Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-167) and index.

The types and causes of disease -- The impact of disease -- Disease and the historian -- The spread of diseases -- Disease and society -- A Eurasian pandemic : the black death in Europe and the Middle East, 1347-1350 -- The origins of the black death -- What was the black death? -- The black death as a social force -- The spread of the black death -- The mortality rate of the black death -- A turning point in history? -- Contemporary views of the black death --

The impact of the black death -- American holocaust : smallpox in the Americas, 1518-1670 -- The demographic impact of new diseases in the Americas -- Smallpox : its early history and manifestations -- Defenses against smallpox -- The arrival of smallpox in the Americas -- The impact of new diseases upon American Indians -- The native populations of the Americas -- Epidemics : intentional genocide or unintended consequences? --

The impact of disease on native culture -- Disease and the birth of modern medicine : bubonic and pneumonic plague in India and China, 1896-1921 -- The plague breaks out in India -- The British Raj's response -- The black death and the Indian plague -- Evidence collection and analysis -- Initial colonial policy and native resistance -- New policies -- Lessons learned -- The plague breaks out in Manchuria --

Governmental response -- A modern plague : AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1982 to the present -- The AIDS victims of Sub-Saharan Africa -- The disease's characteristics -- Search for a vaccine and effective therapies -- The origin of AIDS -- Disease transmission -- AIDS as a social construct -- The impact of AIDS -- AIDS compared with past pandemics -- The extraordinary aspects of AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa -- Making connections.