The Laptev Virus [Christy Esmahan] (fb2) читать постранично, страница - 42

parts that are exaggerated for effect, and I willingly admit that I took liberties with several truths. First and foremost, of course, is the fact that none of the giant viruses (which I call megaviruses in the novel, though technically the viruses discovered in the Arctic do not belong to that scientific genre) discovered to date in different parts of the planet are human pathogens. I cannot help but agree with Dr. Claverie and his team that finding pathogens we thought were eradicated, or of which we were not aware, is one of many perils that comes with the melting of our polar ice caps. It may just be a matter of time before we find a cousin of smallpox or some other nefarious pathogen which had been frozen in time.

Another area where I stretched the truth was in the speed with which Sarah and her colleagues made discoveries. If only research could progress so nicely and so quickly! I think most of humankind’s problems would have been solved by now if research could naturally occur at the pace it does in this novel. But, alas, as all of my colleagues in science will quickly vouchsafe, research is arduous and there are far more dead-ends than discoveries.

The stories I tell about Fleming’s discovery of penicillin, Typhoid Mary, using an electric blanket on the mice to help them wake up from anesthesia better, the part about mice reacting differently to male and female handlers, the story of Koko the gorilla, the intriguing discovery of the lifecycle of Dicrocoeleum, the discoveries of the Czechoslovakian scientist who has a Toxo infection himself, and the ants, acacia and giraffe symbiosis, including the modification to this last story in later years, are all true to the best of my knowledge. And Graeter’s really is, hands down, the best ice cream I’ve ever tasted.

Toxoplasmosis, however, is strictly a pathogen and has never, ever been implicated in protecting someone from another infection. It is a teratogen, which means that it can cause serious birth defects to fetuses. It is transmitted through contact with cat feces, and really can linger in soil for up to a year or more. This is another reason to avoid gardening without gloves.

Also, there really are high numbers of people with undetected Toxoplasmosis infections across the world, and it has been implicated in mental illness, especially as of late. There are some really interesting articles on the web about the subject. I have put the links on my website: www.christyesmahan.com

As a way of acknowledging the contributions that so many scientists have made over time, almost every one of my characters has a last name of a scientist. I encourage my readers to look up the last names and learn about these scientific contributions, especially those Redi and Spallanzani.

Finally, although I have a disclaimer at the beginning of the novel saying that all of the characters and events depicted are from my imagination or are used fictitiously, I think it bears repeating, especially since I pick on BP. Stan’s experience is entirely fictional and I could have very easily chosen a different oil company as his former employer as there have been so many unfortunate accidents. It is the nature of the business and as long as humanity continues to demand fossil fuels, we will have issues with drilling and refining accidents.

If you have any questions or comments for me I hope that you will seek me out on Facebook, Goodreads or my blog and let me know!

Thank you for reading this novel. I would very much appreciate it if you would rate it on Amazon and tell your friends and families about it. If your book club decides to read THE LAPTEV VIRUS and would like to ask me questions, I would be happy to be available by Skype.

Also by this author:

The Cantabria American School series:

BUENO (Book 1)

SINCO (Book 2)

BRUJAS (Book 3)

GRAMMY AND THE WILEY RACCOON

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, or groups of persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the author. The scanning, uploading and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the author is illegal and punishable by law.

Book cover artwork was done by Christy Esmahan and she holds the copyright thereto. The front cover image is a computer enhanced electron microscope photograph of a Pithovirus, a true giant virus discovered in Siberia. It was generously provided to me for use on the cover of this novel by Dr. Chantal Abergel & Dr. Jean-Michel Claverie, IGS, CNRS-AMU, France. The back cover is a photograph of an oil rig in the Laptev Sea area which is used with permission kindly granted by Graham Blackbourn, Director of Blackbourn Geoconsulting.

Copyright © 2015 by Christy Esmahan. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 0-9915091-3-7

ISBN-13: 978-0-9915091-3-3

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015902502

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, North Charleston, SC

Also available in paperback from Amazon.com and other retail outlets.

Back Cover