Virtual Event: Adam Kucharski

Harvard Book Store's virtual event series, the Harvard University Division of Science, and the Harvard Library welcome epidemiologist ADAM KUCHARSKI for the paperback release of his acclaimed book The Rules of Contagion: Why Things Spread—And Why They Stop. He will be joined in conversation by DR. BILL HANAGE, Associate Professor of Epidemiology in the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at Harvard's T. H. Chan School of Public Health.

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About The Rules of Contagion

These days, whenever anything spreads, whether it's a YouTube fad or a political rumor, we say it went viral. But how does virality actually work? In The Rules of Contagion, epidemiologist Adam Kucharski explores topics including gun violence, online manipulation, and, of course, outbreaks of disease to show how much we get wrong about contagion, and how astonishing the real science is.

Why did the president retweet a Mussolini quote as his own? Why do financial bubbles take off so quickly? Why are disinformation campaigns so effective? And what makes the emergence of new illnesses—such as MERS, SARS, or the coronavirus disease COVID-19—so challenging? By uncovering the crucial factors driving outbreaks, we can see how things really spread—and what we can do about it.

Whether you are an author seeking an audience, a defender of truth, or simply someone interested in human social behavior, The Rules of Contagion is an essential guide to modern life.

Praise for The Rules of Contagion

"In this smart and engaging tour of epidemiology, written before the pandemic, Kucharski makes a convincing case that just as the arc of an epidemic depends on the transmissibility of a virus and a population's susceptibility to infection, so online contagions obey similar rules." —New York Times Book Review

"The Rules of Contagion is a fascinating and richly detailed excursion into a science as old as biblical plagues and as current as today's headlines: the science of contagion, of disease, of ideas, of emotions, of everything. This is a book you'll want to spread to your friends." —Jordan Ellenberg, author of How Not to Be Wrong

"Rich in stories, The Rules of Contagion is a down-to-earth account of how mathematical approaches can help us better understand and, in turn, better respond to contagion in all its dynamic forms. Tackling issues from pandemics and gun violence, to financial crises and misinformation, Adam Kucharski inspires us all to think like mathematicians. A must read for anybody interested in epidemics and other crises." —Peter Piot, director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine