The effect of Mosquitos on the Building of the Panama Canal

The Panama Canal was a global project that changed the economic relationships between many countries in the Western Hemisphere. During the building of this politically important project, more than 2 million people died due to a small insect, the mosquito. Through an infection process, mosquitos spread the deadly disease of Yellow Fever. Even though this crisis occurred more than a decade ago, this is still a relevant issue because the spread of yellow fever is still common and deadly throughout the world. The dissection of this event assures the importance of strong public health systems and the study of entomology through a medical perspective. Through this crisis, France and the US learned important lessons along the lines of science, pathology, and entomology. This website outlines the field of study that connects to this historic event, the critical issue. It also discusses how the critical issue, yellow fever, relates to the featured insect, Aedes aegypti. Finally, the website creates a unique perspective regarding how this event developed a complex and helpful relationship between entomology, society and technology.