Infectious Historians

John Blair (Oxford University) joins Merle and Lee on the podcast in a discussion about his new book, Vampire Epidemics. The episode begins, as usual, with a definition of a vampire, followed by a survey of where and when these supernatural creatures appear in writings. John then discusses the phenomenon of vampire epidemics over time, noting their increased prevalence after the appearance of the...

Bruce Noden (Oklahoma State University) joins the podcast to talk about his research on entomology (the study of insects). Bruce introduces his field of study and the particular context of his work on insect-borne diseases in Oklahoma looking at ticks and mosquitoes. He discusses the impacts of climate change on insects as the state’s dry line moves East and recounts several “unusual” experiences...

Bruno Strasser (University of Geneva) and Thomas Schlich (McGill University) come on the Infectious Historians podcast to discuss their recent book on the history of masks. As usual, the episode begins with definitions, then moves to discuss some of the commonly known kinds of masks in history - such as the plague doctor bird-like beaked mask, or the masks worn in the US during the 1918 Influenza...

Brent Kaup (William & Mary University) and Kelly Austin (Lehigh University) come on the podcast to discuss their new book connecting disease and capitalism. They begin by discussing the financialization of America and link it as a cause of climate change. Financialization is also linked to diseases and specifically vector borne diseases through the suburbanization of areas such as Virginia. In...

Eran Alam (Harvard University) speaks to the Infectious Historians about foreign healthcare workers in the US. The conversation begins with an examination of doctors in the US - how many are trained (and retire), different fields and different parts of the country. Historically, immigration has been a key way in which the US has historically addressed shortages of doctors. Eram highlights the diff...

In this episode Merle and Lee speak with Eric Story (Western University) about his work on tuberculosis in the Canadian army during World War I. Eric begins by discussing disability studies and tuberculosis before focusing on the Canadian military during the war. As a social historian, Story examines the impacts of tuberculosis on different groups in Canadian society. He then expands on some of th...

Cam Grey (University of Pennsylvania) comes on the podcast to discuss his book on risk in the late Roman world. The conversation begins with a discussion of how to define disasters and risk, before moving on to examine the ways in which risk was conceived and mitigated in the past. Cam speaks about the importance of putting back together the human and natural worlds, but is also aware of how the p...

Christoph Gradmann (University of Oslo) joins Merle and Lee to discuss his new book on 20th century tuberculosis in Tanzania seen through the records of Kibong'oto hospital, the main hospital that treated the disease in the region. The conversation begins with some context about Tanzania and its history during and after the colonial period. As a case study, Kibong'oto is important in two ways that...

Wayne Soon (University of Minnesota) joins the Infectious Historians to chat about his work on Taiwan. Wayne begins with a survey of Covid in Taiwan, highlighting state responses and how other countries featured in Taiwan during the pandemic. The conversation then moves back to examine the impacts of the SARS epidemic on Taiwan - including mask-wearing and mask production - and how those impacts w...

Jordan Wilson (Georgetown University) and Janet Kay (Independent Scholar) join Merle and Lee to talk about bioarchaeology in light of an article they wrote on the bioarchaeology of the first plague pandemic. The conversation starts off with an explanation of bioarchaeology, its methodologies (including bone identification!) and how does daily work in that field look like. Within the context of the...

Natalie Porter (independent scholar) joins Merle and Lee to discuss her work on Avian Flu in Vietnam. Natalie begins with an explanation of what Avian (Bird) Flu is, alongside a survey of the culling that happens when epidemics occur among birds. Natalie explains how she came to work on this topic, and shares some of her own experiences as an anthropologist conducting research on this subject in V...

Bianca Lopez (Southern Methodist University) joins the Infectious Historians to discuss her recent book on plague, piety and power in late medieval Italy. Lopez begins with a survey of the impact of the Black Death and subsequent second pandemic outbreaks on Italy and moves on to talk about the specific area she studies - Santa Maria di Loreto. She examines the indirect impacts of plague on the ru...

