Robert S. Desowitz (1926–2008)
Author of New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers: Tales of Parasites and People
About the Author
Robert S. Desowitz, a leading epidemiologist lives in Pinehurst, North Carolina
Image credit: American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Works by Robert S. Desowitz
New Guinea Tapeworms and Jewish Grandmothers: Tales of Parasites and People (1981) 162 copies, 2 reviews
Who gave Pinta to the Santa Maria? : torrid diseases in a temperate world (1997) 137 copies, 1 review
The Malaria Capers : More Tales of Parasites and People, Research and Reality (1991) 108 copies, 2 reviews
Federal Bodysnatchers and the New Guinea Virus: Tales of Parasites, People, and Politics (2002) 56 copies, 1 review
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Desowitz, Robert S.
- Birthdate
- 1926-01-02
- Date of death
- 2008-03-24
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Niagara Falls High School
University of Buffalo (B.A., 1948)
London School of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (Ph.D., parasitology and medical biology, 1951)
University of London (D.Sc., parasitology, 1961) - Occupations
- parasitologist
epidemiologist
professor of Tropical Medicine and Medical Parasitology
researcher
writer - Organizations
- University of Hawaii School of Medicine (1968-1995)
SEATO Laboratory, Department of Parisitology, Bangkok (chief ∙ 1965-1968)
University of Singapore School of Medicine (1960-1965)
British Foreign Service (1951-1960)
United States Army (1944-1946)
University of North Carolina School of Public Health (show all 7)
West African Institute for Trypanosomiasis Research, Nigeria - Short biography
- Prof. Desowitz was once described by a book reviewer as "a veritable Sherlock Holmes of parasites and pathogens."
Dr. Robert S. Desowitz is internationally renowned as a teacher, lecturer, and researcher of malaria and other diseases. He is Emeritus professor of Tropical Medicine and Medical Microbiolgy at the University of Hawaii and is currently Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He lives in Pinehurst, North Carolina. [adapted from Who Gave Pinta to the Santa Maria (1996) - Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- New York, New York, USA
- Places of residence
- Hawaii, USA
Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA - Place of death
- Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- USA
Members
Reviews
Federal Bodysnatchers and the New Guinea Virus: Tales of Parasites, People, and Politics by Robert S. Desowitz
Federal Bodysnatchers and the New Guinea Virus: Tales of People, Parasites, and Politics by Robert S. Desowitz was originally published in 2002. The title refers to a legal case involving the patenting of a virus based on genetic information obtained from the Hagahai people of New Guinea. What this book actually covers is ten different essays by epidemiologist Desowitz. Desowitz is informative, humorous, passionate, but always knowledgeable about his topic. Actually my one problem with his show more book is one he noted in the prologue, he didn't include any bibliography of references. I guess I personally would have liked to see more of his information footnoted or referenced. Although other fans of non-fiction virus books may likely enjoy it more than this score suggests, I'm rating it a 3.9 as some of the essays were more interesting, compelling reading than others.
http://shetreadssoftly.blogspot.com/ show less
http://shetreadssoftly.blogspot.com/ show less
Really enjoyed this, both the introductory section on leishmaniasis and the main section on malaria. It's a bit out of date at this point, but still a great read for anyone who enjoys the processes and personalities involved in infectious disease research
Fascinating look at parasites and our battles against them. Once again, I am reminded how interconnected the world is. If you pull one string (or do one thing to try to help people), you get all kinds of consequences that you did not anticipate. I fear some of the scientific data is outdated in this book, since it is copyright in the eighties, but it was a fun look at the topic, and the author has a good sense of humor.
Not as interesting as I'd remembered. It's a little bit about culture and cultural variation (like Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches, with which I'd classed it), but it really is mostly about diseases and disease vectors. Which are interesting in themselves (did you know that the mosquitoes that carry malaria are purely nocturnal, and only in one part of the night?) but 'These people do this and therefore get diseased because (long explanation of the lifecycle of the parasite/disease)" is less show more interesting to me than "These people do this. And these people do this. It's exactly the opposite thing, but for the same reasons. Aren't people interesting?" So still a good book, but not as much fun as I was thinking. (and the fact that I was laid low with a common cold when I read it didn't have anything to do with my low opinion! Really!) show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 5
- Members
- 500
- Popularity
- #49,492
- Rating
- 3.9
- Reviews
- 6
- ISBNs
- 19
- Languages
- 1
- Favorited
- 1