Sausage of Science · Human Biology Association

SoS 226: Sabrina Sholts on The Human Disease: How We Create Pandemics...

·42 min·3 clips

A bacteriologist recited Shakespeare to prove speech spreads microbes 21 meters in the House of Commons.

Dr. Sabrina Sholts, a biological anthropologist and curator at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, discusses her new book, "The Human Disease: How We Create Pandemics from Our Bodies to Our Beliefs." The hosts of Sausage of Science, Chris and his co-host, explore how inherent human traits make pandemics inevitable. Sholts' work uses museum collections to study the intersections of human, animal, and environmental health under a "One Health" framework. Sholts explains that human anatomy, like our uniquely dexterous hands, leads us to touch our faces—specifically the T-zone of eyes, nose, and mouth—hundreds of times daily, facilitating pathogen transmission. She cites research showing talking emits more infectious particles than coughing, referencing a 1903 experiment in the UK Parliament where a scientist recited Shakespeare to spread bacteria over 21 meters. The book examines historical pandemics, including how cultural burial practices in West Africa during the 2014 Ebola outbreak accelerated transmission. Sholts details how safe burial adaptations, developed with local leaders, eventually helped curb the epidemic, while top-down mandates like cremation in Liberia fueled public distrust and non-compliance. A surprising insight is that pandemic risks are intertwined with humanity's greatest adaptations, like complex speech and tool use. Sholts notes that the intimacy of human touch and communication, which defines our species, also creates pathways for disease. The 2014 Ebola epidemic demonstrated how public health measures that disregard deep-seated cultural rituals, such as washing and kissing the deceased, can backfire dramatically. Her research at the Smithsonian includes recovering ancient viral RNA from museum specimens and studying animal dental calculus to understand disease ecology. The conversation reveals that pandemics are not just biological events but are profoundly shaped by human behavior, social structures, and our relationship with the natural world. Sholts emphasizes that understanding natural history is key to comprehending why pandemics occur and why they are so difficult to prevent. The episode has an educational and conversational tone, blending personal anecdotes from Sholts' career with detailed scientific explanations. It feels like an engaging seminar, moving from broad concepts to specific case studies and research findings. Listeners interested in anthropology, public health, and the science behind pandemic origins would find this episode deeply informative. Those seeking a purely political or current-events analysis of COVID-19 might prefer other content, as this discussion focuses on the underlying human traits that make pandemics a recurring historical pattern.

As heard by us

A clear, slightly loose pandemic discussion that links museum work, anthropology, and public science communication.

Sabrina Schultz uses The Human Disease, How We Create Pandemics from Our Bodies to Our Beliefs as a way into pandemics, anthropology, and public understanding.

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Why you'd press play

If you want pandemics explained beyond germs, this one widens the frame.

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