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The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson
Sunday, 7 November 2021 21:32The Ghost Map was a fascinating story of the Broadstreet (London) 1854 cholera epidemic. The story focused on how anesthesiologist John Snow and Reverend Henry Whitehead teamed up to prove popular prejudice and the miasma theory of disease wrong, and demonstrate that cholera was spread through contaminated water.
Snow's experience working with ether allowed him to observe that the gas affected people equally regardless of the individual's character. He theorized that if gases were to cause disease, they would probably work just as impartially as ether. Also, Snow was a local. He knew the habits of the people of Broadstreet. It allowed him to see that the water from the Broadstreet pump, not the air, was the cause of the problem.
At first, Whitehead was determined to prove Snow wrong. Whitehead was also a local. He was more social than Snow and knew many of the residents of Broadstreet even better than Snow. Yet, Whitehead must have had an open mind. His investigations convinced him that Snow's idea was right. He helped Snow to gather evidence that helped to support his theory. His local knowledge was especially valuable in that he was able to follow up with people who fled Broadstreet during the outbreak.
Hard, steady work and plod eventually lead to the water contamination theory gaining acceptance.
Most of the book was enjoyable, except for the final section where Johnson attempts to apply Snow and Whitehead's methods to contemporary issues. The book was written in 2006. An especially unpleasant part of this section hypothesized about a global pandemic.
Alan Sklar provided competent narration.
Snow's experience working with ether allowed him to observe that the gas affected people equally regardless of the individual's character. He theorized that if gases were to cause disease, they would probably work just as impartially as ether. Also, Snow was a local. He knew the habits of the people of Broadstreet. It allowed him to see that the water from the Broadstreet pump, not the air, was the cause of the problem.
At first, Whitehead was determined to prove Snow wrong. Whitehead was also a local. He was more social than Snow and knew many of the residents of Broadstreet even better than Snow. Yet, Whitehead must have had an open mind. His investigations convinced him that Snow's idea was right. He helped Snow to gather evidence that helped to support his theory. His local knowledge was especially valuable in that he was able to follow up with people who fled Broadstreet during the outbreak.
Hard, steady work and plod eventually lead to the water contamination theory gaining acceptance.
Most of the book was enjoyable, except for the final section where Johnson attempts to apply Snow and Whitehead's methods to contemporary issues. The book was written in 2006. An especially unpleasant part of this section hypothesized about a global pandemic.
Alan Sklar provided competent narration.
