Read for the argument--how does Crosby prove his points

• cause and effect
  
• natural experiments--if the conditions were different was the outcome different
• science of ecology: for example European crops needed bees
• argue from exceptions or extreme examples that illustrate a point clearly

We've seen how the plants succeeded and how the animals succeeded
Third part of the story of the ecological success of the Europeans in the neo-Europes

• why in some places but not others were the Europeans able to nearly eliminate the native population
• there were more natives with more sophisticated civilization than we often realize
• disease is key--many different diseases and it is hard to tell which killed the most people
  

Smallpox was endemic in Europe
we know more about it just because it is easy to identify

• endemic=widespread and constantly present
• spreads from person to person but can be spread by dry material for many months
  
• in Europe people usually got smallpox before they were 2, 10-15% died
• in somewhat more isolated areas outbreaks happened about every 5 years (in later colonial America the density wasn't high enough for smallpox to be endemic and there were dangerous epidemics among the colonists)
  
• the neo-Europes were isolated places where the disease was not already present
  
• because of lack of immunity among the native people it became an epidemic
• among natives not previously exposed, 1/3 to 1/2 died
• The death rate in many Indian communities was even higher than that because of starvation or unhelpful disease treatment traditions, such as sweat baths
• people living in isolated areas with few diseases may have evolved weaker or less diverse immune systems
  

What we think of as the indian civilization in North America is actually what was left after diseases had done much harm

the southeastern US had a dense elaborate native civilization before Columbus, perhaps as sophisticated as the Mayans

• Mississippi Moundbuilders approx. 900-1550 AD
• closest major site is Etowah Mounds in northern Georgia
  
• they didn't use much stone for building and the settlers didn't meet them so we know little about them
• elaborate pottery and stone tools
  
• they had cities and systems of government
  
• that civilization was wiped out and the land significantly depopulated before settlers arrived
• that was the result of Europeans diseases which spread faster than settlers did
• the settlers found a land with very low population--with an empty ecological niche ready for human beings--their competition had already been wiped out
  

for another example of that civilization see Anna Site
again the exchange was one-sided

• the Europeans brought lots of dangerous diseases
• they didn't catch local diseases
• why weren't there local diseases? because there were very few domestic animals and less crowding

at most only one disease imported from the neo-Europes caused significant problems in Europe

• even the theory that syphilis came from the Americas is now debated:
• people in Europe at the time believed that syphilis came from the Americas
  
• there is good evidence of syphilis in Europe before Columbus
• the trick is that the disease has changed over time, sometimes becoming more serious, sometimes less
• a disease can mutate into something more dangerous
  

Europeans had had to learn to live with the diseases they brought with them
Neo-Europes had fewer diseases because of  less crowded conditions, fewer domestic animals, and isolation

• Europe was more crowded and so epidemic diseases became endemic
• any area where people aren't crowded enough for diseases to become endemic will have problems with epidemics
  
• Europeans had more diseases because they had more domestic animals
• and they often shared the same building with their animals
  
• diseases that evolved in different places came together in Europe
• isolated places didn't see as many diseases
  
• Europeans had come to an ecological balance with their diseases
  

Disease explains how the Europeans were able to displace the native population
it doesn't explain how they were able to remake the entire ecosystem to look like Europe

How we live with diseases--consider chickenpox

• chicken pox isn't a dangerous disease, so we used to just let people catch it
• now we have a vaccination
• it can be dangerous for certain people
• the recommendation to vaccinate was justified on cost benefit analysis--lost work time of parents
  

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