Ölümcül Yakınlıklar: Mikroplar Tarihimizi Nasıl Şekillendirdi?

by Dorothy H. Crawford, Gürol Koca (Translator)

Yaşadığımız dünyada bitki ve hayvanlar dışında bir canlı grubu var ki, gözle görülemeyecek kadar küçük olmalarına rağmen yeryüzünün asıl sahipleri oldukları söylenebilir: Diğer tüm canlılardan önce onlar vardı, muhtemelen en son da onlar yok olacak. Yalnızca çevremizi değil, bedenlerimizi de mesken edinen bu canlıların “dost” olanlarına muhtacız: Sağlıklı bir yaşam için bize hava ve su kadar gerekliler. “Düşman” olanlarla aramızdaki mücadele ise ezelden beri sürüyor.

Mikrobiyolog Dorothy Crawford bu kitapta kısaca “mikroplar” diyeceğimiz, her yerde hazır ve nazır olan bu küçücük canlılarla insanlar arasındaki ilişkinin tarihini ele alıyor. Mikroplar insanlara kolayca bulaşıp yayılacak şekilde nasıl evrimleşti? Avcı-toplayıcı topluluklardan tarım toplumlarına geçiş neden mikroplara yaradı? İlk şehirler kurulduğunda hangi koşullar mikropların serpilip palazlanmasına yol açtı? Tarihte yaşanan şiddetli salgın ve kıranlar insan toplum ve kültürlerini nasıl etkiledi? Mikroplarla etkili bir şekilde mücadele etmeye başlamamızı sağlayan icat ve keşifler nelerdi? Hangi mikropları alt ettik, hangileri bizi alt etmeye devam ediyor? Giderek kalabalıklaşan bir dünyada bizi nasıl tehlikeler bekliyor?

“İnsanlarla mikropların birlikte evrildiği binlerce yıllık bir hikâye bu, olup bitenlerin tarihi de genlerimizde yazılı. Bizler bulaşıcı hastalıkları atlatmış, hastalıklara dirençli çocuklar dünyaya getirmiş ataların evlatlarıyız; burada olup bu hikâyeyi anlatabiliyor oluşumuzu da onlara borçluyuz.”

Genres: Science, History, Nonfiction, Biology, Medicine, Medical, Audiobook

248 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 2007

About the author

Dorothy H. Crawford is professor of medical microbiology and assistant principal for public understanding of medicine at the University of Edinburgh. She has written a number of books on viruses.

Reviews

[Andy]

DNF. Standard information. Probably okay if you've not read anything else like this.

Usual confusion of infection and illness. Usual anthropomorphizing of germs as monsters ready to "pounce" on us. But does explain how we need microbes, etc.

[Nicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re looking for a book about how human history has been shaped by microbes, and to some extent the evidence from microbes about our own development, this book is definitely going to be of interest. It’s not just diseases, though it does mention a lot of them; it does also touch on some of the more harmless microbes we’ve been carrying around. And of course, it talks about how we’ve shaped the evolution of microbes, as well.

If you’re a nut about this kind of topic, this isn’t very in depth and I don’t think you’re going to learn much from it. Something like David Quammen’s Spillover hits some of the same points while going a bit more into depth. But it’s a well-written survey of the subject, perfect for a layperson.

Originally reviewed for breathesbooks.com.

[Britt Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Undeniably fascinating and relevant to today's issues surrounding COVID-19

[Seda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bugunlerde ellerine gecirdikleri her firsatta sacma sapan argumanlarla suursuz sekilde asi karsitligi yaparak toplum sagligini tehlikeye atan herkesin okumasini dilerdim bu kitabi.
Ne yazık ki asi karsitligi dunya genelinde oldukca artmis vaziyette ve bu durum bulasici bircok hastaligin kontrolden cikmasina zemin hazirliyor. Halbuki bu epistemolojik bir sorun. Sosyal medyada abuk sabuk komplo teorileri okuyarak olmuyor o isler. Birazcik bilimsel dusunebilme ve cok cok fazla medikal, mikrobiyolojik vs bilgiyi bir bilenin size anlayabileceginiz sekilde anlatmasiyla oluyor.
Evet, asilara ve hatta bilgiye erisim de ne yazik ki sinifsal. Ama su anki surecte is gercekten cigrindan cikmis vaziyette.

