Black Plague series

By tsmith on March 19, 2008.

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 1: Objections to Y. pestis causation

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 2: Examination of the criticisms

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 3: Paleomicrobiology and the detection of Y. pestis in corpses

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 4: Plague in modern times

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 5: Nail in the coffin

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"What caused the Black Plague?" series

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 1: Objections to Y. pestis causation Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 2: Examination of the criticisms Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 3: Paleomicrobiology and the detection of Y. pestis in corpses Did…

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 3: Paleomicrobiology and the detection of Y. pestis in corpses

In parts one and two of the "What caused the Black Plague?" series, I discussed objections that had been raised to the conclusion that the bacterium Yersinia pestis was the cause of this pandemic, and the weaknesses with those criticisms. In today's installation, I'll discuss actual molecular…

Did Yersinia pestis really cause Black Plague? Part 5: Nail in the coffin

Despite its reputation as a scourge of antiquity, Yersinia pestis--the bacterium that causes bubonic plague--still causes thousands of human illnesses every year. In modern times, most of these occur in Africa, and to a lesser extent in Asia, though we have a handful of cases each year in the U.S…

Black Death not initiated by a plasmid? My money is on a moron.

What caused The Black Death? Its not only an interesting question from a paleomicrobiology standpoint, but of practical importance-- While we have all kinds of technology here in 2011 that would have, no doubt, increased the survival rates of Plague victims in the 1400s, it would be more comforting…

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