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A fatal plague that ravaged the
Byzantine Empire.
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A bizarre affliction of biblical
proportions.
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And a disturbing disorder where people
dance themselves to death.
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Plague.
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Smallpox.
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Tuberculosis. And influenza.
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These are only a few of the contagious
diseases that have killed billions of
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people. over the course of human
history. Just saying their names
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misery and pain.
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And the impact of these deadly
infections has changed the world more
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times.
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How do lethal maladies begin and then
start to silently spread?
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What happens when a medical epidemic
turns into mental hysteria? And while
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antibiotics
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And vaccines can help keep diseases like
smallpox and plague under control.
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How close are we to catching the next
unstoppable
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outbreak?
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Well, that is what we'll try and find
out.
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January 2020.
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News reports surfaced that a new, highly
contagious disease first discovered in
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Wuhan, China, is spreading like
wildfire.
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In a matter of weeks, the lethal virus,
known as coronavirus, or COVID -19,
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sweeps the globe.
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On March 11th, as the number of
infections and deaths continue to climb,
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The World Health Organization declares
that the outbreak has become a worldwide
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pandemic.
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What separates clinically coronavirus
from other common viruses, such as
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influenza, is that it knows how to hide
itself.
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It has what we call a period where you
can be asymptomatic. That means without
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symptoms. That's a chance to pass that
virus to other people.
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keeping the disease going on and
spreading.
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Most of the time, when you wait for
these symptoms, you've already missed
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According to experts, the origins of
many viruses remain shrouded in mystery.
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It's so difficult to determine the
origin of viruses because when you want
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study that virus, you have to separate
what is the natural history of that
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So one of the important things that
epidemiologists are looking at right now
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what did we learn from the past?
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What should we be looking at? Where
should we be looking?
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Some of the earliest records of plagues
are found in ancient India,
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China, the Middle East, and they talk
about plagues occurring before the very
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first civilization.
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around 3200 BC.
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Throughout human history, there have
been accounts of devastating afflictions
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that defied understanding at the time
they happened.
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But perhaps a closer examination of
these plagues will provide some lessons
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about infectious diseases and how they
begin.
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The Byzantine Empire, 541 AD.
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Emperor Justinian sits atop a powerful
throne.
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But lurking in the shadows is a hidden
enemy about to consume his kingdom.
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A plague.
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Started by a bacteria. Comes out of the
east.
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And infects. This simple bacteria ended
up killing.
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almost one half the population of the
entire old empire.
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With that type of death toll, the
economic and social
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ramifications were catastrophic.
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Everything that Justinian had tried was
now collapsing.
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His military collapsed, his economy
collapsed, and everything that he tried
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do was of no avail.
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Justinian plague is caused by a
bacterium, Yersinia pestis. It can
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humans directly from saliva or coffee.
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It usually manifests itself in terms of
swelling of the nymph nodes. The skin
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turns black and basically dies.
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And then there's a progression of fever
and chills and eventual death.
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As Justinian's empire was collapsing and
breaking, and his military strength was
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waning because...
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Science of medicine in those days was
far more primitive than we have today.
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People cry out, why?
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Why is this happening?
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The Plague of Justinian, as it became
known, ultimately killed an estimated 50
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million people.
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The vast Byzantine Empire was crippled,
not by an invading army, but by an enemy
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they could not see and did not
understand.
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At the time since the existence of
bacteria and viruses had not yet been
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discovered, many believed that the
invisible force that caused the plague
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God himself.
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It was a belief that was widely accepted
because people would read in the Bible
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about how precedents from the past had
been created by the hand of God.
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Whenever humanity
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is infected by something greater and
beyond human understanding.
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It has always been psychologically
understood to be an
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expression of the wrath of God.
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We have in the book of Exodus the famous
ten plagues of Egypt.
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Moses had come back after seeing God on
the mountain to free the Hebrews from
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slavery. He went before the Pharaoh and
asked to let his people go.
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Of course, the Pharaoh said no.
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Therefore, the Hebrew God sent a number
of plagues through Egypt.
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The Bible stories are clear.
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The order of the plagues are well
documented in the Bible.
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We know, of course, that there was the
turning of the Nile into blood. There
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were the frogs, the lice, the
pestilence, and, of course, the great
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the three days of darkness and, of
course, the death of the firstborn.
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The biblical writer who is writing what
happens and is inspired by God does say
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that the plague stopped after the
Hebrews were finally free.
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Perhaps there was some divine
intervention from God.
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But we'll never know because miracles
are very difficult to prove.
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Can ancient plagues be attributed to a
higher power at work?
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Well, it's a fascinating theory.
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And perhaps divine intervention could be
the source of a strange affliction
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where a person mysteriously bleeds as if
they'd been crucified.
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Every spring, billions of Christians all
over the world gather to observe a
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solemn day of reverence called Good
Friday.
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According to Christian tradition, Good
Friday commemorates the crucifixion and
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death of Jesus Christ.
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This sacred practice has been performed
for nearly 2 ,000 years and involves
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attending Mass, the veneration of the
cross,
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and elaborate processions.
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While Good Friday is a somber occasion,
the crucifixion is a pivotal event
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that is at the heart of Christianity.
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When you look at the spirituality of the
Christian faith, the crucifixion of
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Jesus is not only a tragedy of death,
it's a sign of the sufferings of Jesus.