[Metin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bir grip pandemisinden sonra meydana gelebilecek felaketler ancak küresel işbirliğiyle önlenebilir. Mikroplar ülke bilmezler ve sınır tanımazlar. ABD Ulusal Alerji ve Enfeksiyon Hastalıkları Enstitüsü Müdürü Anthony Fauci'nin HIV ile olan mücadelemize atıfla söylediği gibi: "Tarih bizi küresel bir topluluk olarak yargılayacak." Ölümcül eşlikçilerimiz de bizi hep böyle görüyor zaten.

Mikropların insanlık tarihine olan etkisini ilk kabilelerden başlayarak günümüze kadar irdeleyen ve toplumları ekonomik, sosyolojik ve kültürel anlamda etkileyen mikropların insanlar ile olan savaşını anlatan Ölümcül Yakınlıklar, özellikle şu anki pandemi döneminde okuyacağınız kitaplardan biri olmalı kesinlikle.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was looking for global history books that centered on disease, and this one jumped out at me in the library, mainly because the title and cover art are just terrific. Kudos, Oxford U. Press and Ms. Crawford.
I did enjoy it, though I skimmed the last couple of chapters. I'm not sure who I would recommend it to though. It isn't really good academic history. I mean, it isn't bad or anything, but you really only get the general outlines of historical events like the Black Death and the diseases that arose during the Colombian Exchange. There are better books that are solely about the conquest of Mexico, and the role of yellow fever in the wars of the Caribbean, etc. But Crawford is a professor of microbiology anyway - she's not claiming to be a historian. Since I read a lot of history, I ended up finding the science here a little more enlightening. Crawford gets into the life cycle of the microbes that cause these various diseases, where they come from, when they might have made the jump to humans, how they have evolved over time. She also includes little life cycle charts sometimes which are fascinating. And I think this could fit into an environmental history reading list, possibly, because one of Crawford's points is that as we have adapted to microbes throughout human history, they have also adapted to us (and they are better at it, because shorter life cycles = faster adapting). One of the issues that comes up over and over in environmental history is the way human history progresses in a constant dialogue with the "natural" world, humans changing their environment and the environment then nudging humans into particular paths. People don't make their history just as they please, but within a natural structure that they contributed to constructing. Crawford's treatment of microbes fits well here.

[Can Toper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I find this book very useful, especially when we are dealing with covid-19 pandemic currently. As a social science graduate, I have limited information in biology - microbiology, that is why this book helped me a lot to have an understanding about why pandemics occur, what are the effects and also how to fight them. It's easy to read, and do not bore even a simple reader like myself. Highly reccomended.

[Kyriakos Sorokkou]

αρχές μαρτίου 2023 πήρα να διαβάσω τις μέρες πανούκλας του ορχάν παμούκ την επομένη χρονιά διάβασα την πανούκλα του αλμπέρ καμύ έτσι φάνηκε ότι θα έκανα παράδοση κάθε μάρτη να διαβάζω πανούκλιασμένο βιβλίο την επέτειο της άφιξης του κόβιντ στην κύπρο φέτος δεν κατάφερα να διαβάσω τον μάρτη αλλά τον απρίλη και παρόλο που δεν είχε στον τίτλο τη λέξη πανούκλα το εξώφυλλο είχε τον γιατρό της πανούκλας με τη μάσκα και το μεγάλο ράμφος το συγκεκριμένο είναι το πρώτο πανούκλιασμένο βιβλίο που είναι νονφίξιον μαθαίνουμε για τους ιούς τα μικρόβια τα βακτήρια και τους μύκητες που μας συντροφεύουν από τότε που είμασταν τροφοσυλλέκτες και αργότερα όταν με την γεωργική επανάσταση εγκατασταθήκαμε σε ένα σημείο μαζί με τα ζώα μας έτσι η επαφή με αυτούς τους συντρόφους έγινε πιο στενή και θανατηφόρα μέχρι σήμερα την εποχή του κορονοϊού μιλά για την πανούκλα την ελονοσία τη σύφιλη τη φυματίωση τον περονόσπορο που αποδεκάτισε τις πατάτες στην ιρλανδία αλλά και τον φτωχό πληθυσμό της μάθαμε για τη μύγα τσετσέ τα κουνούπια τα σκουλήκια κι ότι άλλο αηδιαστικό κουβαλά ιούς και μας τους μεταφέρει ενδιαφέρον βιβλίο αλλά είχε δύο αχρείαστα κομμάτια το γλωσσάρι το οποίο έλεγε τα ίδια πράγματα αυτούσια με το κείμενο οπότε δεν είχε κάποια έξτρα χρήση και ο πρόλογος ενός κομματόσκυλου που αντί να μιλήσει για το βιβλίο αναλώθηκε σε ένα πρόλογο σαν προεκλογική ομιλία για το πόσο άψογα λειτούργησε το σύστημα υγείας την πρώτη χρονιά του κορονοϊού αναγνώστες πήραν το βιβλίο κύριε αρκουδοτόμαρε όχι ψηφοφόροι.

