Christopher J. Duncan – författare

If the twenty-first century seems an unlikely stage for the return of a 14th-century killer, the authors of Return of the Black Death argue that the plague, which vanquished half of Europe, has only lain dormant, waiting to emerge again—perhaps, in another form. At the heart of their chilling scenario is their contention that the plague was spread by direct human contact (not from rat fleas) and was, in fact, a virus perhaps similar to AIDS and Ebola. Noting the periodic occurrence of plagues throughout history, the authors predict its inevitable re-emergence sometime in the future, transformed by mass mobility and bioterrorism into an even more devastating killer.

This exciting and important book covers the impact on demography of the nutrition of populations, offering the view that the change from the hunter-gatherer to an agricultural life-style had a major impact on human demography, which still has repercussions today.

Demography and Nutrition takes an interdisciplinary approach, involving time-series analyses, mathematical modelling, aggregative analysis and family reconstitution as well as analysis of data series from Third World countries in the 20th Century. Contents include details and analysis of mortality oscillations, food supplies, famines, fertility and pregnancy, infancy and infant mortality, ageing, infectious diseases, and population dynamics.

The authors, both well known internationally for their work in these areas, have a great deal of experience of population data gathering and analysis. Within the book, they develop the thesis that malnutrition, from which the bulk of the population suffered, was the major factor that regulated demography in historical times, its controlling effect operated via the mother before, during and after pregnancy.

Demography and Nutrition contains a vast wealth of fascinating and vital information and as such is essential reading for a wide range of health professionals including nutritionists, dietitians, public health and community workers. Historians, social scientists, geographers and all those involved in work on demography will find this book to be of great use and interest. Libraries in all university departments, medical schools and research establishments should have copies of this landmark publication available on their shelves.

The threat of unstoppable plagues, such as AIDS and Ebola, is always with us. In Europe, the most devastating plagues were those from the Black Death pandemic in the 1300s to the Great Plague of London in 1665. For the last 100 years, it has been accepted that Yersinia pestis, the infective agent of bubonic plague, was responsible for these epidemics. This book combines modern concepts of epidemiology and molecular biology with computer-modelling. Applying these to the analysis of historical epidemics, the authors show that they were not, in fact, outbreaks of bubonic plague. Biology of Plagues offers a completely new interdisciplinary interpretation of the plagues of Europe and establishes them within a geographical, historical and demographic framework. This fascinating detective work will be of interest to readers in the social and biological sciences, and lessons learnt will underline the implications of historical plagues for modern-day epidemiology.

The threat of unstoppable plagues, such as AIDS and Ebola, is always with us. In Europe, the most devastating plagues were those from the Black Death pandemic in the 1300s to the Great Plague of London in 1665. For the last 100 years, it has been accepted that Yersinia pestis, the infective agent of bubonic plague, was responsible for these epidemics. This book combines modern concepts of epidemiology and molecular biology with computer-modelling. Applying these to the analysis of historical epidemics, the authors show that they were not, in fact, outbreaks of bubonic plague. Biology of Plagues offers a completely new interdisciplinary interpretation of the plagues of Europe and establishes them within a geographical, historical and demographic framework. This fascinating detective work will be of interest to readers in the social and biological sciences, and lessons learnt will underline the implications of historical plagues for modern-day epidemiology.