William H. McNeill discusses his book Plagues and Peoples, in which he examines in historical and epidemiological terms the impact of infectious diseases upon human populations, particularly epidemics such as smallpox, measles, flu, whooping cough, various viral diseases, the plague, scarlet fever, and tuberculosis. He notes that historians face challenges when describing plagues because the source and path of the disease are often difficult to explain and to believe.
Commentary by Seymour Cohen concludes the program [23:09] with discussion of the contemporary issue of “orphan drugs,” including explanation of the term and its ramifications for Third World nations.
At the time of this interview, McNeill was professor of history at the University of Chicago.
Cohen, a Fellow at the National Humanities Center (1982-83), was professor of biochemistry at the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
This edition of Soundings was conducted by Wayne J. Pond.
