# Asia Pnumonia - bio-weapon accidentally released? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 15, 2003, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580 "2003-03-15T10:33:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![flapcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@flapcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flapcats)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/1 "2003-03-15T10:33:11Z")
Could the pnumonia outbreak in southeast Asia be man-made - either deliberatly or accidentally? I’ve not read anything that would make me think this so feel free to move this to MPSIMS or the pit & I’m not trying to point fingers or anything, I’m just curious to see if this has occured to anyone else. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/2 "2003-03-15T10:37:29Z")
For decades, virulent types of 'flu have been making the crossover (usually from chickens) in South-East Asia. From what I’ve read, the current 'flu and pneumonia looks like a complication of a particularly nasty strain. Don’t forget that, back in 1918-1919, a significant portion of the world’s population was wiped out in a 'flu pandemic - I don’t think it’s anything more sinister than natural causes. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/3 "2003-03-15T10:38:56Z")
I think that if this outbreak had happened prior to 2001, the question most likely wouldn’t have been asked. ---
**Author:** ![flapcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@flapcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flapcats)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/4 "2003-03-15T11:01:31Z")
The question I was going to ask included ‘given current political situation’ type blurb but I cut it. I am wondering if any consipiracy theorists (et alia) were claiming it was so. ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/5 "2003-03-15T11:06:38Z")
What outbreak? It’s just another event that has been sensationalised by having-nothing-better-to-do media. We have like 40 people sick and 20 have been confirmed to be pneumonia. It’s nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Space\_Vampire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Space\_Vampire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Space_Vampire)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/6 "2003-03-15T11:38:17Z")
It doesn’t seem to be a big deal if you’re not a doctor. I ate chicken all through the “chicken flu,” so this isn’t worrying me too much. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/7 "2003-03-15T19:23:29Z")
[Story](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=570&ncid=753&e=1&u=/nm/20030315/sc_nm/health_pneumonia_who_dc) The WHO has just issued a travel warning because of this outbreak. The death toll is up to 9, and there are over 300 people infected so far. It’s an outbreak, and something to be aware of, but I don’t think it’s panic time yet. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/8 "2003-03-15T19:33:52Z")
Not by a bang, but a whimper… ---
**Author:** ![soop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@soop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soop)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/9 "2003-03-15T20:02:37Z")
NurseCarmen, I believe you are quoting the Hallowmen by T.S. Eliot? “this is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends, this is the way the world ends, not with a bang but a whimper.” ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2003, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/10 "2003-03-15T20:05:56Z")
Thanks **soop**. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/11 "2003-03-16T03:25:08Z")
In _Guns, Germs and Steel_ Jared Diamond has a nifty little table of common diseases which crossed over from animals to people once they (the animals) began to be domesticated. It’s titled Deadly Gifts From Our Animal Friends. Thus: from cattle: measles, tuberculosis and small pox From pigs: influenza and pertussis (whooping cough) from ducks: influenza from birds: falciparium malaria. makes ya hungry just reading it, don’t it? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/12 "2003-03-16T07:38:41Z")
Just a couple of corrections here - you don’t get crossover diseases from _eating_ the animals in question, but from contact with them - e.g. farming. And it’s “The Hollow Men” not “The Hallowmen”. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/13 "2003-03-16T09:14:06Z")
It may not be something to panic over yet, but it’s very worrying. It seems to have a pretty high fatality rate, and so far hasn’t responded to any antibiotics or anti-viral medicines. If we’ve got no drugs to work against it, then if it became widespread it could be very bad. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/14 "2003-03-16T11:31:35Z")
Indeed. So I’m glad someone is keeping an eye on it. Problem is, we have jet travel these days. They already had an infected person on a plane out of Singapore pass through New York - where there are now some people in quarantine - and then onwards to I forget where. If this turns into a pandemic we’ll have to do something about people moving around so much until the disease dies down. The flu of 1918 was bad enough with just ships and trains - add intercontinental airplanes and you have a real potential mess. When they had the “bird flu” a few years back they did manage to contain it, let’s hope the same happens here. ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/15 "2003-03-16T11:40:25Z")
High fatality rate? Suppose there are 300 cases with 9 people dead. That’s a fatality rate of 3%. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/16 "2003-03-16T11:43:12Z")
I just hope this story doesn’t end with a big ol’ sign left for posterity which reads “Just the flu.” 'Cuz I’d be real bummed out if life started imitating Stephen King, instead of _art_, like it’s supposed to. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/17 "2003-03-16T13:49:04Z")
It sounds like evolution in action. A super-hardy strain of pnumonia popped up, and it’s spreading because we can’t kill it. Nothing sinister about that. It is kinda worrying, though. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2003, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/18 "2003-03-16T22:19:41Z")
> [@](#): > > High fatality rate? Suppose there are 300 cases with 9 people dead. That’s a fatality rate of 3%. 3% of healthy adults dying? That’s seems pretty high for a flu. ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2003, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/19 "2003-03-17T05:13:17Z")
The only worry I have is if this could be a return of 1917. ---
**Author:** ![Karellen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/779978/32.png) [@Karellen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Karellen)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2003, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580/20 "2003-03-17T05:21:25Z")
I would like to think that our system of outbreak management has improved somewhat since 1917. I mean back then people still thought colds came from the cold. Nowadays we have people getting quarantined at the Frankfurt airport because of a suspicious sniffle. As for the OP, if it’s a weapon then it’s being deployed by amateurs, because it hasn’t been (apparently) simultaneously released in different continents. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/asia-pnumonia-bio-weapon-accidentally-released/161580.md?page=2)