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Binding: PaperbackDewey Decimal Number: 614.4 EAN: 9781559637145 Edition: 1 ISBN: 1559637145 Label: Island Press Manufacturer: Island Press Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 224 Publication Date: August 31, 2004 Publisher: Island Press Studio: Island Press Related Items:
Browse for similar items by category: Click to Display Editorial Review: Product Description: "In a clear, engaging style, Dr. Walters tells the tale of each disease like a detective story. He allows each mystery to unfold as it did in reality, often slowly, through the lives of the plants and animals involved, the first human victims, the government officials who tried to respond, and the scientists who ultimately explained what was happening." -NEW YORK TIMES "...a fascinating work of ecological journalism, utterly convincing in its argument: that our health and the health of the environment are intimately linked, and we overlook that link at our peril." -MICHAEL POLLAN, AUTHOR OF SECOND NATURE AND THE BOTANY OF DESIRE "Mark Jerome Walters weaves a fine thread of human disturbances through the quilt work of modern pandemics. After being drawn engagingly into the explosive symptoms of global environmental change, readers will come to understand that we have no choice but to make peace with nature." -PAUL R. EPSTEIN, M.D., M.P.H., CENTER FOR HEALTH AND THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT, HARVARD MEDICAL SCHOOL West Nile Virus -- Mad Cow Disease -- HIV/AIDS -- Hantavirus -- Lyme Disease ... and a new strain of Salmonella. Such modern epidemics have emerged over the past few decades as mysterious, yet significant risks to human health. These "plagues" are forcing us to modify our lifestyles in ways that minimize our chances of becoming a statistic in the latest tally of the afflicted. In Six Modern Plagues, Mark Jerome Walters offers us the first book for the general reader that connects these emerging health risks and their ecological origins. Drawing on new research, interviews, and his own investigations, Mark Jerome Walters weaves together a compelling argument: that changes humans have made to the environment, from warming the climate to clearing the forests, have contributed to, if not caused a rising tide of diseases that are afflicting humans and many other species. According to Mark Jerome Walters, humans are not always innocent bystanders to infectious disease. To the contrary, in the case of many modern epidemics, we are the instigators. Six Modern Plagues, a ground-breaking introduction to the connection between disease and environmental degradation should be read by all those interested in their health and the health of others. Average Rating:
 Rating: - An enthralling read about modern diseases!A valuable resource on environmental issues and modern diseases, Mark Jerome Walters' Six Modern Plagues is an overall enthralling read. The author is very qualified on the material of this book and even has time to incorporate a story line about the victims of the diseases making this book hard to put down. It is a fairly easy read and should be interesting for anyone who would like to learn about the environment. It also has much important information for someone studying biology, microbiology ... Read More Rating: - A chilling introduction to human / microbe interaction in the modern worldI was required to read this as part of my Intro to Microbiology course. I kept it on my bookshelf because it quickly became an invaluable resource. While it is obvious the author knows a lot about the subject material, the book itself is fairly easy to read, and has almost the elements of a page-turner at times. The best thing about this book is that it very clearly shows the causative relationship between human change to the environment and the diseases that are currently afflicting ... Read More Rating: - A compelling readI was turned on to the book by Mark's older brother, John Walters, who is executive director of the Lightstone Foundation, an environmental organization based in West Virginia. I was expecting a deary medical discourse for the mass consumer culture. What I got was a compelling read about critical problems facing and caused by our society. Mark's writing style is very engaging and I had the pleasure of reading it straight through. The thoughts evoked are not terrifying or hysteric but rather ... Read More Rating: - A good, quick introduction to a very important fieldThis year it's the West Nile virus that's killing birds, horses and people for the first time where I live in Northern California. In the past year we've read about SARS appearing in China and jumping to cities around the world, about Mad Cow disease showing up here in the U.S., in Canada and in Japan, about the threat of a global flu epidemic, and of course we're all aware of the vast AIDS epidemic which continues to penetrate new populations in the industrialized world and which is devastating much of Africa. ... Read More Rating:  - Skip this one if you are looking to learn somethingThis book is disappointing. Walters offers little scientific or intellectual insight, or constructive advice for addressing some genuine human concerns. If you want to learn something about disease incidence and history, skip this book and buy Andrew Speilman's Mosquito, which is excellent! Emergence of new diseases and the reemergence of old ones is indeed a real concern, but Walters's politically correct philosophy prevents him from offering any real useful advice. Instead, the book amounts to little ... Read More 
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