The Story of Malaria, The Killer of Half of Humanity

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 14 August 2018

⏱️ 90 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Long before Thanos snapped his fingers in Avengers: Infinity War, another villain successfully killed half of humanity.

Malaria is a simple parasite, transmitted by a mosquito bite. But this deadly disease, which has been around as long as homo sapiens, has killed more than all wars and natural disasters combined. It has wiped out cities, destroyed empires, ruined colonies, and may be responsible for 50 billion deaths, among them Alexander the Great and Marcus Aurelius (allegedly).

Malaria's role in history is perhaps more under-appreciated than anything else. Here's two examples: Many historians believe America won the Revolutionary War due to malaria depleting the ranks of infected soldiers. Some think it caused Rome's downfall.

When the malaria parasite was discovered in the 1800s it led to containment efforts. But the real game changer was the deployment of DDT in World War Two. Deadly swamp lands (like much of the United States) were now safe for human habitation. Even South Pacific islands were no longer death traps.

However, the fight against malaria took a different turn in the 1960s with the publication of Silent Spring, a book that argued pesticides could permanently damage earth's ecological balance.

Malaria is not the killer it once was but it still plays a massive role in public affairs debates today.

Transcript

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0:00.0	What was it like to watch the Twin Towers collapse on 9-11?
0:03.8	How about to be sent to Auschwitz during the Holocaust?
0:06.7	Our past is a collection of stories that bring us to where we are and shape our perspectives.
0:11.3	Hi, I'm Josh Cohen, host of the Eyewitness History Podcast.
0:15.0	On my show, I interviewed guests who watched the events that shaped our world.
0:18.8	From heartbreaking war stories to hilarious memories from the SNL writers room, no recollection
0:24.1	is off limits.
0:25.2	To start listening now for free, go to parthenonpodcast.com or search Eyewitness History on the podcast
0:31.2	player of your choice.
0:36.1	Welcome to the History Unplugged Podcast.
0:39.1	The unscripted show that celebrates unsung heroes, myth busts historical lies, and rediscoveres
0:45.5	the forgotten stories that changed our world.
0:49.2	I'm your host, Scott Rank.
0:56.2	In the age of modern warfare, there are many ways for humans to die.
1:02.9	There's the RPG or the rocket-propelled grenade where you can fire anti-tank rockets from
1:07.6	the shoulder.
1:09.7	Blame throwers could incinerate soldiers inside of a bunker.
1:13.7	And just about any class of automatic rifle makes it possible to take out enemies dozens
1:18.0	of times faster that would have been possible with the manual loading rifles of earlier
1:22.4	centuries.
1:24.2	Other advances in military technology allow you to kill enemies for much further away.
1:29.4	Aircraft carriers allow militaries project power anywhere on the earth with the ability
	...

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