Abstract
This paper examines the history, economics and politics of the Bubonic Plague and AIDS. The paper explores the art and literature that sprung forth from both these epidemics. The paper contends that there are many similarities between the Bubonic Plague and AIDS. The paper elaborates that they both caught the world by surprise and initially no cures were known for either disease. The paper draws further parallels, stating that both diseases spread quickly and superstitions and myth surrounded the causes of both diseases. The paper also claims that bigotry and ignorance prevailed in both cases.

From the Paper
"The fourth law was "to avoid the foul stench which the bodies of the dead give off they have provided and ordered that any ditch in which a dead body is to be buried must be dug under ground to a depth of 2 1/2 braccia by the measure of the city of Pistoia" ("Plague and Public Health in Renaissance Europe"). The fifth law "provided and ordered that no person of whatever condition or status or authority shall dare or presume to return or to carry to the city of Pistoia any dead body in or out of a casket or in any manner"("Plague and Public Health in Renaissance Europe"). There were 25 ordinances passed to protect the citizens from the spread of the plague. Unlike in some areas, where bigotry and superstition was the rule, most of the laws were based on common sense. The laws did prevent the spread of the Plague into Pistoia, which is a miracle considering the fate of Florence."

Tags:disease, epidemic, health

Abstract
In this paper a medieval village has been evaluated for class stratification, health policy, and the nature of the bubonic plague in the Middle Ages. The paper explains that by representing a fictional citizen of this town, one can begin to understand the lack of medical science and policy initiatives that eventually led to a wide spread epidemic in medieval society. The paper then analyzes the various aspects of the bubonic plague within this study of life in a medieval town during the year 1349. The paper also explores how, by being unaware of the nature of the disease and its symptoms, medieval communities were annihilated by a lack of quarantine policies that would have prevented more infections.

From the Paper
"The issue of class hierarchy in our town makes virtual servants or "vassals" to our Lord or landowner on the hill. We make sure to farm the local area to provide food for our Lord, and he--in return--makes sure that we are protected with his various knights from other landowners. Also, the Church is prominent in our town, and we have the local clergy on a neighboring hill--making sure that prayers are being said to remove the plague from our village. However, although a peasant--like myself--might view the Roman Catholic Church as an institution that would help the poor and suffering, the clergy have monastic retreats in the countryside, in which, they do nothing to help solve our medical dilemma."

Tags:blacl, plague, civilization, sickness, medical, dilemma

Abstract
This paper evaluates a medieval village with respect to its class stratification, health policy, and its susceptibility to the bubonic plague in the Middle Ages. The writer presents a fictional citizen of this town, and attempts to show how the town's policy and lack of quarantine combined with inadequate medical knowledge led to a wide spread epidemic of the plague.

From the Paper
"By representing a fictional citizen of this town, one can begin to understand the lack of medical science and policy initiatives that eventually led to a wide spread epidemic in medieval society. By being unaware of the nature of the disease and its symptoms, medieval communities were annihilated by a lack of quarantine policies that would have prevented more infections."

Tags:plague, medieval, death

From the Paper
"Most people associate bubonic plague with the dreaded "Black Death" epidemic which took place in Europe during the fourteenth century. However, although they are comparatively rare, cases of bubonic plague still occur sporadically in various parts of the world today, including the United States (McEvedy, 1988, p. 118). One of the most characteristic symptoms of the plague is a "bubo," a large growth on the body caused by the swelling of a lymph gland. Buboes usually appear on the groin, neck, or armpit of the victim (Forgotten, but not gone, 1989, p. 84). Other possible symptoms of bubonic plague include: "shivering, fever, vomiting, headache, giddiness, intolerance to light, pain in the abdomen, back, and limbs, insomnia, apathy, and delirium" (Matossian, 1989, p. 48). The plague also causes hemorrhaging under the skin, which results in black splotches appearing on the..."

Abstract
This paper covers the history of the epidemic of the bacterium that came to be known as the bubonic plague. It begins in 540 A.D., with the first record of its occurrence, and continues to show its from the Mediterranean throughout Europe and Asia. The plague's spread to England in the 1600s led to the first autopsies being conducted and began the search for a cause and cure to this disease. It has virtually been eliminated in our lifetime with only isolated cases occurring, although, there are now fears that it can be isolated and used as a bio-weapon by terrorists in today's world.

