Episode 116 - Smallpox with Ana Duggan and Tim Newfield

Ana Duggan (McMaster) and Tim Newfield (Georgetown) join the Infectious Historians to discuss smallpox. The conversation begins as always with a survey of what smallpox actually is as well as its broad history. After Ana and Tim share the reasons they chose to research smallpox, they move on to speak about recent research about historical smallpox, particularly through the study of the virus’ ancient DNA samples. Ana and Tim also discuss the differences which make the study of smallpox more difficult compared to other pathogens, and reflect upon where the field might be heading, particularly in the context of the Antonine Plague.