselor to the President. The views represented in this podcast are his own.Works Cited: Climate Change (World Health Organization) Spreading Like Wildfire: The Rising Threat of Extraordinary Landscape Fires (United Nations Environment Programme) It's Not Your Imagination. Allergy Season Gets Worse Each Year (Vox) Record-breaking Temperatures Have Been Reported In the Northeast, And Some Cities Could Feel As High as 110 Degrees Fahrenheit (Insider) Mental Health and Stress-Related Disorders (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Understanding Lyme and Other Tickborne Diseases (CDC) Music produced by Seth Kennedy.
Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
“Thinking about the future of the environments more broadly and the challenges of global development, we need to remember that freedom from infectious disease is not a privilege that is universally shared. And so in order to continue to improve global public health, it's vitally important that people in poor countries have access to opportunities for economic growthHuman well-being is both a question of social development in a very holistic sense that people have jobs that provide adequate food and clean water as well as the elimination of dangerous microbes, and so the question is how do societies continue to develop in a way that's globally equitable and sustainable and that's really one of wicked hardest problems on the planet is how do we continue to experience growth without having carbon emissions that make growth and impossible, that continue to hold societies in poverty, and that continue to imperil human health.”Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
“Thinking about the future of the environments more broadly and the challenges of global development, we need to remember that freedom from infectious disease is not a privilege that is universally shared. And so in order to continue to improve global public health, it's vitally important that people in poor countries have access to opportunities for economic growthHuman well-being is both a question of social development in a very holistic sense that people have jobs that provide adequate food and clean water as well as the elimination of dangerous microbes, and so the question is how do societies continue to develop in a way that's globally equitable and sustainable and that's really one of wicked hardest problems on the planet is how do we continue to experience growth without having carbon emissions that make growth and impossible, that continue to hold societies in poverty, and that continue to imperil human health.”Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
“Thinking about the future of the environments more broadly and the challenges of global development, we need to remember that freedom from infectious disease is not a privilege that is universally shared. And so in order to continue to improve global public health, it's vitally important that people in poor countries have access to opportunities for economic growthHuman well-being is both a question of social development in a very holistic sense that people have jobs that provide adequate food and clean water as well as the elimination of dangerous microbes, and so the question is how do societies continue to develop in a way that's globally equitable and sustainable and that's really one of wicked hardest problems on the planet is how do we continue to experience growth without having carbon emissions that make growth and impossible, that continue to hold societies in poverty, and that continue to imperil human health.”Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
“Thinking about the future of the environments more broadly and the challenges of global development, we need to remember that freedom from infectious disease is not a privilege that is universally shared. And so in order to continue to improve global public health, it's vitally important that people in poor countries have access to opportunities for economic growthHuman well-being is both a question of social development in a very holistic sense that people have jobs that provide adequate food and clean water as well as the elimination of dangerous microbes, and so the question is how do societies continue to develop in a way that's globally equitable and sustainable and that's really one of wicked hardest problems on the planet is how do we continue to experience growth without having carbon emissions that make growth and impossible, that continue to hold societies in poverty, and that continue to imperil human health.”Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
“Thinking about the future of the environments more broadly and the challenges of global development, we need to remember that freedom from infectious disease is not a privilege that is universally shared. And so in order to continue to improve global public health, it's vitally important that people in poor countries have access to opportunities for economic growthHuman well-being is both a question of social development in a very holistic sense that people have jobs that provide adequate food and clean water as well as the elimination of dangerous microbes, and so the question is how do societies continue to develop in a way that's globally equitable and sustainable and that's really one of wicked hardest problems on the planet is how do we continue to experience growth without having carbon emissions that make growth and impossible, that continue to hold societies in poverty, and that continue to imperil human health.”Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
“Thinking about the future of the environments more broadly and the challenges of global development, we need to remember that freedom from infectious disease is not a privilege that is universally shared. And so in order to continue to improve global public health, it's vitally important that people in poor countries have access to opportunities for economic growthHuman well-being is both a question of social development in a very holistic sense that people have jobs that provide adequate food and clean water as well as the elimination of dangerous microbes, and so the question is how do societies continue to develop in a way that's globally equitable and sustainable and that's really one of wicked hardest problems on the planet is how do we continue to experience growth without having carbon emissions that make growth and impossible, that continue to hold societies in poverty, and that continue to imperil human health.”Kyle Harper is the G.T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, Professor of Classics and Letters, Senior Advisor to the President, and Provost Emeritus at the University of Oklahoma. Harper's fourth book, Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, is a global history of infectious disease spanning from human origins to COVID-19. It tells the story of humanity's long and distinctive struggle with pathogenic microbes. His scholarly works use natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities to deepen our understanding of human expansion as a planetary force. · www.kyleharper.net · https://www.amazon.com/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1629378421&sr=8-1 · www.oneplanetpodcast.org · www.creativeprocess.info
Escaping infectious disease and managing its spread has long been at the forefront of the human mind; it's certainly taken front and center in the minds of today's humans as the globe continues to wade through the COVID-19 pandemic. In an especially timely and fascinating look at the story of disease past and present, historian Kyle Harper explained the evolutionary past of humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool in Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History. Disease, he argued, is accelerated by technological progress and entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism. And while triumph over disease helps our lives progress, it's actually destabilizing the environment and fostering new diseases. Gulp. But all is not lost. Harper pointed out what we can learn by looking at history while simultaneously looking forward, examining patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality, paired with insights from cutting-edge genetic research. And, he reminded us, that human health is intrinsically connected to the health of the planet itself. Dr. Kyle Harper is Professor of Classics and Letters and Provost Emeritus at The University of Oklahoma. Dr. Harper is a historian of the ancient world whose work has spanned economic, environmental, and social history. His book, Plagues Upon the Earth, is a New Statesman Essential Non-Fiction Book of 2021. His other books include The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire (Princeton) and From Shame to Sin: The Christian Transformation of Sexual Morality in Late Antiquity. Buy the Book: Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton Economic History of the Western World #106) (Hardcover) from Third Place Books Presented by Town Hall Seattle. To become a member or make a donation click here.
