Interdisciplinary Insights from the Plague of Cyprian

Mark Orsag is Professor of European and Interdisciplinary History and Chair of the History Department at Doane University in the USA. Prior to this, he studied at Carnegie-Mellon University, Pennsylvania State University, and Michigan State University. Mark’s research is centered at the nexus of history and the natural sciences.Dr. Amanda McKinney is the founder/executive director of the Institute for Human and Planetary Health in the USA. She is a triple board-certified physician with a medical degree from the University of Nebraska and residency/fellowship training at the University of California-Irvine. She is a Collaborator in the Planetary Limits Academic Network, which “aims to raise awareness about critical systemic challenges facing the human endeavor.” Her ongoing research encompasses both plant medicine and how planetary limits will impact US healthcare. DeeAnn M. Reeder is Professor of Biology at Bucknell University in the USA. She is a wildlife biologist who studies disease ecology, behavior, physiology, and conservation. Having previously studied at UC Berkeley, UC Davis and Boston University, DeeAnn’s current research explores the relationships between bat health, ecosystem health and human disease risk. She holds a research position at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.

• Part I-“The Theory”: The Rediscovery and Reinterpretation of an Ancient Pandemic.- Chapter 1– The Ancient Evidentiary Foundations.- Chapter 2 – A Most Difficult Source and the Relevance of Climatic Circumstances.- Part II-- “The What and the How”: Underlying Differential Virology, Molecular Phylogenetics, Host Species Ecology and Biogeographical Presence.- Chapter 3– Retrospective and Differential Pathogen Diagnosis.- Chapter 4– Of Bats and Empires: The Egyptian Rousette Bat and the Kingdom of Aksum.- Chapter 5–Modeling an Ancient Zoonotic Outbreak.- Part III--“The Why”: Projected MARV Lineage Epidemiology and Pathology in the Third century Roman Empire.- Chapter 6– Guardrail Modeling: Geographical Dissemination Pathways and the Urban Epidemiological Setting.- Chapter 7– Exploration of Modeled Urban Epidemiology Concluded and Analysis of the Contrasting Epidemiological Situation in the Imperial Countryside.- Chapter 8– The Plague of Cyprian: Timelines, Outlines and Parameters.- Part IV: “Conclusion--Final Thoughts on the Plague of Cyprian”:  Methodological Defense and Brief Overview of Our “Solution”, Histoiographical Context and Current Relevance.- Chapter 9– Situating the Plague of Cyprian within the Broader Outlines of Roman History.- Chapter 10- Modern Relevance of the Plague of Cyprian.