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27 March 2011 Black Death and AIDS: Pandemic Diseases of the Past and Present Plagues are defined as any deadly epidemic or pandemic disease. Throughout history, humankind has been afflicted by many different plagues. Two famous pandemic diseases are the Black Death in medieval times and the AIDS in recent years. The Black Death plague devastated Europe between 1347 and 1375, killing fifty percent of the population. The plague was carried into Europe by flea-bearing black rats infesting the commercial vessels that brought good to Mediterranean ports. [] The plague hit hardest in the towns, where the concentration of population and the lack of sanitation made the infestation all the more difficult to contain (Fiero 4). It immensely impacted the survivors lives both socially and economically. Because of the plague, there was a shortage of labor since many of the workers were dead. That gave power to survivors to negotiate better status and wages from employers, resulting in the creation of a well-off middle class that did not exist before. Members of this middle class could now enjoy more leisure time, spend the extra money studying different subjects, such as art and music. Another consequence of shortage of labor was the migration from rural areas to cities, which brought more people to the cities in search for readily available jobs. While some were fleeing to the cities others were taking advantage of opportunities to become tenant farmers on lands leased by lords in need of laborers (Fiero 7). The same way as the Black Death, AIDS has caused numerous deaths around the world. Triggered by a virus acquired through direct contact with infected body fluids [(e.g. blood, semen, saliva, etc.), AIDS was not discovered until 1980 and it] has since killed around 25 million people worldwide, orphaning 12 million children in Africa alone (National

Geographic). The main portion of the population afflicted by the disease have been gays performing unprotected sex and drug addicts, who tend to share needles and other drug-abusing apparatus. However, others can also get infected a baby whose mother gets infected; a wife whose husband has extra-marital unprotected sex and gets infected. Because of great part of the population being affected were gays, a lot of people decided to come out of the closet and reveal to others and in public of being gay. That changed society. Today we have gay marriages being performed in some States and different Countries; solid and faithful relationships are sought for; secure sex and the use of condoms being advertised; disposable syringes being distributed at no charge to drug users; commercials being aired to educate people and prevent contamination. In addition to all that, researchers are yet to find the cure to AIDS, but pharmaceutical companies have been receiving money to invest on more researches and new drugs for the infected. Nowadays, with all the technology and knowledge gained from past experiences with epidemics, and pandemics we know how to avoid future calamities: preventive care. As part of preventive care, we have vaccines, but the most powerful forms of preventive care are information, and good sanitation and hygiene.

Works Cited "AIDS, AIDS Information, HIV Facts, News, Photos -- National Geographic." Science and Space Facts, Science and Space, Human Body, Health, Earth, Human Disease - ational Geographic. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. <http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/healthand-human-body/human-diseases/aids-article/?source=A-to-Z>.

Fiero, Gloria K. The Humanistic Tradition Book 3 The European Renaissance, the Reformation, and Global Encounter. 6th ed. McGraw-Hill College, 2011. Print.

"History of Plagues." University of Hartford's Academic Web Server. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. <http://uhavax.hartford.edu/bugl/histepi.htm>.

Oldstone, Michael B. "Viruses, Plagues, and History." The ew York Times on the Web. Oxford University Press, 1998. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. <http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/o/oldstone-viruses.html>.

"Plague, Plague Information, Black Death Facts, News, Photos -- National Geographic." Science and Space Facts, Science and Space, Human Body, Health, Earth, Human Disease ational Geographic. Web. 27 Mar. 2011. <http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/health-and-human-body/humandiseases/plague-article/>.