The Ghost Map, by Steven Johnson, depicts the rise and spread of cholera in Victorian London. Cholera is a bacterial water-borne disease that has existed for centuries but has only recently become destructive as human populations have become more dense in unclean urban areas. The 1854 epidemic can be traced to the unfortunate day Sarah Lewis, a mother of a sick child, unknowingly ignited the crisis when she disposed of her infants diapers into a cesspool resulting in the fecal contamination of the area’s water supply. Although the treatment for cholera is fairly simple and consists primarily of maintaining hydration (clean water), the lack of medical knowledge in the Victorian era resulted in the creation and advertisement of many false cures …show more content…
The miasma (foul air signaled the presence of disease) theory was persuasive amongst a sizable portion of the population. Benjamin Hall, the president of the Board of Health was a proponent of this theory. In contrast, John Snow, was the first doctor to suggest that cholera was spread through contaminated water (contagion theory) after studying samples taken from the Broad Street (origin of the outbreak) water pump and conducting interviews with the local population. Snow’s identification of the pump as the source of the epidemic most likely prevented a second outbreak. Additionally this action is significant as the work of John Snow and the local municipal group laid the groundwork for future urban planning (better sanitation systems) in Europe and the United States. This resulted in urban centers slowly developing the infrastructure necessary to diminish levels of disease (Johnson, 2006). Student analysis: …show more content…
John Snow has on epidemiology and how he is ahead of his time. Snow’s investigation opposed the popular belief of miasma being the cause of transmission of the cholera outbreak. Snow’s efforts were outlined clearly with examples from the book. Nelson notices the importance of the 1854 outbreak map as well as the collaboration between Dr. Snow and Henry Whitehead. A summary of the book is provided. He notes the environment conditions and infrastructure that outlines the overall cause of the outbreak of cholera. The novel as described by Nelson as interesting and applicable in an epidemiology sense. (Nelson, 2015) Published reviews between Nelson and Frerichs only differed in a few aspects. For example, Nelson goes into a more descriptive outline of the book and focus highly on Dr. Snow’s investigation. Nonetheless, both reviews favored the book and commented on the research and analysis of Dr. Snow, along with everyday life of the people in this area and the infrastructure during the outbreak. Additionally, they both strongly recommend the book especially to people interested in public health and
...children to have the smallpox vaccination. Towns began building pure water systems and sewer systems, creating a much cleaner environment.
The book, The Ghost Map, tells the story of the cholera outbreak that took place in England during the medieval era. During this time, London became popular, causing it to become one of the most populous urban cities in England. However, it suffered from overcrowding, a large lower class, and little health regulations. As a result, living conditions and water supply were not the cleanest, and many died from the disease cholera. Though this epidemic led to many deaths/illnesses during it’s time, it has proven to be helpful and important to public health today. Some public health advancements that have occurred as a result include healthier, cleaner, and longer lives lived.
Steven Johnson’s The Ghost Map, depicts the Cholera outbreak in London in 1854, the largest city that has been built in the world. The book shows a path towards a scientific solution. This book focuses on a doctor, John Snow, and his search for a way to stop the epidemic that was occurring. Even though Dr. Snow had discovered some theories on his own, he also had the help of a Reverend, Henry Whitehead. They are searching for a new theory on how disease spreads, but their community did not want to accept their findings. Johnson’s central argument is that in order to treat a disease, one must understand how the disease functions. While the science community did not believe Dr. Snow’s findings at the time, Johnson’s obsession with how people
The Ghost Map covers a cholera outbreak in London in the year 1854. In 1854, London had a population of about two million and growing. London lacked the necessary tools to support its city. Garbage was never removed, the water was filthy, and the sewage
Steve Berlin Johnson published a nonfiction novel in 2006 called The Ghost Map which discusses various cholera outbreaks in Victorian London. Cholera was first believed by the majority of people, including physicians and scientists, to be spread through a poisonous atmosphere; this is called the miasma theory. When John Snow began to say contaminated water was the cause, he was continuously put down by the scientific community for lacking proof. By describing John Snow’s attempts to refute the miasma theory and prove that cholera is spread through water contamination, Johnson shows that most scientific discoveries are made through hours upon hours of work rather than a single breakthrough.
Kent, Susan Kingsley. The Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1919: A Brief History with Documents. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013. Print.
From the Chelsea Naval Hospital, overlooking the Boston Bay, I sip on a cup of Joe and browse over the Sports Section of the Los Angeles Times. Earlier this month, three Bostonians dropped dead from influenza. In examining the extent of the epidemic, Surgeon-General Blue commented to the Times , "People are stricken on the streets, while at work in factories, shipyards, offices or elsewhere. First there is a chill, then fever with temperature from 101 to 103, headache, backache, reddening and running of the eyes, pains and aches all over the body, and general prostration." I gaze out my window, the sun seems brighter than usual and the town more radiant. It must be the victory, for the threat of death due to influenza is pervasive. Outside, children jump rope. With every skip of the jump rope they chant. "I had a little bird." Skip. "Its name was Enza." Skip. "I opened up the window." Skip. "And in-flu-enza."