[Pinar G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pandemiden geçtikten sonra bunu okumak çok garip oldu. Kitap pandemiden önce yazılmış ama yazar yeni bir virus kapımızda diyor. Yaşadıklarımızın boyutunu tahmin edememiş ama etse bu kitabı bastırmayabilirlerdi. MIT bile abartmayalım derdi. Oysa gördük neler olduğunu. Yenisi de gelecek diyorlar, göreceğiz hep beraber. Tek umudumuz bilim.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

A straightforward account of the history of diseases caused by bacteria, viruses and fungi and how they have impacted human life and society. It was sobering to see how helpless we have been for much of our history in the face of the attacks of these tiny life forms. And the H5N1 virus continues to pose a serious threat. Enlightening.

[Hope Franco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again, I know I’m extremely biased on this subject as it is what I do for a living. But I think this is the perfect non-fiction book for someone who doesn’t truly understand anything about infectious diseases. It gives a very comprehensive explanation of a multitude of “heavy hitting” diseases and how it not only shaped history but some diseases evolved along humans from the beginning of time. Also towards the end of the book gives a very important insight into the humanity crisis that is still an on going problem today. For a book written in 2007 it really accurately predicts the 2019 pandemic.

[Dani Kass · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was one of the textbooks for a ‘plagues and peoples’ anthropology course in college and i wanted to revisit it in a covid world. i desperately want crawford to write another book addressing the pandemic and the anti vax movement and how it seems we’re moving backward. overall, i really love this as a foundation-setting book of how microbes have impacted human history, which can be used to then find more in-depth histories/analyses.

[Ericka Clou · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good overview of all the big pandemics plus a bonus chapter about the potato blight in Ireland. This would be a good first book if you’re interested in this topic but if you’ve already read some on this topic you won’t find anything enlightening or entertaining in this one.

[Mike Reinking · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating look at how our human existence has been shaped by the unseen - the microbes all around us. Not a beach read but very interesting!

[Hunter McCleary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview. Interesting that even with our tech know-how we don't have a complete picture of how these diseases co-evolved. Also gets you to thinking about how the human-caused extinction of large prey launched humans away from hunter-gathering to farming and, consequently, the population density necessary for the spread of diseases.

Notes
12 Protozoa the first form of animal life.
15 Only 1500 of one million bacteria cause diseases in humans.
19 R value greater one then the infection is spreading.
36 Malaria resistance ebbs without frequent exposure to the parasite.
38 Was malaria the earliest infectious disease to afflict hunter-gatherers?
35 Extinction of large prey forced humans to pursue smaller ones.
56 Did extinctions also drive them to a sedentary farming culture?
59 Farming changed the microbial balance and population densities.
103 Doubts about y pestis causing the Black Death.
104 HIV and plague resistance in the same gene.
108 Smallpox virus can survive for a long time in the environment.
109 Smallpox a DNA genome so more stable while measles is RNA so exhibits a higher mutation rate and therefore able to adapt and spread more easily.
109 Smallpox is a classic crown disease.
110 With plague gone from Europe smallpox became the most common killer.
111 Smallpox increased with ferocity and frequency in the 19th century.
133 Cholera pandemics in the US were 1826-32 and 1852-59.
152 Typhus was one of the most common causes of death.
152 Typhus - a bacterium carried by lice.
156 Typhoid - salmonella strain that's ingested.
157 TB a bacterium that's airborne.

