\u201cKate Moran was an only child\u201d may not compete with \u201cCall me Ishmael\u201d or \u201cIt was the best of times, it was the worst of times\u201d as an opening salvo, but it will do. In this novel, Richard Preston wanders from the arena of fact into fantasy. But when one deals with viral hemorrhagic fevers, the distance is very small. The \u201cCobra\u201d virus in the story is a genetically engineered combination of a rhinovirus and smallpox that attacks the brain and liquefies it and is meant to be an agent of bioterrorism..<\/p>\n
It\u2019s reported that President Bill Clinton read the book and was so unnerved by it that he called his science advisers together for advice. That led to Donald Ainslie Henderson forming the Johns Hopkins University Center for Civilian Biodefense Studies. D.A., as he was always known, was the person mainly responsible for organizing the highly successful campaign to eradicate smallpox and was also one of my mentors in the Epidemic Intelligence Service course I took at CDC in 1957. At that time he was one of Alexander Langmuir\u2019s bright young acolytes. Since the conclusion of the smallpox crusade around 1980, he has been a leading light in promoting bioterrorism defense.<\/p>\n
Richard Preston, who is known for his meticulous reporting, has popularized the bioterrorism threat in a way that will get the public\u2019s attention with books such as \u201cThe Hot Zone\u201d and \u201cThe Cobra Event.\u201d Especially when turned into a movie such as \u201cOutbreak.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you have always longed for curly (or curlier) hair, you might check them out.<\/p>\n
Gordon Short, MD
\n27 Mar 2014<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cKate Moran was an only child\u201d may not compete with \u201cCall me Ishmael\u201d or \u201cIt was the best of times, it was the worst of times\u201d as an opening salvo, but it will do. In this novel, Richard Preston wanders from the arena of fact into fantasy. But when one deals with viral hemorrhagic fevers, … Continue reading \u201cThe Cobra Event\u201d<\/span>