Submitted by Livia Harriman on Wed, 07/06/2023 - 11:00
Would a time traveller start a pandemic?
Or would they die of diseases their immune system couldn't protect against?
Gary wrote to ask the Naked Scientist's podcast:
"Suppose I build a time machine that can transport me one decade, century or millennium into the past or future. Would I, with all my typical 2023 bacteria, viruses, antigens, etc., landing in an urban setting, become the starting point for an epidemic? Or would I quickly die of pathogens that are not common today?"
Joining James Tytko to help answer this question was Brian Ferguson, University of Cambridge Immunologist.
Brian:
"It’s a great question, Gary. I would have thought going forwards in time would likely have little impact on others, as you are unlikely to be right now carrying a pathogen that is untreatable in the future owing to better healthcare. If you were to go back in time to somewhere prior to 1940, however, you might well be the cause of an outbreak, as long as you assume you end up in a densely populated urban area. This is because the people you will meet are likely not immune to one or more of the pathogens you are carrying now (for example, flu, Sars, rhinovirus etc..)."