Reading Café Sci - Whooping cough vaccines: a century of good science & bad

Café Scientifique organises talks, usually given by scientists, followed by questions from the audience in the second half. They are a great opportunity to explore the latest ideas in science and technology, you don't need to be a scientist to enjoy the evening, everyone is welcome to ask a question or make a comment.

Reading's monthly Meetups are held upstairs at Zero Degrees (9 Bridge St, Reading RG1 2LR) from 7pm.
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“So please do come along, grab a beer/food at the downstairs bar (the mango beer and wood fired pizza are epic) and enjoy a relaxed evening of talks + networking + beers.

7:00pm Arrivals
7:30pm Welcome and Introductions
7:35pm Whooping cough vaccines: a century of good science & bad (David Miles – London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)
8:20pm Comfort Break
8:30pm Q&A
9:00pm Networking
9:30pm End

More Information

Whooping cough vaccines: a century of good science & bad (David Miles – London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine)

A hundred years ago, whooping cough killed more than one in every hundred children born in Europe.

Eighty years ago, two women in Grand Rapids, Michigan, developed the vaccine that stopped it. All it took was years of working evenings and weekends, an army of volunteer healthcare workers and lab technicians funded by donations from local businesses.

Fifty years ago, their whooping cough vaccine was at the centre of a scare that ushered in the modern antivaccine movement.
The story of the whooping cough vaccine is a story of good science, bad science and of the limitations of science when applied to anything as complicated as human beings.

David Miles is an infectious disease immunologist who has worked mostly on diseases of childhood in Africa and the vaccinations that protect against them. He now lives in London and tutors on the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s online MSc course. His first popular science book, How Vaccines Work, was published in March 2023.”