degree. As a practicing physician, he became well known for his scientific studies about the effects of anesthetics. After many tests performed with the precise amount of chloroform and ether, he was able to make it safer and more effective for surgeons. Since surgeons were using handkerchiefs soaked in chloroform to be able them to perform surgeries on their patients at the risk of killing them to putting them to sleep. Doing much research and thinking Snow came to the conclusion that many contagious diseases might possibly caused by microscopic parasites. Other physicians of this time felt like the cholera outbreak was due to poisonous gas that was secreted from organic decay, they referred to this gas as miasmas. The source of this gas was being produced by garbage pits, swamps, open graves and sewers. Although Snow had another opinion about the miasmas and did not feel like it explained the spread of certain diseases, especially cholera. Snow recalled back to the time Dr. Hardcastle had sent him to take care of the miners that he could not attend to because of the outbreak. When tending to these miners he noticed that they working underground where there were no sewers but also no water for proper hand washing amongst the miners. September 1848 another outbreak of cholera hit London, and the age if thirty-five Snow had the opportunity to track the transmission of the disease. The
Imagine a world where there was a great chance of a mother dying right after giving birth to her child. Sounds like a pretty crazy supposition. Unfortunately, not too long ago, that was the world we called home. Nuland’s book discusses the unfortunate tragedies of puerperal fever and the journey the medical field in Europe took to discover a cause and prevention. Hand in hand, Nuland also depicts the life of Ignác Semmelweis, the unknown founder of the aforementioned cause and prevention strategies: washing hands in chloride of lime. The Doctors’ Plague is a worthwhile read based off the information provided, its ability to break new ground, and the credibility of its author and sources.
As the days went by and the number of deaths began to increase, the Board of Health in London began to improve people’s living conditions by creating the indoor restroom, This, however, caused more problems for the people of London, due to the lack of a proper sewage system, “London needed a citywide sewage system that could remove waste products from houses in a reliable and sanitary fashion,...,The problem was one of jurisdiction, not execution,”(Page 117). London didn’t have a place where the sewers could lead off to which keep the disease spreading when people used the restroom. After months of battling the type of disease London was faced with, Mr. Snow convinced the Board of Health to remove the water pump that was on Board Street. By getting rid of this pump, Mr. Snow helped stop major outbreaks from recurring, “The removal of the pump handle was a historical turning point, and not because it marked the end of London’s most explosive epidemic,..., It marks a turning point in the battle between urban man and Vibrio cholera, because for the first time a public institution had made an informed intervention into a cholera outbreak based on a scientifically sound theory of the disease.”(Page 162- 163). This marked the end of the London epidemic and how the world of science
This book follows an esteemed doctor and a local clergyman who, together, are the heart of an investigation to solve the mystery of the cholera epidemic. In 1854 London was ravaged by a terrible outbreak of cholera, where within the span of mere weeks over five hundred people in the Soho district died. London, at the time, was a city of around two and a half million people, all crammed into a small area with no system for sewage removal. With overflowing cesspools, improper drainage of all the human and animal waste, and no system for guaranteed clean water, the people of London were in a bad state. They were essentially dumping all of their feces into their drinking water supply, a perfect environment for cholera to thrive.
Most scientists believe that the first major cholera epidemic took place on 1817 in India. In this time many poor villagers were starving since crops couldn’t be grown. Because of this, people ate and drank contaminated food and water that they found, and this is when cholera attacked the people. Many people died, and soon enough cholera was spread all over the world, killing millions of people all around the globe (Hayhurst 27).
The first Cholera pandemic broke out in 1817. Cholera outbreaks continued to spread across Europe, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and parts of Africa until 1823 (Barua Pg.8). Where the pandemic began is controversial, but cholera was definitely present in multiple places prior to and during 1817. India was an area that was affected by cholera in 1822. The fatality rates among the native and English troops in India were 21 for every 100 for the natives and 10 per 100 for the English (Barua Pg.8).
His research and his theory of foul air had helped him build a creditable premise relating a communal well pump on Broad Street to the outbreak of cholera cases, encouraging the local council to deactivate the access to the pump. This accomplishment has been since seen in many people’s eyes as the main reason for the diminishment of the cholera epidemic of 1854. Following the deactivation of the well pump on Broad Street Snow then continued his study into the causes of the cholera outbreak. Presenting the information snow had collected he published an illustration of a dot map showing the clusters of cholera surrounding the pump; he also presented statistics showing the connection between the quality of the water source and the cholera cases. John Snow proved that the Southwark a...
John Snows considered as the originator of the modern epidemiology, explained the relationship between water supply and an outbreak of cholera in soho, London, in 1954. Epidemiological studies in Crohn’s disease have predominantly been made in North America and Europe. Usually the frequency has been raised since the 2nd World War not only for the ulcerative colitis but also for the Crohn’s disease, and two dissimilar patterns have appeared; one explain a steady increase, while the other has an increase followed by a plateau(6, 7).The highest incident is reported from North America , the United Kingdom and Scandinavia, and among Ashkenazi Jews(8-10). A North-South gradient has been reported both in North America and in Europe, with 40-80% raised risk in the northern part of the continents(11). However, there are part of southern Europe and North America with high incidence, and opposite in some northern region, which calls into question the north-south hypothesis. Instead an east-west gradient has been proposed which presently is topic of an epidemiological study (Epicom)(12). In Eastern Europe, the incidence of IBD appears to have raised steadily, now equivalent to that in western European countries(13, 14). The incidence is more uncertain in developing