Crushing need

If pathogens could be crushed to death under the weight of thoughtful, well-crafted reports, the world would be a much safer place. Eminent scientists have been holding meetings and writing reports for over 20 years warning of the dangers posed by emerging infectious diseases.

The reports cite diseases that have entered the world's vocabulary as shorthand for medical horror - AIDS, pandemic influenza, SARS, MERS and, more recently, Ebola - as warnings against complacency and as wake-up calls for the need for urgent action. ...