[anna mae · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, I would have called this book "OUR FRENEMY THE MICROBE," but that's neither here nor there. Margaret Crawford is a professor of virology at the University of Edinburgh and you don't have to do a lot of googling to see that she knows her shit. Lively historical anecdotes as well as a great deal of articulately explained concrete scientific explanations, nice clear charts and diagrams, and a pleasant, well organized and accessible writing style make this book a nice little read(and a good way to keep guys from hitting on you at a bar).

If you are the sort of person who comes home at the end of a long day and thinks "gee, i'd like to have glass of wine and to learn a lot about cholera, flea life cycles, and plague foci," this is definitely your book.

[Ramil Kazımov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Günümüz covid-19 dünyasını anlamak için bu kitabı mutlaka herkes okumalı. Mikropların tarihini akıcı dille anlatmış. Yazar daha beş yıl önce virüs pandemisinin ola bileceğini öngörmüş. Azalan hayvan habitatları ve hayvansal habitatlar pahasına genişleyen insan yerleşimlerinin hayvanlar ve insanlar arasındakı teması sıkılaştırması ile hayvan temelli virüslerin insanlara bulaşması riskini artırması insanlığı gerçek bir pandemi ile yüz-yüze getirecektir demiş. Ayrıca, bundan 20 yıl önce Çinde bir hayvan pazarında ortaya çıkmış koronavirüsü ve Sars virüsünü de güzelce açıklamış. Yazar harika bir iş çıkarmış.

[Yannis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ντρεπομαι αλλα το βαρεθηκα. Αλλα επειδη ειμαι και ψυχαναγκαστικος το διαβασα ολο. Ειναι ενδιαφερουσα εκλαϊκευμενη επιστημονικη πληροφορια που δεν με ενδιεφερε καθολου. Εμαθα: να μην τρωω ζωα, να πλενομαι συνεχεια, να μην παιρνω πολλα αντιβιοτικα και να εμβολιαζομαστε. Επιμενω: βαρεθηκα

[Vipin Menon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Makes you think that maybe human life in this world is impossible without the microbes being around, even if some of them are harmful.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took me a while to get to this review, but here we go:

I'm a historian by vocation, and I've always had an great interest in the idea of disease having its own agency in history. The fact is that without disease, much of history would be vastly different, in so many ways. I have read very specific histories on this subject (such as The American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, the Epidemic That Shaped Our History, about Yellow Fever in America and Mosquito Empires: Ecology and War in the Greater Caribbean, 1620-1914, which is a little broader but still deals mainly with the way mosquito-borne illnesses were used by (mostly) the Spanish to conquer the New World and keep other colonial powers out). I was interested in this book in order to get a broader overview of lots of different diseases and their impact on human history, and I was not disappointed.

Deadly Companions is great for a student (official or otherwise) of history with a beginning interest in how diseases impacted human history. It gives a great overview of such diseases as the plague, yellow fever, malaria, smallpox, HIV/AIDS, and more, and it's great because it doesn't just talk about history, but also dives into the science behind the diseases and the science behind how they spread (or "disappeared"). This is really great for those of us who have a slightly-more-than-basic background in science, but aren't exactly CDC-level experts, because it is just ENOUGH science to enhance the historian's understanding of the spread of these diseases, but doesn't go crazy with the medical jargon.

Another thing I liked about this book is that it touches on the "modern" status of some of these diseases we associate primarily with the past. For instance, the fact that the Bubonic Plague is still very much alive and well in the western United States, and that several people a year get it. Luckily, few if any die thanks to antibiotics.

Speaking of which...I would have liked to see a chapter on antibiotic abuse and resistance, and how that will shape microbes in the (not so distant) future. Granted, this book was published over a decade ago, before scientists and doctors starting worrying too much about the antibacterial-everything craze and the overuse/abuse of antibiotics in western society. But still, MRSA was already a thing, and this topic could have been explored a little more. I suppose, however, that one needs to limit the scope of one's work, or books would get absolutely out of control and unfocused. So I am slightly splitting hairs here.