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When we think of the crucifixion today,
we think of Jesus' wounds when he was
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crucified, which includes the holes in
the hands, in the feet, in the side.
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We think of the crown of thorns.
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The crucifixion is clearly a profound
cornerstone of the Christian faith.
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But curiously, for centuries people have
suffered from a rare and disturbing
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condition that is connected to the death
of Jesus Christ.
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This bizarre affliction is known as
stigmata.
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Stigmata occurs when an individual is
marked in a physical way that represents
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the wounds that Christ suffered on the
cross.
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Most commonly, stigmata happens in what
is referred to as the five wounds of
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Christ, which is two in the hands, two
in the feet, and one on the side.
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since the Middle Ages.
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There have been untold thousands of
cases.
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In the strictest terms, stigmata,
although they do involve physical
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suffering, are considered a blessing, a
privilege. It's almost as if the
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stricken individual is bearing a holy or
divine burden.
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How can wounds that mirror those of
Jesus Christ
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inexplicably appear on ordinary people.
It seems to defy all logic.
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But perhaps clues about this phenomenon
can be found by examining the first
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documented instance of stigmata.
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The first recorded case of stigmata
occurred with St. Francis of Assisi in
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St. Francis went to the mountains of La
Verna to meditate and to pray.
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And then suddenly, Francis had a vision
of a seraphim. A seraphim is a
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particular kind of angel, a fiery angel
with six wings.
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And the seraphim held in his possession
the crucifix.
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His wings were wrapped around Jesus on
the cross.
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And from this crucifix, this image of
Jesus, came forth these rays.
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And these rays penetrated Francis in the
form of stigmata.
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Francis' stigmata was incredibly
intense. Nothing like this had ever
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before. And not only did he have wounds
that were openly bleeding on his hands,
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Francis was quite ill after he received
the stigmata, and he died two years
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later.
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Every day of those two years, he did, in
fact, suffer with stigmata.
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Accounts of stigmata are both
fascinating and deeply unsettling.
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For many Christians, They are proof of
divine forces at work in our world.
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But many experts are skeptical and
insist that stigmata must have a
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explanation.
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In terms of stigmata -like symptoms,
there are some medical conditions that
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been attributed to spontaneous bleeding,
but it's still very much misunderstood.
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One of them would be hematidrosis.
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It's known as bloody sweat because when
the body is under extreme stress, the
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sweat glands tend to become more fragile
and can bleed spontaneously.
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It typically manifests as droplets of
blood on the skin, most commonly in the
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forehead, the arms, and the legs,
without any apparent physical cause.
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It can't be said that they are the exact
cause of stigmata.
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When a proposed stigmata occurs,
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The Vatican typically will do everything
possible to account for the healing
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within standard medical protocol.
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The Vatican disputes, ignores, or
disproves vastly greater numbers
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of miraculous claims than it actually
validates. And so if the Vatican
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is able to verify stigmata, they are
considered miraculous.
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Is it possible that a genuine case of
stigmata is an actual miracle, as the
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Vatican claims?
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Many believe that the best evidence lies
in the story of the most famous case in
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modern history, the stigmata of Padre
Pio.
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Padre Pio was a Capuchin friar who, in
1918, celebrated mass.
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And immediately afterwards started
bleeding from the hands and feet.
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But there were certain peculiarities
about it.
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It never scabbed over.
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And it gave off a very sweet perfume,
which is known as the odour of sanctity.
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When Padre Pio was suffering from his
stigmata, he said that the pain was so
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extreme that he thought he might die.
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He was embarrassed by the blood and
embarrassed to be showing these marks on
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regular basis.
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And he was always trying to cover them
with the sleeves of his robe so that
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people wouldn't see the blood.
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The Vatican's response to great mystics
in the church has often been to
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persecute them, at least initially. They
did that with Padre Pio.
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They were skeptical.
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At one point, they thought they were
self -inflicted.
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And so they silenced him.
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They basically shut him away in the
monastery.
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But thousands of people would go to
attend his mass and line up for
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for days.
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It was not until long after Padre Pio's
death in 1968 that the
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Vatican had relented and saw him as a
genuine stigmatist.
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He was finally canonised and beautified
by Pope John Paul II.
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This was at the beginning of the 21st
century.
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Now thousands of pilgrims come from all
over Italy and beyond to
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venerate at his tomb every month.
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And so his memory is something that is
celebrated by Catholics in
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every part of the world.
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For the moment, stigmata remains a
controversial and captivating affliction
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offers no easy answers.
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But in 16th century France, another
condition emerged that was no less
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It was a disturbing phenomenon which led
hundreds of people to dance themselves
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to death.
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Strasbourg, France.
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This historic city built along the Rhine
River is known for its stunning network
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of canals, remarkable medieval
architecture, and the famous
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clock of Strasbourg Cathedral.
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But over 500 years ago in July of 1518,
this town was the site of one of the
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strangest maladies in human history.
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It's known as the Dancing Plague.
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And it started when a townswoman named
Frau Trophia spontaneously burst into
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dance.
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Frau Trophia is said to have stepped
outside of her house in the city of
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Strasbourg and then begun to dance.
