Disease and Eradication

What does it take to defeat infectious diseases in the 21st century?

The Countdown to Zero exhibition highlights The Carter Center’s 30-year campaign to eradicate Guinea worm disease, which once afflicted millions. Other innovative global collaborations include establishing the evolutionary relationships between different strains of malaria and influenza, honing in on inherited components of diseases such as asthma and diabetes, and using Twitter data to contain cholera outbreaks. Research, international cooperation, health education—and sheer determination—may soon reduce the suffering caused by these and other ancient afflictions to a distant memory. 

Article The Science of COVID-19 Learn about the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, how vaccines work, and why they are a key defense in the ongoing pandemic. Video Guinea Worm: Countdown to Zero Health workers are close to eradicating a painful parasite. Video COVID-19: Origins, Spread, and Impacts How does a virus that may have originated in bats jump to humans? How do we model the spread of infection? Video SciCafe Special Event: Zika - What You Need To Know Learn about the Zika virus, how it is transmitted, and precautious everyone can take to protect against it. Blog Post President Jimmy Carter Visits Museum to Launch Countdown to Zero Speaking at an event to mark the January 13 opening of the Museum’s Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease exhibition, the former U.S.... January 12, 2015 Video Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease in the 21st Century President Jimmy Carter joined scientists for a dynamic conversation on the science and politics of disease eradication. Video Malaria: Natural Selection and New Medicine Evolutionary biology helps scientists fight malaria. Blog Post A Guinea Worm Hiding in Plain Sight One of the Museum's African artifacts holds a surprising connection to a new exhibit. January 29, 2015 Video SciCafe: Modifying Mosquitoes with CRISPR Can we eradicate the world's deadliest animal? Video Influenza: Jumping the Species Barrier By monitoring avian flu, scientists prepare for possible pandemics. Video Genes and Health: Moving Beyond Race Human ancestry informs the study of modern diseases.

Countdown to Zero is presented by the American Museum of Natural History in collaboration with The Carter Center. Countdown to Zero is proudly supported by Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Lions Clubs International Foundation, Mectizan Donation Program, and Vestergaard. This exhibition is made possible by the generosity of the Arthur Ross Foundation.