3 ms·
Is there an enthusiast or popular science-level treatment of how (human and non-human) immune systems work? I am a computer scientist, years removed from my las
by puzzledobserver 7y ago
Is there an enthusiast or popular science-level treatment of how (human and non-human) immune systems work? I am a computer scientist, years removed from my last biology course, but I am curious. Ideally, I would like to know: What is understood, and what is not? And which parts of this understanding rest on dogma (not as a pejorative)?
The whole array of immune system phenomena is very intriguing. It seems to span everything from physical responses like fever and inflammation to cellular and molecular mechanisms. Acquired immunity and vaccines (which curiously seem to fulfill some of homeopathy's promises, but from more rational guiding principles), viruses, HIV, and cancer somehow also figure in all of this.