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And she danced for hours and hours and
hours. And apparently at first,
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eyewitnesses... thought that she may
have been trying to irritate her husband
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that this was some kind of joke but then
the dance stretched into the evening
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and then into the night she collapsed
she got up the
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next day and began again and at that
point people realized that a very
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00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:33,840
strange phenomenon was unfolding here
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00:17:35,280 --> 00:17:40,479
Frau Trophia went on hopping around and
dancing in the heat of the summer, but
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00:17:40,480 --> 00:17:47,239
she wasn't enjoying it. She was
unfocused, glassy -eyed, dissociated,
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00:17:47,240 --> 00:17:50,279
jerking around and dancing, and she
actually couldn't stop.
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00:17:50,280 --> 00:17:53,180
Frau Trophia reportedly danced for a
week straight.
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00:17:53,520 --> 00:17:57,899
The constant exertion took a toll on her
health, and she was sent to a remote
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monastery to recuperate.
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But strangely, after Frau left
Strasbourg...
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The dancing didn't stop.
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Within about two or three weeks, dozens
more people had been consumed by this
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same urge to dance and dance for hours
and days in an altered state of
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00:18:19,930 --> 00:18:20,980
consciousness.
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By the end of August, perhaps 400 people
were all dancing,
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in some cases on and off for weeks.
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Their toenails fell off, their feet were
lacerated, their shoes were full of
229
00:18:36,450 --> 00:18:37,500
blood.
230
00:18:37,750 --> 00:18:40,050
And then some of them dropped dead.
231
00:18:41,130 --> 00:18:46,589
It was estimated 15 a day dropped dead,
maybe 400 in all over the course of the
232
00:18:46,590 --> 00:18:47,269
two months.
233
00:18:47,270 --> 00:18:49,810
It was a terrifying and terrible thing.
234
00:18:51,190 --> 00:18:57,289
What's so remarkable about these events
of 1518 is that we have copies of
235
00:18:57,290 --> 00:19:03,390
the memos sent among the members of the
governing party. circle of the city.
236
00:19:04,170 --> 00:19:09,909
There are intense debates within the
city as to what is causing this outbreak
237
00:19:09,910 --> 00:19:10,960
dancing.
238
00:19:11,090 --> 00:19:14,830
And they make quite clear these people
do not want to be dancing.
239
00:19:15,550 --> 00:19:18,050
They are absolutely involuntary.
240
00:19:19,490 --> 00:19:23,310
What could have possibly triggered such
a bizarre and deadly affliction?
241
00:19:23,970 --> 00:19:28,109
At the time, the people of Strasbourg
began to suspect that the dancing plague
242
00:19:28,110 --> 00:19:29,550
was the work.
243
00:19:30,960 --> 00:19:32,010
Of the devil.
244
00:19:33,460 --> 00:19:36,640
This was something that was seen as a
form of possession.
245
00:19:37,100 --> 00:19:41,360
So they started to look at possible
supernatural explanations.
246
00:19:42,020 --> 00:19:47,679
And the first thing that they thought of
was this possibly being instigated by
247
00:19:47,680 --> 00:19:48,730
the devil himself.
248
00:19:49,780 --> 00:19:53,940
And so they tried to purge every kind of
sin from the city.
249
00:19:54,300 --> 00:19:55,460
It didn't work.
250
00:19:57,160 --> 00:20:01,679
When banning sin failed, the townspeople
wondered if the dancing plague was not
251
00:20:01,680 --> 00:20:06,940
the work of the devil, but rather a
Catholic saint by the name of Vitus.
252
00:20:07,620 --> 00:20:13,500
Saint Vitus is an important saint in the
late medieval European church.
253
00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:20,439
There was a very strong belief that
there were a number of saints who could
254
00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:26,809
cure you of a particular disease, and if
you were a sinner, then they would
255
00:20:26,810 --> 00:20:29,090
punish you by inflicting that disease.
256
00:20:29,490 --> 00:20:35,189
Saint Vitus was believed to cause
movement disorders, including compulsive
257
00:20:35,190 --> 00:20:39,829
dancing. So it made complete sense to
people at the time that if anybody was
258
00:20:39,830 --> 00:20:43,690
dancing wildly, it's because they'd
somehow offended Saint Vitus.
259
00:20:45,230 --> 00:20:49,749
So what they then do is that they bundle
people into wagons and take them to a
260
00:20:49,750 --> 00:20:55,750
shrine dedicated to saint fighters,
located about 30 miles north of
261
00:20:57,170 --> 00:21:02,129
Interestingly, they put red shoes on
them. They cover the red shoes in holy
262
00:21:02,130 --> 00:21:07,710
and holy water, and they lead them round
the shrine in a circle.
263
00:21:08,070 --> 00:21:13,090
And then we are told most of the people
recovered their sanity.
264
00:21:13,870 --> 00:21:19,769
So it seems that they cured it by
appealing to the supernatural beliefs of
265
00:21:19,770 --> 00:21:21,270
people who had been afflicted.
266
00:21:22,430 --> 00:21:26,610
Was the dancing plague both caused and
cured by a higher power?
267
00:21:26,910 --> 00:21:30,050
Well, it made sense to people in
medieval Europe.
268
00:21:31,230 --> 00:21:35,190
In modern times, experts have proposed a
more scientific theory.
269
00:21:35,750 --> 00:21:41,949
They claim that this ghoulish dancing
frenzy was the result of mass
270
00:21:41,950 --> 00:21:46,640
illness. Or as it's more commonly known,
mass hysteria.
