From ancient scourges to modern-day pandemics!Throughout history--even recent history--highly contagious, deadly, and truly horrible epidemics have swept through cities, countrysides, and even entire countries. Outbreak! catalogs fifty of those incidents in gruesome detail, including:The Sweating Sickness that killed 15,000, including Henry VIII's older brotherSyphilis, the "French Disease," which spread throughout Europe in the lat...

A clear and straightforward explanation of genetics in this new edition of the popular 101 series.Our genetic makeup determines so much about who we are, and what we pass on to our children—from eye color, to height, to health, and even our longevity. Genetics 101 breaks down the science of how genes are inherited and passed from parents to offspring, what DNA is and how it works, how your DNA affects your health, and how you can use your personal genomics...

A National Bestseller, a New York Times Notable Book, and an Entertainment Weekly Best Book of the Year from the author of Extra Life**“By turns a medical thriller, detective story, and paean to city life, Johnson's account of the outbreak and its modern implications is a true page-turner.” —The Washington Post“Thought-provoking.” —Entertainment Weekly**It's the summer of 1854, and London is just emerging...

Witches, Midwives, and Nurses examines how women-led healing was delegitimized to make way for patriarchy, capitalism, and the emerging medical industry.As we watch another agonizing attempt to shift the future of healthcare in the United States, we are reminded of the longevity of this crisis, and how firmly entrenched we are in a system that doesn't work.First published by the Feminist Press in 1973, Witches, Midwives, and Nurses is an e...

Galen of Pergamum (A.D. 129 - ca. 216) began his remarkable career tending to wounded gladiators in provincial Asia Minor. Later in life he achieved great distinction as one of a small circle of court physicians to the family of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, at the very heart of Roman society. Susan Mattern's The Prince of Medicine offers the first authoritative biography in English of this brilliant, audacious, and profoundly influential figure. Like many Greek intellectuals living in...

"The Physicians of Myddfai"("Meddygon Myddvai" in Welsh), or "The medical practice of the celebrated Rhiwallon and his sons, of Myddfai, in Carmarthenshire, physicians to Rhys Gryg, lord of Dynevor and Ystrad Towy", was written about the middle of the 13th century.The collection of herbal remedies are associated with Rhiwallon Feddyg (eldest son of the Lady of the Lake) , founder of a medical dynasty that lasted over 500 years and comes from the manuscript called the "Red Book of H...

'From your brain to your fingertips, you emerge from her book entertained and with a deeper understanding of yourself' Richard Dawkins**'A masterful account of why our bodies are the way they are . . . this book really shines . . . Roberts's lightness of touch is joyous, and celebratory' Observer'Witty, personal and above all informed by passion and deep knowledge, this is the story of you, not just from conception onwards but from...

Caring for the wounded of the First World War was tough and challenging work, demanding extensive knowledge, technical skill, and high levels of commitment. Although allied nurses were admired in their own time for their altruism and courage, their image was distorted by the lens of popular mythology. They came to be seen as self-sacrificing heroines, romantic foils to the male combatant and doctors' handmaidens, rather than being appreciated as trained professionals performing significant...

'A long-awaited book that answers many questions.' Jan de Vries Antibiotics were developed in the 1940s. Then, they were hailed as a huge breakthrough in the treatment of bacterial infections. Today, they are the most commonly prescribed drugs worldwide. But massive over-prescription of antibiotics has created its own problems. The advent of antibiotic-resistant organisms – or 'superbugs' – has led more and more people to demand alternatives. Natural Alternatives to Antibiotics is a revise...

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Exciting and provocative . . . A tour de force of a book that begs to be seen as well as to be read.”—The Washington Post Book WorldWorld renowned scientist Carl Sagan and acclaimed author Ann Druyan have written a Roots for the human species, a lucid and riveting account of how humans got to be the way we are. Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors is a thrilling saga that starts with the origin of the Earth. It shows with...

A New York Times bestseller“A smart and important book.”—Gretchen Reynolds, author of The First 20 MinutesPublications as varied as Wired, Men’s Fitness, and The New Yorker are abuzz over the New York Times bestseller Faster, Higher, Stronger. In it, veteran journalist Mark McClusky explains how today’s top athletes are turning to advanced technology and savvy science to improve their p...

A bestselling history of medicine, enriched with a new foreword, concluding essay, and bibliographic essay.Erwin H. Ackerknecht’s A Short History of Medicine is a concise narrative, long appreciated by students in the history of medicine, medical students, historians, and medical professionals as well as all those seeking to understand the history of medicine.Covering the broad sweep of discoveries from parasitic worms to bacilli and x-rays, and hi...