There are some awful diseases out there. Just a few weeks ago I spent a few hours reading up on all the CDC's information on rabies. This way, I'll know if I have it! It makes me feel sick reading case reports of victims, though. It's tragic when people die, especially when it's from an unpleasant disease. Here's a link to their information on it. Fortunately, treatment of rabies is very successful and is now much less pleasant than it used to be. Used to be you got a long series of shots right in your stomach. Now there are fewer shots.

The CDC's website is just in general interesting reading, though. You can find information there on biological weaponry, plagues around the world, and other delightful disease related subjects.

Another disease that I find frightening, and thus interesting, is hantavirus. I've heard from my family friends living in the Eastern Sierra that people are so afraid of this disease that they are now burning down sheds that they own rather than cleaning them out. That way they don't have to worry about catching this disease. The CDC recommends taking a lot of precautions to keep rodents out of your house that might carry the virus. Here are some suggestions for prevention, and then for cleaning up. The cleaning up section gives a good idea of how seriously this disease is taken by health authorities.