271
00:21:47,680 --> 00:21:52,279
Mass hysteria is when a group of people
are experiencing the same physical
272
00:21:52,280 --> 00:21:56,939
symptoms without a definitive physical
cause of those symptoms. For example, if
273
00:21:56,940 --> 00:22:01,619
you're in a social setting whereby
someone is experiencing a symptom, you
274
00:22:01,620 --> 00:22:04,030
then believe that that's also happening
to you.
275
00:22:04,440 --> 00:22:09,800
Today, the most popular theory for the
1518...
276
00:22:10,600 --> 00:22:16,219
dancing plague is that this is an
example of mass hysteria but it's not
277
00:22:16,220 --> 00:22:22,219
the case that unusual behavior is mass
psychogenic illness we're talking about
278
00:22:22,220 --> 00:22:28,179
several hundred people dancing for days
or weeks some of them dying could mass
279
00:22:28,180 --> 00:22:33,199
hysteria really be what started the
spread of the dancing plague or was it
280
00:22:33,200 --> 00:22:37,859
work of the devil whether it was
psychological or spiritual in nature the
281
00:22:37,860 --> 00:22:43,919
dancing plague is certainly a lesson in
human behavior, as is the case of a 3
282
00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:49,319
,000 -year -old virus that spread around
the world and became one of the
283
00:22:49,320 --> 00:22:51,840
deadliest diseases on Earth.
284
00:22:56,860 --> 00:23:01,160
The Valley of Mexico, November 8th,
1519.
285
00:23:03,820 --> 00:23:09,659
Spanish conquistadors led by Hernan
Cortes arrive at Tenochtitlan, the
286
00:23:09,660 --> 00:23:15,739
of the Aztec Empire, bearing dreams of
conquest and an insatiable desire for
287
00:23:15,740 --> 00:23:20,860
gold. But they also brought with them a
lethal, infectious disease.
288
00:23:21,980 --> 00:23:27,859
Smallpox is introduced into the Americas
very dramatically at a specific point
289
00:23:27,860 --> 00:23:30,360
in time and alongside the European
invasion.
290
00:23:31,630 --> 00:23:36,509
So this is a tremendous sort of clash of
civilizations, the likes of which the
291
00:23:36,510 --> 00:23:39,160
world had never seen before and will
never see again.
292
00:23:39,290 --> 00:23:46,109
The single most deciding factor as to
why Native American civilizations fell
293
00:23:46,110 --> 00:23:48,770
rapidly was the introduction of
smallpox.
294
00:23:51,970 --> 00:23:54,690
So smallpox is a virus.
295
00:23:54,990 --> 00:24:00,110
It causes these sort of irregular spaced
pustule -y skin lesions.
296
00:24:00,600 --> 00:24:05,780
and had a devastating effect on Native
Americans in the New World.
297
00:24:07,140 --> 00:24:11,280
In Europe, most people had experienced
smallpox.
298
00:24:11,480 --> 00:24:14,020
They had the scars, or they had it as
children.
299
00:24:14,580 --> 00:24:19,980
But there was no immunity in the New
World. There was no immunity among kids.
300
00:24:20,120 --> 00:24:25,959
There was no immunity among adults. And
so when this new disease came, everybody
301
00:24:25,960 --> 00:24:27,010
was vulnerable.
302
00:24:27,820 --> 00:24:30,140
And so it spread like wildfire.
303
00:24:31,680 --> 00:24:36,779
Although the exact numbers will never be
known, many experts estimate that a
304
00:24:36,780 --> 00:24:42,320
staggering 95 % of the indigenous
population would eventually die from
305
00:24:43,340 --> 00:24:48,539
But what's even more chilling is the
fact that smallpox ran rampant for
306
00:24:48,540 --> 00:24:49,620
thousands of years.
307
00:24:51,060 --> 00:24:56,600
I am astounded by how far back smallpox
goes.
308
00:24:57,550 --> 00:25:02,529
For most of human recorded history, we
believe it's the same strain that was
309
00:25:02,530 --> 00:25:06,190
infecting one person after another, this
human chain of infection.
310
00:25:06,810 --> 00:25:13,769
The Egyptian pharaoh, Ramses V, had
scarring on his face that's
311
00:25:13,770 --> 00:25:15,090
consistent with smallpox.
312
00:25:18,410 --> 00:25:23,930
It is estimated that smallpox has killed
between 300 and 500 million people.
313
00:25:24,360 --> 00:25:26,560
In its more than 10 ,000 year existence.
314
00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:31,240
Which begs the question, how did we
finally beat it?
315
00:25:34,640 --> 00:25:38,999
Well, it just so happens that the cure
for smallpox was discovered in a small
316
00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:42,240
English village in the 1790s.
317
00:25:43,140 --> 00:25:48,779
In the late 1700s, doctors were noticing
that milkmaids did not seem to be
318
00:25:48,780 --> 00:25:50,520
affected by smallpox.
319
00:25:51,360 --> 00:25:55,520
and their complexions remained
unscarred.
320
00:25:56,480 --> 00:26:01,899
And people were starting to make that
connection that there might be immunity
321
00:26:01,900 --> 00:26:06,660
from catching a different kind of pox
virus, cowpox.
322
00:26:06,940 --> 00:26:13,679
So milkmaids were exposed to the cowpox
virus, probably got infected, and were
323
00:26:13,680 --> 00:26:16,020
then immune to smallpox.
