The Discovery Of Microbes And Implications For Public Health Today, With Science Writer Thomas Levenson

Business Of Biotech

We love to hear from our listeners. Send us a message.

On this week's episode, Thomas Levenson, MIT professor and author of So Very Small: How Humans Discovered The Microcosmos, Defeated Germs — And May Still Lose The War Against Infectious Disease talks about what he learned in the writing of So Very Small, how cultural and political forces shape scientific progress, and what it means for drug developers, public health officials, and patients everywhere.

This episode of the Business of Biotech is brought to you by Avantor. For more information, visit avantorsciences.com

Access this and hundreds of episodes of the Business of Biotech videocast under the Business of Biotech tab at lifescienceleader.com.

Subscribe to our monthly Business of Biotech newsletter.
Get in touch with guest and topic suggestions: [email protected]
Find Ben Comer on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bencomer/

Chapters

1. Introduction to "So Very Small" (00:00:00)

2. The Genesis of Germ Theory (00:05:55)

3. Human Hubris and Miasma Theory (00:17:15)

4. Cotton Mather and Smallpox Inoculation (00:25:45)

5. Modern Scientific Biases and Assumptions (00:32:02)

6. Antibiotic Resistance and Research Funding (00:38:22)

7. Public Health Threats and NIH Budget Cuts (00:47:33)

8. Lessons from COVID and Future Challenges (00:58:20)