What Our Subgroup Leaders Are Reading

History of Arbovirology: Memories from the Field edited by Nikos Vasilakis and Laura Kramer

I am now reading the History of Arbovirology: Memories from the Field, a book edited by ASTMH fellows Nikos Vasilakis and Laura Kramer. This book recalls the history of arbovirology from a very personal perspective of many experts of the field that shows us not only what they contributed, but also many memories from their part of history, the contributions of many others, and funny pieces of personal experience in the tropics. Some chapters, like the one written by David Morens (former chair of ACAV and a longtime member of ASTMH), make for very easy-going reading, fluctuating between the personal aspects of many scientists from the past and very colored histories from their personal life in the last century.

 

Rebecca Christofferson, PhD 

• History of Arbovirology: Memories from the Field: Volume I: Personal Reflections edited by Nikos Vasilakis and Laura Kramer

• History of Arbovirology: Memories from the Field: Volume II: Virus Family and Regional Perspectives, Molecular Biology and Pathogenesis edited by Nikos Vasilakis and Laura Kramer

Two of our ACAV members put out a two-volume History of Arbovirology that might be of interest.

 

Natasha Hochberg, MD, MPH

Leadership in Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin

I’m currently reading Leadership in Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin, an analysis of the presidencies of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR and Lyndon Johnson. It’s an insightful, engaging review of the struggles they faced and how these setbacks (and their resilience in the face of adversity) informed their presidencies. 

 

Kyle Petersen, DO

Mona Lisa Overdrive by William Gibson

Heavy non-fiction reads in summer are like eating turkey dinner and drinking stout at the beach. One of my goals is reading all 100 of the 2011 NPR Greatest Science Fiction and Fantasy Novels list. I’m at 56, since many are multi-novel series are 800 to 1,000-page epics (sadly 50 more were added in 2021 prolonging my quest). I am currently reading Mona Lisa Overdrive by William Gibson, a 1988 cyberpunk novel set in three places: The Sprawl, a mega-city spanning the entire U.S East Coast; an online virtual reality; and Dog Solitude, a post-industrial wasteland. It’s an amazingly prophetic look at our possible future and basis of The Matrix films. 

 

1491: New Revelations about the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C Mann 

I’m enjoying this book primarily because it’s satisfying my fascination with the peopling of the Americas. The book provides many theories that challenge preconceived notions about how and when people first settled the Americas and the civilizations that they created prior to the arrival of Columbus. I’m also enjoying the book because it has some great descriptions of how these early peoples interacted with their environment in ways that made it more resilient to fires, floods, etc.

 

Catherine Hill, PhD 

Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe

Currently, I am reading the back of a Qantas menu, returning from a short work trip to Australia. Theoretically, on my flight out across the Pacific, I will be reading Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe. The book explores the role of pre-colonial Aboriginal Australians in the domestication of plants, agricultural practices and other behaviors that challenge the ‘hunter-gatherer’ tag. It is causing quite a stir in Australia. I'll let you know how it goes.