Germs, Genes, & Civilization: How Epidemics Shaped Who We Are Today

David Clark

Jan 2010 · FT Press

About this ebook

In Germs, Genes and Civilization, Dr. David Clark tells the story of the microbe-driven epidemics that have repeatedly molded our human destinies. You'll discover how your genes have been shaped through millennia spent battling against infectious diseases. You'll learn how epidemics have transformed human history, over and over again, from ancient Egypt to Mexico, the Romans to Attila the Hun. You'll learn how the Black Death epidemic ended the Middle Ages, making possible the Renaissance, western democracy, and the scientific revolution. Clark demonstrates how epidemics have repeatedly shaped not just our health and genetics, but also our history, culture, and politics. You'll even learn how they may influence religion and ethics, including the ways they may help trigger cultural cycles of puritanism and promiscuity. Perhaps most fascinating of all, Clark reveals the latest scientific and philosophical insights into the interplay between microbes, humans, and society - and previews what just might come next.

Ratings and reviews

This was an excellent book. It's well written for the lay person. Anyone who's taken high school biology, or even just 7th grade life sciences, will have no problems understanding the biological aspects of this book. It makes for a nice companion to Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies in explaining how societies have been affected by the germs they've been exposed to. It's not terribly long, but it's broken up into sub-chapters every couple of pages. The table of contents is longer than some of the sub-chapters. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest history, anthropology or sociology as well as those who are interested in biology (specifically diseases). The eBook was formatted fine with no obvious errors.

About the author

David Clark was born June 1952 in Croydon, a London suburb. After winning a scholarship to Christ’s College, Cambridge, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1973. In 1977, he earned his Ph.D. from Bristol University for work on antibiotic resistance. David then left England for postdoctoral research at Yale and then the University of Illinois. He joined the faculty of Southern Illinois University in 1981 and is now a professor in the Microbiology Department. In 1991, he visited Sheffield University, England, as a Royal Society Guest Research Fellow. The U.S. Department of Energy funded David’s research into the genetics and regulation of bacterial fermentation from 1982 till 2007. David has published more than 70 articles in scientific journals and graduated more than 20 masters and Ph.D. students. David is the author of Molecular Biology Made Simple and Fun, now in its third edition, as well as three more serious textbooks.