Rapid advances in science have banished many diseases from the face of the earth. But recent evidence suggests we may be losing the battle and that we are heading towards a new era of plague and pestilence. This book reveals how mankind needs to take notice of new threats such as antibiotic-resistant superbugs, the AIDS epidemic, violent tropical diseases such as Ebola and Lassa fever, and the environmental threats caused by the depletion of the ozone layer.