Smallpox is a deadly virus. At one point, it killed almost 1 in 3 people who had it. Almost 300 million of those deaths were in the 20th century alone. It was extremely painful, highly contagious and many people thought it would be impossible to wipe out—until it was.
On May 8, 1980. the 33rd World Health Assembly declared the world free of smallpox. This marked the first—and only—time a human disease was eradicated globally.
Epidemiologist and host of the podcast Epidemic: Eradicating Smallpox Céline Gounder has been looking into this history. Today, she shares the intense journey to eradicate smallpox in Bangladesh (spoiler alert: there are literal speedboats) and reflects on what this history tells us about the importance of healthcare that meets the needs of individuals and communities today.
Click here to check out the second season of Céline's podcast from NPR partner KFF Health News.
What science story do you want to hear next on Short Wave? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.
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NPR's Book of the Day - ‘Of White Ashes’ follows a Japanese-American love story after the WWII internment
Author Kent Matsumoto's parents both lived through traumatic experiences during WWII: his mother was forced into an internment camp for Japanese-Americans in the U.S., and his father survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. In a new novel, Of White Ashes, Matsumoto and his wife and co-writer Constance Hays Matsumoto explore a romance between two Japanese-Americans based on Matsumoto's parents. They spoke with Here & Now's Celeste Headlee about choosing to fictionalize true events, and how writing together created a love story of their own.
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Amarica's Constitution - The Two Experts on Section Three – Special Guests William Baude and Michael Stokes Paulsen
***CLE available*** In a special episode, the two distinguished authors of a recent major article, which dives deep into Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment and finds that Donald Trump is disqualified from the Presidency, join us for a thoughtful and rigorous examination of the tough questions about their conclusions. These are leading conservative scholars who have gone where their methodologies, and the law, has taken them. Reaction has been swift and impassioned around the country, and in this episode they respond for the first time to some of the critiques, explore the implications of their work, and in doing so, they bring an integrity to our civic conversation. This is an important discussion of important issues, by real experts. Note: Continuing Legal Education Credit available after listening by going to podcast.njsba.com.
CBS News Roundup - 08/29/2023 | World News Round Up Late Edition
Hurricane Idalia heads towards Florida. Bringing down prescription drug prices. Cracking down on malware. CBS News Correspondent Jennifer Keiper has tonight's World News Roundup.
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Lost Debate - Defund the DOE, Tennessee vs. Tennesseans on Guns, Listener Mailbag
Four GOP candidates pledged to abolish the U.S. Department of Education during last week’s presidential primary debate. Rikki and Ravi debate the candidate’s arguments, the current state of the department, and the future of the federal government’s role in K-12 education.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee convened a special legislative session on public safety after a school shooter killed six people in Nashville this spring. Most Tennesseans support increased gun regulation, but the seven-day session ended this week without any major policy changes. What does this say about the country’s ability to move bipartisan issues forward?
Finally, the hosts respond to recent audience voicemails about childcare, sex education, and Oregon’s opioid policies. Want to be part of the next mailbag roundup? Leave a voicemail for Rikki and Ravi at 321-200-0570.
Time Stamps:
00:48 - Defund the DOE
26:43 - Tennessee vs. Tennesseans on Guns
42:17 - Listener Mailbag
Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 321-200-0570
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Consider This from NPR - Biden’s Push to Make Some of the Most Expensive Prescription Drugs Cheaper
On Tuesday, the Biden administration released a list of 10 medications that it's planning to negotiate prices for Medicare in an effort to bring down the costs of some of the most expensive drugs. It's part of a reform included in the Inflation Reduction Act. Many on the list are life-saving drugs that treat diabetes, cancer and other major health problems.|
The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional.
Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.
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The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional.
Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
Consider This from NPR - Biden’s Push to Make Some of the Most Expensive Prescription Drugs Cheaper
On Tuesday, the Biden administration released a list of 10 medications that it's planning to negotiate prices for Medicare in an effort to bring down the costs of some of the most expensive drugs. It's part of a reform included in the Inflation Reduction Act. Many on the list are life-saving drugs that treat diabetes, cancer and other major health problems.|
The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional.
Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.
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The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional.
Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
Consider This from NPR - Biden’s Push to Make Some of the Most Expensive Prescription Drugs Cheaper
On Tuesday, the Biden administration released a list of 10 medications that it's planning to negotiate prices for Medicare in an effort to bring down the costs of some of the most expensive drugs. It's part of a reform included in the Inflation Reduction Act. Many on the list are life-saving drugs that treat diabetes, cancer and other major health problems.|
The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional.
Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional.
Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy
Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - New Study: Expressive Writing Helps Treat PTSD
The health benefits of therapeutic writing have been studied since the 1980s, but a new study from researchers at Boston University found that writing exposure therapy is as effective as other forms of therapy recommended by the Department of Veterans Affairs to treat post traumatic stress disorder. We talked to one of the authors of the study, Denise Sloan, who’s a psychologist and the associate director of the Behavioral Science Division of the National Center for PTSD, and Professor of Psychiatry at Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston University.
The Gist - I WAS WRONG: Louis C.K.
While Mike is on vacation, we are revisiting topics he was wrong about. Today we tackle Louis C.K. Back in 2017, the comedian was at the top of his game, when multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct. As the news swirled, Mike predicted that Louis could rehab his career and return to the pinnacle of comedy ... but those predictions did not come true. On today's show, how Mike got it wrong.
Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara
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