Pathogens from the Cosmos
Cosmic Poetry of Men and Galaxies, Forty-five Years on
by
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Since the start of the twenty first century, the world has been alarmed by the possibility of influenza epidemics. First of all we had SARS, then the Avian Bird Flu and now it seems that millions could be infected by the rapid spread of Swine Flu. But where exactly do these viruses come from? Where do they "hide" during the summer months? Why does the flu virus differ from one year to another? The answers to these questions still elude even the best of epidemiologists. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, two eminent British scientists, Sir Fred Hoyle and Professor N. Chandra Wickramasinghe, presented a theory which postulated that viruses and bacteria have their origin in outer space and are brought to Earth by means of comets. They also challenged conventional wisdom which holds that diseases such as influenza and the common cold are spread by means of person-to-person transmission. “Pathogens From The Cosmos” is based upon the Hoyle/Wickramasinghe postulation that pathogens enter the Earth from extraterrestrial sources. The central character in the novel, Professor William Brigmore, succeeds in persuading the scientific and political establishments that the virus which killed the entire crew of a space station originated in outer space. Brigmore also warns the powers-that-be that this same virus is descending to the Earth and will wipe out practically all living things on the planet unless a vaccine can be made to counter the threat. However, the DNA structure of the virus is so complex that unravelling it would take decades even if the world’s fastest computers were set the task of de-coding it. The countdown is on – a most unconventional way has to be found to save humanity from almost certain extinction.
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About the Book
Francis Andrew was inspired to write Pathogens from the Cosmos after reading Diseases from Space (1979) in which the authors, Sir Fred Hoyle and Professor N. Chandra Wickramasinghe, presented compelling evidence that influenza and other so-called infectious diseases actually have their origin in outer space. They are then brought to the Earth by comets thus challenging the conventional wisdom that pathogens are spread from human to human. Pathogens from the Cosmos is a novel that mirrors the present day worries about the spread of the Swine Flu. The story takes place during the first third of the twenty-first century. The entire crew of a space station is killed by a mysterious virus. Scientists are baffled about the origin of the virus. One man, Professor William Brigmore, an astro-chemist working at Manchester University, uses all his powers of persuasion to convince the scientific and political establishments that the killer virus is an incident from space.
About the Author
Although Francis A. Andrew is not a scientist, he has always maintained an interest in science, particularly in Astronomy. With the world seemingly on the verge of a Swine Flu epidemic, it is hoped that this book will enlighten the public as to the most likely source of the influenza virus.