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“Invisible Little Worms”: Athanasius Kircher’s Study of the Plague
- pcdoodle 6y agoIt's funny how we always assume we are at the pinnacle of science and yet 400 years from now, we will look like the wackos using toad flesh amulets. That was a fun article. Thanks OP.
- yowlingcat 6y ago> we will look like the wackos using toad flesh amulets Look, I'm not defending the clear quackery of the practice, but ya gotta admit toad flesh amulets has a certain kind of style and panache to it.
- adrianN 6y agoAsimov has an opinion on that: https://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.htm https://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.ht...
- hef19898 6y agoYeah. Since this whole COVID-19 thing started I pull out a book on the Black Death every once in a while. And hell, even if we know now what exactly is causing the disease and what to do against it, as a society we very well behave the same way today as they did back in the day. Mass gatherings, consiracy theories (which happen to be quite similar to todays ones now that I think about it), parties, panic. And the random cases of authorities doing the right thing and minimizing the impact.
- hmahncke 6y agoIn Los Angeles, the Museum of Jurassic Technology has a great exhibit on Kircher and his many exuberant theories on just about every scientific topic of his day. Well worth a visit.