epidemic

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influenza pandemic of 1918–19: temporary hospital

Epidemic vs. pandemic: What's the difference?

Know the investigations of researchers using genomic information to reconstruct the cause and transmission routes of the bubonic plague and the Black Death

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Marina Spelzini, a registered nurse, measures out an H1N1 vaccine shot at the Miami Dade County Health Department downtown clinic on November 3, 2009 in Miami, Florida. (influenza, swine flu)

When Was the Last Pandemic?

People wearing surgical masks (also called face mask or medical masks or safety masks) walk through the city center of Milan, Italy on Feb. 23, 2020. Coronavirus disease COVID-19 pandemic

How Do Face Masks Control the Spread of Disease?

Galaxy clusters like Abell 2744 can act as a natural cosmic lens, magnifying light from more distant, background objects through gravity. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope may be able to detect light from the first stars in the universe if they are gravitationally lensed by such clusters. (astronomy, space exploration, galaxies)

How Fast Is the Universe Expanding?

Emergency hospital during 1918 Influenza epidemic, Camp Funston, Kansas.

How Long Did the Flu Pandemic of 1918 Last?

Infographic on the Influenza Pandemic of 1918-19

Influenza Pandemic of 1918–19 Chart

Discover

Rural Irish landscape, Sligo, Ireland.

Why Is Ireland Two Countries?

Close up of books. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society

12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”

Hemp (Cannabis sativa).

9 Mind-Altering Plants

Two chicks near an egg with a white background (poultry, chick, chickens, birds).

What Do Eggs Have to Do with Easter?

Fish. Lionfish. Lion-fish. Turkey fish. Fire-fish. Red lionfish. Pterois volitans. Venomous fin spines. Coral reefs. Underwater. Ocean. Red lionfish swims by seaweed.

10 of the World’s Most Dangerous Fish

Entrants falling and tumbling over while chasing the cheese at the 2016 'Cheese Rolling' held at Cooper's Hill, in the Cotswolds, Brockworth England

7 of the World’s Most Dangerous Festivals

Titanic infographic. The 30th anniversary of its discovery is September 1, 2015. SPOTLIGHT VERSION.

Timeline of the Titanic’s Final Hours

epidemic: Related Content

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Photos and Videos

influenza pandemic of 1918–19: temporary hospital

Epidemic vs. pandemic: What's the difference?

Know the investigations of researchers using genomic information to reconstruct the cause and transmission routes of the bubonic plague and the Black Death

See All Videos and Images →

Topics

pandemic epiphytotic disease epizootic disease infectious disease epidemiology force majeure science human disease disease nutritional disease childhood disease and disorder occupational disease famine natural disaster complex humanitarian emergency notifiable disease cardiovascular disease mental disorder nervous system disease

Key People

John Caius

John Caius

British physician

Fracastoro, engraving

Girolamo Fracastoro

Italian physician

Sydenham, detail of an oil painting by Mary Beale, 1688; in the National Portrait Gallery, London

Thomas Sydenham

British physician

Baillou, detail of an oil painting by an unknown artist, c. 1580

Guillaume de Baillou

French physician

Quiz

44 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Health and Medicine Quizzes

full human skeleton

Diseases, Disorders, and More: A Medical Quiz