The history of disease is really a story about humankind's ever-changing relationship to the natural world. All of the momentous events in human history— the acquisition of fire, the development of farming, the Columbian exchange, rapid industrialization, and accelerated globalization— all coincide with exposure to emerging new diseases. In a way, the Covid-19 pandemic is a reminder that pathogens will always evolve alongside us, and, in fact, infectious diseases can shine a light on the complexity of our behavior as a species. In his new book, Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History, Professor Kyle Harper takes us through each stage of human history, and shows just how infectious diseases have shaped us in ways we've never imagined.
Covid-19 was not the first pandemic in history, and it won't be the last. We have lived with disease throughout our history, and our history has accordingly been shaped, sometimes transformed, by disease. But how? In the final episode of this series of Reading Our Times, Nick Spencer talks to the historian Kyle Harper about his new book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History.
Kyle Harper's "Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History" (Princeton University Press) blends biology and economics to create a sweeping, global history of infectious disease from chimpanzees to COVID-19 and with a look to the future.
Our guest is Kyle Harper, a professor of classics and letters at the University of Oklahoma, whose books include "The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire" and "From Shame to Sin: The Christian Transformation of Sexual Morality in Late Antiquity." He joins us to discuss his hefty and fascinating new book, "Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History." It offers a meticulously detailed "germ's-eye view" of human life on this planet -- from the origins of disease among our earliest hunter-gatherers to the current COVID-19 pandemic. Per Kirkus Reviews: "Well-conceived.... Harper combs through the literature of history, economics, epidemiology, and other disciplines to deliver a solid study of the role of infectious disease in the human story.... A welcome addition to the spate of recent books on epidemic disease."
Our guest is Kyle Harper, a professor of classics and letters at the University of Oklahoma, whose books include "The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire" and "From Shame to Sin: The Christian Transformation of Sexual Morality in Late Antiquity." He joins us to discuss his hefty and fascinating new book, "Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History." It offers a meticulously detailed "germ's-eye view" of human life on this planet -- from the origins of disease among our earliest hunter-gatherers to the current COVID-19 pandemic. Per Kirkus Reviews: "Well-conceived.... Harper combs through the literature of history, economics, epidemiology, and other disciplines to deliver a solid study of the role of infectious disease in the human story.... A welcome addition to the spate of recent books on epidemic disease."
In this episode of “Keen On”, Andrew is joined by Kyle Harper, the author of “Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History”, to discuss why infectious diseases are a fundamental dimension of human history, as well as to explain how human processes drive the evolution of our microbial pathogens. Kyle Harper is a historian of ancient Rome, with a unique interest in disease history, economic history, and environmental history. He teaches a range of courses on classical antiquity and early Christianity at the University of Oklahoma Visit our website: https://lithub.com/story-type/keen-on/ Email Andrew: a.keen@me.com Watch the show live on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ajkeen Watch the show live on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ankeen/ Watch the show live on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lithub Watch the show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/LiteraryHub/videos Subscribe to Andrew's newsletter: https://andrew2ec.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
From when our ancestors first mastered fire to the rise of modern cities, humanity's progress has been accompanied by a revolving door of parasites, bacteria and viruses, wreaking havoc on our health. Kyle Harper, author of Plagues Upon the Earth, discusses the sprawling history of infectious disease. (Ad) Kyle Harper is the author of Plagues Upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton, 2021). Buy it now from Amazon:https://www.amazon.co.uk/Plagues-upon-Earth-Princeton-Economic/dp/069119212X/?tag=radtim01-21&ascsubtag=radiotimes-social-viewingguide See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/medicine
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com.
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science-technology-and-society
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science
Kyle Harper's book Plagues upon the Earth: Disease and the Course of Human History (Princeton UP, 2021) is a monumental history of humans and their germs. Weaving together a grand narrative of global history with insights from cutting-edge genetics, Kyle Harper explains why humanity's uniquely dangerous disease pool is rooted deep in our evolutionary past, and why its growth is accelerated by technological progress. He shows that the story of disease is entangled with the history of slavery, colonialism, and capitalism, and reveals the enduring effects of historical plagues in patterns of wealth, health, power, and inequality. He also tells the story of humanity's escape from infectious disease—a triumph that makes life as we know it possible, yet destabilizes the environment and fosters new diseases. Panoramic in scope, Plagues upon the Earth traces the role of disease in the transition to farming, the spread of cities, the advance of transportation, and the stupendous increase in human population. Harper offers a new interpretation of humanity's path to control over infectious disease—one where rising evolutionary threats constantly push back against human progress, and where the devastating effects of modernization contribute to the great divergence between societies. The book reminds us that human health is globally interdependent—and inseparable from the well-being of the planet itself. Putting the COVID-19 pandemic in perspective, Plagues upon the Earth tells the story of how we got here as a species, and it may help us decide where we want to go. Marshall Poe is the founder and editor of the New Books Network. He can be reached at marshallpoe@newbooksnetwork.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history