324
00:26:18,060 --> 00:26:23,679
Edward Jenner was an English physician
and decided to test this observation and
325
00:26:23,680 --> 00:26:30,459
took a piece of an ulcer from a cow that
was infected by cowpox and gave it
326
00:26:30,460 --> 00:26:37,179
to an eight -year -old boy and then, a
little bit later, gave this little boy
327
00:26:37,180 --> 00:26:39,360
a dose of smallpox.
328
00:26:40,360 --> 00:26:45,699
Fortunately, the eight -year -old boy
did not develop smallpox and was
329
00:26:45,700 --> 00:26:46,750
protected.
330
00:26:47,630 --> 00:26:51,769
Because it wasn't like a direct viral
intake, right, you would get a slightly
331
00:26:51,770 --> 00:26:57,129
lesser version of the disease. But
because you had been exposed to it, you
332
00:26:57,130 --> 00:26:58,629
would, of course, then have immunity.
333
00:26:58,630 --> 00:27:02,410
So it was probably a first instance of a
crude version of vaccination.
334
00:27:04,230 --> 00:27:09,409
As it turns out, Edward Jenner's
revolutionary experiment is remembered
335
00:27:09,410 --> 00:27:13,150
for its inspiration, its sheer audacity.
336
00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:18,819
And because it provided a new defense
against infectious disease, which we now
337
00:27:18,820 --> 00:27:21,300
refer to as the vaccine.
338
00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:29,459
The word vaccine comes from the virus
name vaccinia, which was the virus that
339
00:27:29,460 --> 00:27:34,380
was the cowpox -derived virus that left
people immune to smallpox.
340
00:27:35,720 --> 00:27:42,539
Vaccines prevent disease, and some
vaccines can last for decades, and some
341
00:27:42,540 --> 00:27:44,820
vaccines need to be given every year.
342
00:27:45,020 --> 00:27:49,360
For smallpox, people had to get
vaccinated every 10 years.
343
00:27:50,860 --> 00:27:55,840
Vaccines are humanity's single greatest
weapon against plagues.
344
00:27:56,120 --> 00:28:01,539
Rooted in science and not superstition,
they provide a powerful way to fight
345
00:28:01,540 --> 00:28:02,590
outbreaks.
346
00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:08,819
The last naturally occurring case of
smallpox was identified in 1979, and in
347
00:28:08,820 --> 00:28:14,279
1980, the World Health Organization
declared that smallpox was eradicated,
348
00:28:14,280 --> 00:28:16,640
longer spreading from person to person.
349
00:28:17,040 --> 00:28:23,819
Eradicating smallpox was the biggest
public health victory in the history of
350
00:28:23,820 --> 00:28:24,870
human race.
351
00:28:25,280 --> 00:28:29,919
The eradication of smallpox is the most
famous use of a highly effective
352
00:28:29,920 --> 00:28:30,970
vaccine.
353
00:28:31,360 --> 00:28:35,720
But there are some diseases that are
harder to cure.
354
00:28:36,720 --> 00:28:41,639
There are viruses for which we have no
vaccines at all because they mutate too
355
00:28:41,640 --> 00:28:42,690
rapidly.
356
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:48,259
And so because viruses mutate, there's a
certain limitation to what you can do
357
00:28:48,260 --> 00:28:49,310
with a vaccine.
358
00:28:50,860 --> 00:28:56,200
The minute you get too confident and you
think that we defeated Mother Nature,
359
00:28:56,260 --> 00:28:58,920
somehow it always finds a way to come
back.
360
00:29:00,270 --> 00:29:04,049
It appears that even with our
technological and medical advancements,
361
00:29:04,050 --> 00:29:09,929
ability to isolate, contain, and even
eradicate certain diseases will remain
362
00:29:09,930 --> 00:29:10,980
ongoing endeavor.
363
00:29:11,830 --> 00:29:17,510
And in some cases, discovering the
source of the affliction can be
364
00:29:18,190 --> 00:29:25,029
Like in the case of a deadly disorder
caused by a gruesome
365
00:29:25,030 --> 00:29:26,080
tribal ritual.
366
00:29:32,330 --> 00:29:33,380
Papua New Guinea.
367
00:29:34,230 --> 00:29:39,409
This group of tropical islands located
in the southwest Pacific Ocean is one of
368
00:29:39,410 --> 00:29:41,070
the most remote places on earth.
369
00:29:42,410 --> 00:29:48,249
During the 1970s, it was discovered that
a local tribe known as the Foray was
370
00:29:48,250 --> 00:29:52,570
afflicted by a strange and deadly
illness.
371
00:29:55,830 --> 00:29:59,530
The Foray people lived up in the
mountains of this island.
372
00:30:00,010 --> 00:30:04,249
There were probably about 36 ,000 of
them that were spread out across the
373
00:30:04,250 --> 00:30:06,950
mountain valleys in northern New Guinea.
374
00:30:07,310 --> 00:30:13,089
They lived in 170 different hamlets with
people who spoke six different
375
00:30:13,090 --> 00:30:14,140
languages.
376
00:30:14,530 --> 00:30:21,409
When the Westerners started to interact
with the foray, missionaries and
377
00:30:21,410 --> 00:30:26,009
anthropologists found an alarming number
of them were dying of a strange disease
378
00:30:26,010 --> 00:30:27,790
that nobody had really seen before.