Xiaoping Fang (Monash University) comes on the podcast to discuss his recent book about cholera’s role in mid-20th century China. Fang begins by discussing cholera broadly before moving to focus on its role in China, primarily through examining it as a public health event. Although the mortality of the cholera epidemic was not very high, it was more important in restructuring the Chinese sociopoli...

Einar Wigen (University of Oslo) joins the Infectious Historians to talk about the Ottoman experience of plague. The conversation begins with a reflection on the beginning and end of epidemics, as well as the purpose of such discussions - as people bestow importance upon epidemics. It then transitions to plague in the Ottoman Empire - covering its impact as well as how the Ottomans themselves thou...

Erica Charters (University of Oxford) comes on the podcast to discuss how pandemics end. Erica begins by pointing out that we tend to pay far less attention to the end of pandemics, reflecting on the ending of Covid in public discourse. Erica then discusses a large project she ran which brought together over 40 international scholars on the end of pandemics which also examined the same issue. The...

Robert Zaretsky (University of Houston) joins the Infectious Historians to reflect on his experiences during Covid as he read “plague literature” and volunteered as an aide at a nursing home. The interview begins with Robert reflecting on his thinking during Covid and how he moved from reading history to literature. The conversation continues by moving between Robert’s voluntary work at the nursin...

Michael Bresalier (Swansea University) discusses his work on the modern flu with Merle and Lee. Michael begins with talking about influenza in general and how the virus is constantly changing. The conversation then moves to focus on the annual flu shot - including its composition and how it is  manufactured. Michael answers questions about a few other topics - including the impact of the 1918 pand...

Claire Burridge (University of Oslo) comes on the podcast to discuss her work on “medical minitexts” such as recipe added to medieval manuscripts otherwise unrelated to medicine. The conversation begins with a broad framing of the period of and the genre of medical manuscripts before zooming into some of the recipes that address a variety of health issues. Claire reflects on the ingredients for th...

Erin Welsh and Erin Allmann Updyke, hosts of This Podcast Will Kill You , probably the first podcast on diseases - join Merle and Lee to reflect on podcasting and infectious diseases over the past several years. The conversation traces the beginnings of Erin and Erin’s podcast and the reason why they decided to launch it. Erin and Erin talk about how things changed since the beginning of their pod...

Anthony Cerulli (University of Wisconsin - Madison) joins the podcast to discuss his work on medicine in South Asia, focusing on ayurvedic medicine in premodernity. After some basic background contextualizing south Asian medicine, Anthony provides an overview of the three foundational texts for it. The conversations touches upon subjects such as the role of the patients, how healing is achieved in...

Shana Gadarian (Syracuse University) joins the infectious historians to discuss her book on politics and their influence on behavior during Covid-19. The conversation begins with Shana’s decision to work on the behavior of Americans during Covid-19 early in the pandemic and she reflects on the process of writing the book as events were still unfolding. She explains the methodology she and her co-a...

Philippa Nicole Barr (Australia National University) speaks to the Infectious Historians about her work on the public emotions surrounding the outbreak of the third plague pandemic in Australia. Philippa frames the discussion by providing some background about Australia at the turn of the 20th century and how plague reached Australia and led to the 1900 outbreak. She then explains the methods she...

Michelle Pfeffer (University of Oxford) comes on the podcast to present her work on astrology in the context of the second plague pandemic. The conversation begins with a brief discussion of the second plague pandemic and some of the cultural reactions to it. Michelle then speaks about public health and the question of its origins, before moving into astrology as a complex body of theory. She poin...

Jason Opal (McGill University) joins the Infectious Historians. Jason begins by discussing the massive impact of disease on the Americas between the 15th and 18th centuries, while also acknowledging the realization of this history in the 1970s. He also touches upon the concept of “virgin soil” epidemics. The second part of the episode focuses on inoculation against smallpox in Europe, the colonies...

Neeraja Sankaran (National Centre for Biological Sciences-TIFR) and Stephen Weldon (University of Oklahoma) join the Infectious Historians to discuss a recent special journal issue they edited. The issue includes many studies about histories of disease, pandemics and their impact around the world and across time, and reflections on how people have studies these events in the past. Neeraja and Step...