From the Paper
"Despite of what is thought, the bubonic plague did not end in medieval times. It has kept killing people all the way until today. The next big outbreak after the one in 1665 was in China in 1894. It then spread west to Bombay, India, and in that the time it took to do that the disease killed millions of people. The next couple of decades after that outbreak, scientists were able to identify and classify the disease and its history. However it could at times be difficult for the scientists because symptoms of the bubonic plague often resembled those of other diseases common in the hot climate of the jungles in India."

Tags:black, bubonic, death, pestis, plague, yersinia, vaccination, cure, bacteria, microscopes, scientists, bio-terrorists, bacteria, europe, studies, bitten, flea, cell, immune, system, jungles, india, brazil, united, states, military, research

Abstract
The paper relates that the Black Death of the Middle Ages was the bubonic plague, a form of plague that is spread by rats. The paper describes the virulence of the plague that was seen as an evil force over which human beings had no control. The paper examines the mechanism of the disease. The paper reveals that the plague is not only a disease of the past; there is concern that the bubonic plague could be employed as a weapon by a rogue state or a terrorist organization.

From the Paper
"The organism that causes bubonic plague is well known today. The plague is caused by a bacillus called Yersinia pestis that is transmitted by the flea. The plague is primarily a disease of rodents, and epidemics with human begins begin with contact with the fleas of infected rodents. The two primary forms of the disease in the human being are the bubonic plague, the most common form in the Middle Ages, and which is characterized by the swelling of the lymph nodes, and pneumonic plague, with the extensive involvement of the lungs. The plague is spread from rodents to human beings in crowded urban areas. In the fourteenth century, the disease was known as the Black Death, and some plague infections were bubonic and some were pneumonic."

Tags:rodents, rats, fleas, pneumonic, infection, terrorists, bacillus, Yersinia, pestis

Abstract
This paper explores the history of the Black Plague, also known as The Black Death or the bubonic plague. The paper explains that throughout history, the Black Plague has emerged in some societies and then laid dormant, only to become active again, killing massive numbers of populations. Primarily carried by rats and the fleas that feed from them, the Black Plague has been cited as existing in a growing number of cases in modern times, although its roots began centuries earlier. There have been several pandemics of the Black Plague, which is the most devastating infection that the world has ever known. Yet, the plague is considered to be a concern of the past. This belief is false, as health organizations indicate through statistics and it is through an understanding of how the plague impacted previous societies that the leaders of the modern world should act to prevent a new pandemic from occurring today.

Tags:death, epidemic, ages, sanitation

Abstract
This paper discusses the impact of the Black Death (bubonic plague) in the Middle East and North Africa. It begins by giving a brief overview of the plague, its symptoms and how it spread. In particular, the paper focuses on the social and economic effects of the plague and emphasizes the plague's effects on North Africa and the Middle East in the 13th Century.

From the Paper
"The Black Death, also known as the plague, was, in effect, what we now call an epidemic. The plague was considered a pandemic because it covered such a wide area. The plague is an infectious fever caused by a bacillus with the scientific name Bacillus Pasteurella. High fevers, chills and then dilirium characterize the bubonic plague. The lymph nodes swell and become painful. The swellings are called buboes, hence the name bubonic plague. Death from this form usually came in about a week. Wild rodents carried the disease, the black rat in particular, and later the larger and stronger relative, known as the brown, or Norway rat. A connection is mentioned between the rats and the plague in the Hindu Holy Book, Bhagavata Purana."

Tags:bacillus, pandemic, epidemic, buboes

Abstract
This paper looks at the book by David Herlihy: The Black Death and the Transformation of the West and how it discusses the modern view on the outbreak of bubonic plague in the west, its history and how Merlihy himself feels the plague was spread, it social consequences and what other aspects can be attributed to the plague.

Abstract
The Black Death was a flea-borne plague that had a devastating impact and significant consequences for medieval European society. This paper analyzes its epidemic from its arrival in Sicily in October 1347 on the caravans bringing trade goods from central Asia to its race through Europe at a record speed. During its peak, the plague killed about one-third of Europe's population. It discusses how the Black Death also changed European history, affecting religion, economy, politics, social relations and family life.

From the Paper
"In 1347, a group of Italian merchant ships returned from a trip to the Black Sea, which was one of the key links in trade with China. When the ships docked in Sicily, many of its passengers were already dying of the plague. Within days the disease had spread to the city and the surrounding countryside. According to historians, the plague struck and killed people more quickly than any other disease in history."

Tags:rats, disease, pneumonic, septicaemic, black, spots