379
00:30:29,390 --> 00:30:34,289
One of the symptoms of this disease is
something that is known as pathological
380
00:30:34,290 --> 00:30:35,340
laughter.
381
00:30:36,670 --> 00:30:39,330
You know, inappropriate laughter,
giggling.
382
00:30:40,330 --> 00:30:45,310
Major magazines and newspapers called it
laughing death.
383
00:30:47,110 --> 00:30:52,829
At the time, experts estimated that the
laughing death killed 200 Foray people
384
00:30:52,830 --> 00:30:53,880
every year.
385
00:30:53,970 --> 00:30:58,270
The Foray called the illness Kuru, which
translates to...
386
00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:00,560
trembling in their dialect.
387
00:31:01,500 --> 00:31:06,780
The disease was puzzling to scientists
who could not determine its cause.
388
00:31:07,520 --> 00:31:13,699
And in 1981, Dr. Robert Klitzman
traveled to Papua New Guinea to try and
389
00:31:13,700 --> 00:31:14,750
the mystery.
390
00:31:14,820 --> 00:31:18,679
When I went there for the first time, I
wasn't sure what to expect, but I
391
00:31:18,680 --> 00:31:19,730
learned many things.
392
00:31:20,300 --> 00:31:24,040
Initially, it was called the laughing
death, which is sort of a misnomer.
393
00:31:24,840 --> 00:31:28,799
People did engage in what seemed like
laughter, but it really was sort of
394
00:31:28,800 --> 00:31:32,740
uncontrollable expressions and movements
that they had.
395
00:31:33,280 --> 00:31:35,080
Kuru causes a number of symptoms.
396
00:31:35,280 --> 00:31:40,099
It is a neurological disease somewhat
similar to Parkinson's disease or
397
00:31:40,100 --> 00:31:41,150
Alzheimer's.
398
00:31:41,960 --> 00:31:48,319
The symptoms are loss of muscle control
over one's body, shaking, inability to
399
00:31:48,320 --> 00:31:52,800
walk, and it has mental symptoms as
well.
400
00:31:53,530 --> 00:31:57,270
So people may not be able to control
their emotions or what they say.
401
00:31:57,810 --> 00:32:00,330
The disease was terrifying in many ways.
402
00:32:00,710 --> 00:32:05,210
The symptoms usually from start to the
person's death take about a year.
403
00:32:06,110 --> 00:32:07,490
It's invariably fatal.
404
00:32:08,690 --> 00:32:12,830
The Foray people believe that the
disease was caused by sorcery.
405
00:32:13,890 --> 00:32:18,329
So they believe that a sorcerer would
take something that belonged to you and
406
00:32:18,330 --> 00:32:21,310
wrap it around a stone and bury it and
cast a spell on it.
407
00:32:21,880 --> 00:32:26,560
And that may sound ridiculous to some of
us, but they'd say, that's just magic.
408
00:32:27,080 --> 00:32:30,240
The world in which they live was this
kind of a world.
409
00:32:30,860 --> 00:32:35,160
Was Kuru the result of supernatural
forces as locals believed?
410
00:32:35,600 --> 00:32:37,340
It's an intriguing notion.
411
00:32:37,980 --> 00:32:43,019
But doctors eventually suspected that
the real culprit was that the foray
412
00:32:43,020 --> 00:32:48,580
participated in the gruesome practice of
consuming human flesh.
413
00:32:52,300 --> 00:32:57,519
When Western anthropologists began to
study some of the communities of Papua
414
00:32:57,520 --> 00:33:03,279
Guinea in the 1930s, they discovered
practice of a
415
00:33:03,280 --> 00:33:08,500
ritualistic, religious -based funerary
cannibalism.
416
00:33:08,780 --> 00:33:15,699
The Papua New Guineans who engaged in
cannibalism saw the consumption of the
417
00:33:15,700 --> 00:33:20,460
brain as a way of imbibing that person's
life force.
418
00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:22,520
It was a devotional practice.
419
00:33:23,400 --> 00:33:28,619
When they practiced cannibalism, at one
feast I calculated that there were 56
420
00:33:28,620 --> 00:33:32,380
people present, 53 of whom then died of
the disease.
421
00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:34,620
So it was pretty devastating.
422
00:33:35,040 --> 00:33:39,720
Now, every time someone died, they would
consume the brain.
423
00:33:40,340 --> 00:33:44,940
I met people, for instance, who would
say, well, I ate a foot, or I ate a
424
00:33:45,100 --> 00:33:46,360
and they were still alive.
425
00:33:46,590 --> 00:33:53,349
And so the concentration of the Kuru was
highest when they would consume the
426
00:33:53,350 --> 00:33:54,400
brain.
427
00:33:54,401 --> 00:33:58,709
Perhaps it's not surprising that eating
human brains is not good for your
428
00:33:58,710 --> 00:34:05,050
health. But how did this practice lead
to the bizarre laughing symptoms of
429
00:34:05,470 --> 00:34:10,269
Kuru is caused by something called the
prion, an infectious protein that is in
430
00:34:10,270 --> 00:34:11,409
all of our brains.
431
00:34:12,400 --> 00:34:17,340
And in roughly one out of every million
people or so, it flips the wrong way.
