The CDC has reported that this flu season is off to an aggressive start with 22 states reporting unusually high rates. They even went as far as to declare it an “epidemic.” While most flu seasons gain “epidemic” status it is uncommon for it to happen so early in the season. Contributing to this example of contagious diffusion is a flu strand that is more aggressive than usual and a low number of people receiving the flu vaccination.
While most people don’t consider having the flu to be much more than a few days in bed the reality is that it kills thousands of people around the world each year. The worst flu strand on record lasted from 1918-1920 and killed approximately 4% of the world’s population. While it is highly unlikely that this year’s flu would reach global pandemic levels those most vulnerable to the extreme effects of the flu are the elderly, infants, and people with weakened immune systems. So if you haven’t already, get your flu shot. If it keeps you from getting sick or at the very least shortens the duration of the flu it will be a few dollars well spent. In most communities there are locations where they give the shot away for free.
On August 1st this site posted about the threat of Ebola in West Africa. In the two months since the worst Ebola outbreak in history has only grown. The biggest concentration of those infected has been found in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea with those countries reporting over 7400 cases and about 3500 deaths. The illness can only be transmitted through direct contact with bodily fluids otherwise the number would be significantly higher. Despite this limitation the number of new cases is doubling roughly every three weeks. Those most susceptible to contracting Ebola are health care workers due to their direct contact with the infected. The lack of basic medical supplies, such as latex gloves and masks, has created a situation where the people doing the most to combat the spread of Ebola and care for the ill have become its primary victims.
The international response to the crisis has been lacking at best. A handful of countries including Britain, China, and Cuba have sent a small number of medical professionals to help local doctors. The greatest outside support West Africa has received came from the United Stated as President Obama recently announced that he was committing the resources of the U.S. military to establish 17 field hospitals to slow down the disease. Not only is there a moral imperative to act but there is an economic one as well, the longer the world waits to deal with the issue the cost of solving the crisis becomes significantly greater.
Last week the first case of Ebola outside of West Africa was confirmed in the United States. A man from Liberia visiting his son and fiancé in Dallas checked into a hospital and was diagnosed. This singular case was identified early and is highly unlikely to create a mass infection in the United States. It has served a greater purpose by bringing more attention to the growing crisis in West Africa. Hopefully, the perception of a threat to the west will encourage the rich world to contribute more to the struggle; ideally they could begin by sending in enough gloves and masks to protect the front line of defense, doctors and nurses.
A few weeks ago I wrote a post warning about the growing threat of Ebola in West Africa and that it had the potential to spread rapidly through contagious diffusion. While the threat of Ebola persists I wanted to take a moment to acknowledge a positive form of contagious diffusion, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
Over the past few weeks celebrities, athletes, average citizens, a former President, and even I have taken the Ice Bucket Challenge. The objective is to challenge people to donate $100 to the ALS Association or dump a bucket of ice cold water on their head and donate at least $10. It has grown wildly successful and has increased typical donations to the organization by 400% compared to this same time period last year. Social media has allowed this fundraiser to go viral and not only increase funds but awareness for the cause.
There is one aspect of this that I did find a bit concerning, perfectly fine water is being wasted when there are so many people in the world dying due to lack of access to safe drinking water. In hopes of offsetting my personal impact on the water supply, I made a matching donation to water.org and encourage others to do the same.
One of the most critical concepts in human geography is how things spread through a population and from to place, also known as diffusion. While there are several different types of diffusion the one that is studied most is contagious diffusion, which has almost the same exact definition but with one critical word added, rapid. The examples most often used to understand contagious diffusion are a wildfire burning out of control or, as is happening right now in West Africa, the spread of a disease faster than can be contained or treated. The current outbreak of Ebola is the largest in history and the fear is that it will only continue to grow.
Several factors have contributed to the rapid growth of the crisis:
A lack of proper medical facilities to identify and treat those infected.
The early stages of Ebola seem like a standard flu often delaying treatment.
A mortality rate in some cases as high as 90%.
Some rural villages refuse to accept that the disease has hit them and often resist outside help.
The final factor that has allowed the disease to spread throughout the region is improved transportation. As people travel they bring the disease with them spreading the infection. Currently the countries most impacted are: Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone but the ticking time bomb is Nigeria with the 7th largest population on Earth. A few days ago an Ebola infected man flew from Liberia to the capital city of Lagos. Once he arrived at the airport he was detained and quarantined at a local hospital where he later died. The primary concern is that over 100 passengers on that flight were not identified and allowed to move freely throughout the city and into other parts of the country. If any of them were infected it has the potential to become a catastrophic tipping point for all of West Africa.
Helping Students Succeed on the AP® Human Geography Exam since 2008.
