"The Covid-19 pandemic was the most devastating natural event in over a century, killing more than seven million people around the globe, straining the fabric of societies, and shaking the foundations of the global economy. But as horrifying as it was, Covid-19 was not 'the Big One'--the dreaded potential pandemic that haunts the nightmares of epidemiologists and public health officials everywhere and that could alter life on every meaningful level. What's more, even as we have learned to live with Covid-19 and continue to recover from its worst effects, the next pandemic may already be lurking, and it may be far more devastating. In The Big One, founding director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy Michael T. Osterholm and Mark Olshaker examine past pandemics and the ways societies and governments both succeeded and failed to address them; trace the Covid-19 pandemic and assess how it was handled; and look ahead, projecting what future pandemics could be like and what must be done to mitigate them. Drawing on years of high-level research as well as cutting-edge analysis and an innovative hypothetical scenario threaded through each chapter, The Big One is a ... comprehensive, and urgent wake-up call. Because if we're going to effectively confront the Big One, we need to be prepared"-- Dust jacket flap.
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