America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918 [Paperback]
Author: Alfred W. Crosby | Language: English | ISBN: 0521541751 | Format: PDF, EPUB
America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918
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Direct download links available America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918 for everyone book mediafire, rapishare, and mirror link
Between August 1918 and March 1919 the Spanish influenza spread worldwide, claiming over 25 million lives, more people than those perished in the fighting of the First World War. It proved fatal to at least a half-million Americans. Yet, the Spanish flu pandemic is largely forgotten today. In this vivid narrative, Alfred W. Crosby recounts the course of the pandemic during the panic-stricken months of 1918 and 1919, measures its impact on American society, and probes the curious loss of national memory of this cataclysmic event. In a new edition, with a new preface discussing the recent outbreaks of diseases, including the Asian flu and the SARS epidemic, America's Forgotten Pandemic remains both prescient and relevant. Alfred W. Crosby is a Professor Emeritus in American Studies, History and Geography at the University of Texas at Austin, where he taught for over 20 years. His previous books include Throwing Fire (Cambrige, 2002), the Measure of Reality (Cambridge, 1997) and Ecological Imperialism (cambridge, 1986). Ecological Imperialism was the winner of the 1986 Phi Beta Kappa book prize. The Measure of Reality was chosen by the Los Angeles Times as one of the 100 most important books of 1997.
Download latest books on mediafire and other links compilation America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918 [Paperback] - Paperback: 356 pages
- Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 2nd edition (July 21, 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0521541751
- ISBN-13: 978-0521541756
- Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
- Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #303,469 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #65 in Books > Textbooks > Medicine & Health Sciences > Medicine > Clinical > Forensic Medicine
Sit down, and allow me to scare you for a moment. Imagine that the world is gripped in the throes of the lengthy stalemate of a senseless war that has depleted Europe of most of its young men and resources, and those that remain are destitute, dispirited, starving, and suffering from the lost of loved ones. In the midst of this war, a formerly rather innocuous disease suddenly mutates into a new killer strain which infects all corners of the globe, from Alaska to Africa, within a matter of weeks. This new disease is not only remarkably contagious, but it is so lethal and destroys so many lives in such a short time-frame that even the ghastly global war pales in comparison. Even the greatest medical minds of the time have little idea (or worse, wrong ideas) as to how to prevent or treat the disease and what may be causing it. The disease makes little discrimination with regard to class, race, nationality, or gender, killing all with an unforgiving ferocity. Perhaps the strangest characteristic of this new, invisible killer, is that it seems to especially target people in the prime of their lives, wiping them out at a rate far disproportionate to that seen in the "traditional" victims of disease, people with inexperienced or compromised immune systems, such as the very young and the very old.
The scariest aspect of this tale is that it is not fiction. It has already happened, and scientists not only foresee the repeat of such an apocalyptic scourge as possible, but they express surprise that it hasn't already repeated its destruction... yet.
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