432
00:34:17,699 --> 00:34:24,678
And when it's flipped, it could lead to
other proteins flipping in our
433
00:34:24,679 --> 00:34:29,159
brain and forming clumps that could kill
brain cells.
434
00:34:30,100 --> 00:34:36,339
Cool probably happened because someone
in the 4A group had such a protein flip
435
00:34:36,340 --> 00:34:41,400
the wrong way, and that person was then
consumed by other people.
436
00:34:41,900 --> 00:34:44,940
And that led to proteins in their brains
flipping.
437
00:34:45,659 --> 00:34:51,399
And when they died, they were eaten, and
the rest is history. It continued to
438
00:34:51,400 --> 00:34:52,450
spread.
439
00:34:52,860 --> 00:34:56,320
The story of Kuru is as fascinating as
it is disturbing.
440
00:34:57,320 --> 00:35:02,140
But what's even more unsettling is that
this type of disease has harmed people,
441
00:35:02,260 --> 00:35:05,800
not just in Papua New Guinea, but all
over the world.
442
00:35:06,300 --> 00:35:10,040
Except we call it mad cow disease.
443
00:35:11,850 --> 00:35:16,609
In the 1980s, British cattle became
stricken with mad cow disease because
444
00:35:16,610 --> 00:35:19,110
farmers feed them supplements.
445
00:35:19,390 --> 00:35:25,670
And these supplements are made up of
dead cows infected with prion disease.
446
00:35:25,990 --> 00:35:28,090
And then people would consume that.
447
00:35:29,350 --> 00:35:36,309
Eventually, over the course of 15, 16
years, 178 people in the UK died
448
00:35:36,310 --> 00:35:39,370
from what became known as mad cow
disease.
449
00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:45,059
Mad cow disease or neurodegenerative
diseases such as Kuru can manifest
450
00:35:45,060 --> 00:35:50,720
of 70 years after the ingestion of some
contaminated food or livestock.
451
00:35:51,040 --> 00:35:55,960
And so it's very unclear as to whether
or not it can happen in the future.
452
00:35:56,260 --> 00:36:01,659
The study of Kuru was important for many
reasons. One is, of course, the fact
453
00:36:01,660 --> 00:36:05,799
that the symptoms in humans from eating
an infected cow are basically the same
454
00:36:05,800 --> 00:36:08,160
symptoms that we saw with Kuru.
455
00:36:09,000 --> 00:36:14,259
So they provided this unique glimpse on
what can cause a disease that's
456
00:36:14,260 --> 00:36:17,080
different than what anyone had thought
before.
457
00:36:19,580 --> 00:36:23,419
Could our understanding of the laughing
death disorder help us to better
458
00:36:23,420 --> 00:36:27,580
identify and avoid strange outbreaks in
the modern world?
459
00:36:28,420 --> 00:36:33,259
Perhaps. And now more than ever, people
are going to great lengths to dodge
460
00:36:33,260 --> 00:36:36,440
diseases and even death itself.
461
00:36:37,550 --> 00:36:41,910
Their secret is to remain frozen for
centuries.
462
00:36:47,590 --> 00:36:48,890
Scottsdale, Arizona.
463
00:36:49,810 --> 00:36:54,209
In a sprawling industrial park on the
north side of the city stands the
464
00:36:54,210 --> 00:36:57,050
headquarters of the Alcor Life Extension
Foundation.
465
00:36:58,090 --> 00:37:02,809
Like most cutting -edge medical
facilities, the doctors and scientists
466
00:37:02,810 --> 00:37:05,610
day and night to provide care for their
patients.
467
00:37:06,620 --> 00:37:12,040
Except in the case of Alcor, the
patients are all deceased.
468
00:37:12,820 --> 00:37:16,899
In our view, people who are declared
legally dead today are potentially
469
00:37:16,900 --> 00:37:17,950
revivable.
470
00:37:18,520 --> 00:37:22,939
Alcor's mission is to take a patient who
cannot be helped by today's medicine
471
00:37:22,940 --> 00:37:26,959
into the future, where hopefully more
advanced technology can repair and
472
00:37:26,960 --> 00:37:28,010
them.
473
00:37:29,140 --> 00:37:31,140
We're here in Alcor's patient care bay.
474
00:37:31,760 --> 00:37:35,719
In this room, we have all 184 of our
human patients in these dewers, these
475
00:37:35,720 --> 00:37:39,580
cryogenic dewers, essentially very
large, expensive vacuum flasks.
476
00:37:39,581 --> 00:37:43,779
So in each one of these containers,
there are four whole -body patients.
477
00:37:43,780 --> 00:37:46,779
On this side, you can see that I can put
my hand on here without any problem,
478
00:37:46,780 --> 00:37:51,660
but just a few inches further in is
minus 320 Fahrenheit. It's extremely
479
00:37:51,661 --> 00:37:55,659
People say that we freeze people
colloquially, but that's not strictly
480
00:37:55,660 --> 00:37:56,710
if we do it right.
481
00:37:57,390 --> 00:38:01,689
Our patients are essentially in
something like a long -term coma, except
482
00:38:01,690 --> 00:38:03,550
is no metabolic activity whatsoever.
483
00:38:04,410 --> 00:38:10,869
To date, 184 deceased patients lie in
deep freeze within Alcor's facility in
484
00:38:10,870 --> 00:38:12,980
hope that one day they'll be
resurrected.
