Biological agents are easy to develop as weapons. They are more lethal than chemical weapons, less expensive and more difficult to detect than nuclear weapons. Biological agents are microorganisms that are found in nature, but there is a possibility to modify these organisms to increase their virulence, make them resistant to current antibiotics or vaccines, or to enhance the ability to be disseminated into the environment. Biological agents are attractive alternative to conventional weapons because of their relatively low costs, their relative accessibility, and the relative ease in which they could be produced, delivered, and avoid detection. Their use, or even threatened use, is potentially capable of producing widespread social disruption. …show more content…
Human to human transmission is extremely rare and reported only with cutaneous anthrax. When the animal dies due to anthrax, the animal carcasses become infectious, and when the animal decomposes, the spores can again mix with the soil and the transmission cycle continues. The bacterium often penetrates the body via wounds in the skin and may also infect humans as aerosol or ingestion. The ability of sporulation and resistance of the spores to harsh environmental conditions like heat and humidity, disinfectants and UV radiation makes anthrax the most important biological warfare agent. It is reported that the spores can survive up to 40 years in water or soil. Antibiotic prophylaxis Anthrax can be treated in its earliest stages with penicillin (often delivered intravenously), tetracycline, ciprofloxacin or doxycycline. Evidence of antibiotic effectiveness comes from use in human and animals infected with Bacillus anthracis. Antibiotics related to ciprofloxacin including chloramphenicol, erythromycin and some cephalosporins were also found to be effective. The antibiotic treatment is highly effective in early stage of the disease and becomes largely ineffective in later stages with severe complications. Attenuated spore based vaccine is available for use in animals
Anth. 105 Human Species – Lab 4 Report Rumaysa Sharif 05/14/18 Introduction Primates, apes and humans all have varying body masses, brain sizes and life spans. One species may have a longer life span or a larger brain than the other.
When this agent has been unleashed into a highly populated area with personnel it can lead to major chaos trophic event with many casualties and injured personnel. Past history events have supported the fact that the use of sarin is a highly toxic agent to unleash into society CBRN Agent background “GB is a first generation nerve agent that was identified in 1938 as a potential chemical agent
Readers not only learn why microbes emerge at these particular stages in human civilization and how they cause lethal infections, diseases, and pandemics, but also how microbes, with their dynamic interactions with humans, impact and shape human life. In addition, Crawford tracks human progress towards understanding the cause of communicable diseases and fighting against the disease-causing microbes with treatments and preventions, which includes antibiotics and vaccinations. In the final chapter of Deadly Companions, Crawford outlines our current situation with evolving pathogenic microbes despite the interference from modern advancement and knowledge. These killer microbes continue to exploit society; especially with poverty, travel, and drug behavior providing opportunities for our deadly companions to
In the autumn of 1918, the virus entered the United States through a variety of sources according to different theories. Many feared a German drug company had laced Aspirin, one of the most commonly used drugs, with this virus. The need for medications like Aspirin to supply soldiers and families during wartime led credence to this theory because of how quickly it spread. Another idea stated that German U-Boats entered the Boston Harbor at night and broke vials of the disease throughout the city. Because of Americans conflict with the Germans in World War I, the American people feared the use of chemical warfare as a weapon of mass destruction.
Being able to identify unknown microbes from systematic testing is what makes the field of microbiology so important, especially in infectious disease control. Using the testing procedure laid out by the microbiology field we are able to identify unknown bacteria present in our everyday lives, and along the way learn a lot about their characteristics that separate them from other types of bacteria. Being able to do this is vital in order for us to understand why microbes are present in certain places, how they are able to grow and what restricts their growth, that way they can be combatted if necessary. These techniques for determining unknowns are also important for isolating and testing infectious disease microbes in order to prevent spreading. Another important aspect of being able to identify unknown microbes is the
A very controversial topic of discussion today involves the difference between the biological and social view of race. The biological view sees a population according to traits that are passed down biologically, this is where the term “race” comes from. It would be somewhat accurate to say that people from different parts of the world have some differences biologically. The issue in this argument is found when people see that there may be some differences biologically but try to segregate them into fixed categories. What is found by this is that by assessing this biology and peoples' appearance, you can categorize them into a specific race.
