Miasma

Once upon a time, people believed that diseases such as Cholera and the Black Death were caused by the inhalation of noxious vapours, particularly those arising from decomposing organic matter — the miasma. We now know that bacteria and viruses are the true cause of disease and, when epidemics break out, the modern science of epidemiology enables us to trace their source and predict their likely spread. When an epidemic of the killer disease, Ebola, in the Democratic Republic of Congo does not appear to follow the rules... it’s a worry.