485
00:38:14,190 --> 00:38:19,770
This bizarre form of potential
immortality is known as cryonics.
486
00:38:20,610 --> 00:38:26,050
Cryonics is the process of freezing the
human body, perhaps just the human head.
487
00:38:26,600 --> 00:38:29,740
in order to stop the biological process
of decay.
488
00:38:30,760 --> 00:38:35,459
So the hope is, if you could freeze
somebody alive, even with an incurable
489
00:38:35,460 --> 00:38:40,879
disease, perhaps you can thaw them out
at some point in the future when science
490
00:38:40,880 --> 00:38:42,960
has found a cure for that disease.
491
00:38:43,580 --> 00:38:49,600
In that sense, perhaps you can defeat
cancer, defeat all the ravages of old
492
00:38:49,840 --> 00:38:51,700
perhaps even become immortal.
493
00:38:52,780 --> 00:38:54,820
Professor Robert Ettinger, physicist.
494
00:38:55,580 --> 00:39:00,019
Started the cryonics movement in the
1960s, where he proposed to store people
495
00:39:00,020 --> 00:39:03,879
ultra -cold temperatures where there's
potential that future technology could
496
00:39:03,880 --> 00:39:05,020
repair and revive them.
497
00:39:05,021 --> 00:39:10,719
Right now, there are many companies that
do this. There are hundreds of frozen
498
00:39:10,720 --> 00:39:14,060
individuals right now across the United
States.
499
00:39:15,600 --> 00:39:20,639
Worldwide, it is estimated that at least
500 people have been placed in cryonics
500
00:39:20,640 --> 00:39:21,690
suspension.
501
00:39:21,780 --> 00:39:24,660
Most notably, baseball Hall of Famer Ted
Williams.
502
00:39:25,650 --> 00:39:29,729
There are even those who claim that Walt
Disney's body is preserved in a
503
00:39:29,730 --> 00:39:30,780
cryonics facility.
504
00:39:31,890 --> 00:39:37,389
But is there any reason to believe that
this strange process could actually
505
00:39:37,390 --> 00:39:38,440
work?
506
00:39:38,590 --> 00:39:43,149
If you live in the countryside, you know
that come wintertime, the lakes freeze
507
00:39:43,150 --> 00:39:44,200
over.
508
00:39:44,730 --> 00:39:49,790
But if you ever look right on top of the
lakes, you'll see frozen organisms,
509
00:39:49,950 --> 00:39:51,410
fish and frogs.
510
00:39:52,810 --> 00:39:54,630
And then come springtime,
511
00:39:55,720 --> 00:40:00,040
some of them spring back to life again,
when you thought they were frozen solid.
512
00:40:00,980 --> 00:40:02,080
What's the trick?
513
00:40:02,320 --> 00:40:08,639
The trick is that Mother Nature has
created an antifreeze to lower the
514
00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:13,159
point for these animals, such that even
though it appears as if they're frozen
515
00:40:13,160 --> 00:40:19,219
solid, the bodily fluids inside these
animals still flows, and these animals
516
00:40:19,220 --> 00:40:24,160
still alive, even though their
metabolism rate is very close to zero.
517
00:40:25,290 --> 00:40:29,709
So in some sense, we're trying to copy
nature. And it turns out that some forms
518
00:40:29,710 --> 00:40:32,810
of tissue can in fact be frozen almost
indefinitely.
519
00:40:34,250 --> 00:40:39,769
If cryonics is able to deliver on its
promise of immortality as many hope,
520
00:40:39,770 --> 00:40:44,510
it eventually mean that death itself
will one day come to an end?
521
00:40:44,511 --> 00:40:48,929
Cryonics really is about giving people
choice over how long they live.
522
00:40:48,930 --> 00:40:52,609
We think that in the future, we should
be able to revive cryonics patients and
523
00:40:52,610 --> 00:40:55,289
rejuvenate them and let them go about
their lives again.
524
00:40:55,290 --> 00:40:57,520
What we want really is indefinite
lifespan.
525
00:40:58,270 --> 00:41:03,429
If in the future someone can show that
you could be revived after being frozen
526
00:41:03,430 --> 00:41:07,810
solid, then the whole question of
immortality is on the table.
527
00:41:08,550 --> 00:41:13,270
We're not there yet, but there's no law
of science that says you can't do it.
528
00:41:13,271 --> 00:41:19,629
Perhaps the future for treating a deadly
virus would be to simply put a patient
529
00:41:19,630 --> 00:41:21,390
on ice until a cure can be found.
530
00:41:22,190 --> 00:41:26,269
In the meantime, it's reassuring to know
that modern medicine, along with an
531
00:41:26,270 --> 00:41:31,769
understanding of how outbreaks begin and
spread, has made great strides in
532
00:41:31,770 --> 00:41:34,950
controlling the escalation of contagious
diseases.
533
00:41:36,030 --> 00:41:40,870
But will killers like smallpox still be
around for another 3 ,000 years?
534
00:41:41,210 --> 00:41:46,710
Or can a new plague emerge that's
impervious to antibiotics?
535
00:41:47,660 --> 00:41:52,299
While we can attempt to protect
ourselves from deadly pandemics, just
536
00:41:52,300 --> 00:41:57,319
next unstoppable outbreak will occur,
remain
537
00:41:57,320 --> 00:42:00,220
unexplained.
538
00:42:00,270 --> 00:42:04,820
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