The particular weapon or better yet biological microorganism that I have chosen to outline this week is that of a particularly nasty strain of disease which has wiped out an unknown multitude of people throughout history. This infectious disease, known as the genus Orthopoxvirus, from the the family Poxviridae and subfamily of chordopoxvirinae, is potentially believed to have laid to waste whole civilizations of people. It also goes by the name “Red Plague”, or in more common parlance, “The Smallpox Virus.” Historically, this virus made its way to Europe sometime between the 5th and 7th centuries. According to Reidel (2005), “It was frequently epidemic during the Middle Ages.
Smallpox is a highly contagious and fatal disease that had a huge impact on the human population. It is thought to have been originated from India or Egypt at least 3,000 years ago. Smallpox is caused by two variations of the variola virus, variola major and variola minor. Variola major is the most common form of smallpox. It enters the body through the lungs and is carried to the internal organs.
In The book “The Demon In the Freezer” by Richard Preston is a bioterrorism theme, in particular about humanity up against smallpox. Preston expands upon the theme by giving a detailed narrative about the hardship and struggle forced upon the government and its public. In many instances, Preston uses the rhetorical appeal in logos to reinforce this paranoia and fear behind the biological weapon agents smallpox and anthrax to remind us all how destructive and gruesome its effects can be individuals. Preston also describes the hypothetical spread of smallpox and uses reasoning to enforce his purpose in order make us critically think about these alarming outcomes of this theoretical bioterrorism. For instance,“Most experts believe that the multiplier of smallpox in the modern world – a world of shopping malls, urban centers, busy international airports, tourism, cities and nations with highly mobile populations, and above all nearly no immunity to smallpox- would be somewhere between three and twenty.
Mad cow disease is a rare but deadly disease that is obtained by cows from contamination feeding or activation of prions. Once this disease spreads to human, the situation gets about ten times worse. The human version of BSE (Mad cow disease) is called vCJD (variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease). This disease destroys the brain and will kill you if you leave it alone. You can get vCJD just by eating beef from a cow that had the disease.
Chemical weapons are weapons that are used to induce mass destruction to many victims leaving them in a state of agony often resulting in death. Gas masks are used to provide some protection for the chemicals. Next, the destruction of the chemical weapon was very vast as can be seen through the death and the environmental changes. Chemical weapons may be any toxic chemical that can cause death, injury, temporary incapacitation or sensory irritation through its chemical action. In Remarque’s
Assignment: Prewriting Activities You will submit your prewriting documents for the character analysis essay. Submit your completed brainstorming and outline graphic organizers. The brainstorming graphic organizer should be complete and show evidence that you have considered several characters and their characteristics for your essay. The outline graphic organizer should demonstrate a plan for writing and include appropriate and sufficient textual support. Character Analysis Outline Pattern of organization I will use: Logical Order
An act of attacking with a Chemicl agent is typically from an aerosal type or disseminating the agent into other avenues of contact. However, for this particular scenario, a Chemical-Biological Agent will be used in the rare form of being part of an explosive. The particular chemical agent in reference will be petroleum-contaminated water.
Pesticides and How it Works Abstract: A pest is "a plant or creature unfavorable to people or human concerns". Pesticide is Chemical or natural substance intended to slaughter or retard the development of pests that harm or meddle with the development of products, bushes, trees, timber and other vegetation coveted by people. Keywords: Antimicrobials, Antimicrobials, Herbicides Introduction:
CHEMICAL WEAPONS Chemical weapon is a device that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on human beings. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons states: “The term chemical weapon may also be applied to any toxic chemical or its precursor that can cause death, injury, temporary incapacitation or sensory irritation through its chemical action. Munitions or other delivery devices designed to deliver chemical weapons, whether filled or unfilled, are also considered weapons themselves.” Under the Chemical Weapons Convention (1993), there is a legally binding, world-wide ban on the production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons and their precursors. Not with standing, large stockpiles there of continue to