Overall, I highly recommend if you want a slightly-more-than-general look at microbes and diseases and their impact on our history. This is a great starting point...I myself ended up added some more in-depth books about certain diseases covered here that I want to know more about, especially HIV/AIDS, where medical knowledge had grown by leaps and bounded even in the ten years since this was published. This book is a great jumping off point!

[Monical · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good non-fiction book about the role of microbes in human history. Besides plague, the author brought in a few unexpected items, for example a discussion of the potato blight. Much better book that the highly touted (except by me!) "Guns, Germs and Steel," which I thought was much overblown and inferior. And, as it turns out, incorrect, as recent studies of medieval plague victims have confirmed their disease to be caused by Y. pestis, not anthrax as the author of "Guns, Germs and Steel" posited. Crawford's brief but enlightening discussion of influenza and the transcontinental delivery of microbes (main example being SARS) was very good if a bit brief. I thought the HIV discussion was much too short. Altogether this was a good little book with excellent discussion.

[Mathieu Norcross · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent and rather broad description of how microbes how coevolved with humans and thus played a major role in shaping the political, economic, and social outcomes of our history and present day. Crawford's narrative style good for layman's readers looking to get a general understanding of microbial history, but there are many places I feel that the Crawford fails to elaborate and give the full picture. The book finishes up talking about how these microbes are in a continuing arms race with us that we are destine to lose because of microbes adaptability. Crawford does end on an optimistic note stating that humans must use their intellect to battle microbes not only in the biological sphere, but with social, political, and economic changes as well.

[Aishuu · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one made me think of the Charlie Brown teacher's "wah wah wah wah...."

Very dull reading, decent research but added very little to the medical history genre. If you want a book with a cool plague doctor cover that actually comes alive, try Get Well Soon: History's Worst Plagues and the Heroes Who Fought Them.

[Melike Alara Bulut · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bu tip konulara ilgi duyanların bu kitap yerine ‘Dünyamızı Değiştiren On İki Hastalık’ kitabını okumasını tavsiye ederim. O kitabın dili hastalık tanımlarında genel okuyucu kitlesinin anlayamayacağı bir takım terimlerle dolu ancak hastalıkların dünya ve insanlık tarihine etkisini çok daha detaylı, kapsamlı ve ilginç bir şekilde anlatıyor. O kitapta yazıp da bu kitapta olmayan hiçbir şey olmadığı gibi, diğerinde çok daha fazla bilgi var. Belki onun ardından bunu okumam nedeniyle de olabilir ancak ben hiç keyif almadım.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great book, covering the major diseases from microbes across humankind's history. From the recent Covid19 story, it made me chuckle to see Fauci quoted at the end: the man is everywhere! I would have liked to see the treatment of the history of the slave trade (got a paragraph really, as the rest of the segment was more focused on yellow fever than the people) treated with the same fervour/detail as the Irish potato blight (a whole chapter dedicated to it that was really well written, painting the picture of how people were affected and the severity of the situation).

[Alexis Kaelin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good synopsis of general poxes and plagues that have troubled mankind since the beginning. However, the historical side is generally lacking. It does not feel well-researched, almost like reading a very smart report from a very smart undergrad. There is no challenging of accepted knowledge here or presentation of new research or studies. So, a little boring.

[Kyle Strate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dorothy Crawford simply walks the reader through the history of humankind's interaction with microbes. She also covers the methods by which diseases resulting from these interactions have been cured. Overall a comprehensive book for bringing a reader up to speed in the fight against microbial pathogens.

[Martin Dolezal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Výborné shrnutí vývoje virů, bakterií a dalších parazitů za celou lidskou historii a jejich vlivu na ni. Obzvlášť v současném koronavirovém světle hodně zajímavé, možno srovnávat se SARS, apod. Když jsem si v prosinci 2019 přidal do seznamu, to mě ještě nenapadlo, jak aktuální to téma bude v době četby.

[Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating account of the history of microbes and the terror and devastation they have caused throughout our history. Not at all technical and a gripping read from start to finish. Written more than a decade before the emergence of Covid-19, it is eerily prescient in anticipating the new pandemic. Will the warnings now be heeded?

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very basic primer of viruses and bacteria throughout human history. I'm either way more educated on this topic than I realized, or everything this book is saying is really obvious. The focus remains on a general survey, offering very little details on specific incidents. The audiobook narrator was also awful.