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Today we’re replaying of our discussion with science writer David Quammen.

We talked with him in 2018 about his most recent book, the Tangled Tree, which explores the influence of horizontal gene transfer on the evolution of life on Earth.

But right now, it’s one of his previous books that is essential reading. In 2012, he published a book called Spillover that described the risk of new diseases jumping from wildlife to humans. Now, we’re seeing that scenario play out in a big way with the coronavirus pandemic.

In May, he wrote an article in the New Yorker arguing that the U.S. has one of the worse coronavirus outbreaks in the world because it failed to learn from previous pandemics. You should definitely check out both books, and his recent article. 

Photo: Ronan Donovan