What can we learn from the centuries-long quest to eradicate smallpox, once the scourge of humanity? And how did it set the stage for all vaccines to come? First we meet Edward Jenner, a doctor in 18th century Britain who learned about the folk practice of “variolation” and found a safer way to inoculate people against smallpox. Then, Donald Hopkins of the Carter Center takes us back to the 1960s in Sierra Leone, where he discovered that successfully eradicating smallpox could be a feasible goal worldwide.

What can we learn from the centuries-long quest to eradicate smallpox, once the scourge of humanity? And how did it set the stage for all vaccines to come? First we meet Edward Jenner, a doctor in 18th century Britain who learned about the folk practice of “variolation” and found a safer way to inoculate people against smallpox. Then, Donald Hopkins of the Carter Center takes us back to the 1960s in Sierra Leone, where he discovered that successfully eradicating smallpox could be a feasible goal worldwide.

Incubation is a show about how viruses attack people – and how people fight back. This season, we talk to a scientist who fought the spread of Ebola while risking his life. We learn how a ubiquitous virus causes cancer and multiple sclerosis. And we hear how a mosquito-borne virus helped defend an empire. Stories of discovery, heartbreak, and heroic nerds drop weekly on Thursdays starting October 17th.

Incubation is a show about how viruses attack people – and how people fight back. This season, we talk to a scientist who fought the spread of Ebola while risking his life. We learn how a ubiquitous virus causes cancer and multiple sclerosis. And we hear how a mosquito-borne virus helped defend an empire. Stories of discovery, heartbreak, and heroic nerds drop weekly on Thursdays starting October 17th.

Incubation

Smallpox: Gone but Not Forgotten

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/f65ea5f9-d0d3-4209-a336-b06e0128e130/transcript

For thousands of years, humans have shaped mosquito evolution while mosquitoes have shaped human history. Today on the show, Noah Rose, an ecologist at UC San Diego, tells us how mosquitoes came to love human blood. Then, Georgetown historian John McNeill makes the case for how mosquitoes – and the viruses they carry – changed the course of history in the Americas.

For thousands of years, humans have shaped mosquito evolution while mosquitoes have shaped human history. Today on the show, Noah Rose, an ecologist at UC San Diego, tells us how mosquitoes came to love human blood. Then, Georgetown historian John McNeill makes the case for how mosquitoes – and the viruses they carry – changed the course of history in the Americas.

Mosquitoes, Viruses and the History of the World

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/6340e5e2-5c25-445f-acc3-b2260163bcb3/transcript

After four decades of dedicated research on HIV, scientists have made extraordinary progress in treating the disease. But we still don’t have a vaccine or a cure. On today’s show, we’re joined by two veteran scientists who have dedicated their careers to HIV research. First up is Christine Rouzioux, a virologist from the Nobel Prize winning team of scientists who first identified the HIV virus. For the second half of the show we talk with Richard Koup from the National Institutes of Health, who explains why it’s so hard to create an HIV vaccine.

After four decades of dedicated research on HIV, scientists have made extraordinary progress in treating the disease. But we still don’t have a vaccine or a cure. On today’s show, we’re joined by two veteran scientists who have dedicated their careers to HIV research. First up is Christine Rouzioux, a virologist from the Nobel Prize winning team of scientists who first identified the HIV virus. For the second half of the show we talk with Richard Koup from the National Institutes of Health, who explains why it’s so hard to create an HIV vaccine.

HIV: Racing to Identify a Killer

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/03aaab9e-4471-4cbe-90b8-b20a0107c8d6/transcript

For a long time, people could tell that there was some connection between chickenpox and shingles. But exactly how they were related was a mystery. Then, in the 1950s, a family doctor shipped out to a remote Scottish island to investigate an outbreak, and made a discovery that shaped our understanding of shingles. On today's show, Ann Arvin, professor emerita at Stanford Medical School, tells us that detective story. Then Robert Johnson of the University of Bristol explains what he's learned about treating pain in his decades working with shingles patients.

For a long time, people could tell that there was some connection between chickenpox and shingles. But exactly how they were related was a mystery. Then, in the 1950s, a family doctor shipped out to a remote Scottish island to investigate an outbreak, and made a discovery that shaped our understanding of shingles. On today's show, Ann Arvin, professor emerita at Stanford Medical School, tells us that detective story. Then Robert Johnson of the University of Bristol explains what he's learned about treating pain in his decades working with shingles patients.

Shingles: The Mystery of Pain

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/495ecdf6-a30c-4291-bb1e-b21e013c3e20/transcript

Smallpox: Gone but Not Forgotten

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