Stephen S. Hall

So it's a very... dire public health issue there. In fact, Kofi Annan, who used to be the Secretary General of the United Nations, once said that snake bite is the most significant tropical disease you've never heard of. It kills about 138,000 people a year in the world, mostly in rural and poor areas. So if you're in a developing country, the fear is extremely legitimate.

So it's a very... dire public health issue there. In fact, Kofi Annan, who used to be the Secretary General of the United Nations, once said that snake bite is the most significant tropical disease you've never heard of. It kills about 138,000 people a year in the world, mostly in rural and poor areas. So if you're in a developing country, the fear is extremely legitimate.

In the United States, we're very adept at taking care of people who have been bitten by snakes, and that's why the number of fatalities is so low. I was actually curious to compare it to other forms of, you know, unfortunate death. You know, lightning causes 28 deaths a year on average. Bee stings, like 70 or so deaths a year. Accidental falls cause 44,000 deaths a year, snake bites roughly five.

In the United States, we're very adept at taking care of people who have been bitten by snakes, and that's why the number of fatalities is so low. I was actually curious to compare it to other forms of, you know, unfortunate death. You know, lightning causes 28 deaths a year on average. Bee stings, like 70 or so deaths a year. Accidental falls cause 44,000 deaths a year, snake bites roughly five.

In the United States, we're very adept at taking care of people who have been bitten by snakes, and that's why the number of fatalities is so low. I was actually curious to compare it to other forms of, you know, unfortunate death. You know, lightning causes 28 deaths a year on average. Bee stings, like 70 or so deaths a year. Accidental falls cause 44,000 deaths a year, snake bites roughly five.

So the fear, at least in a developed country with good medical care, it's kind of out of proportion to the actual actuarial risk, if you will.

So the fear, at least in a developed country with good medical care, it's kind of out of proportion to the actual actuarial risk, if you will.

So the fear, at least in a developed country with good medical care, it's kind of out of proportion to the actual actuarial risk, if you will.

A rattlesnake is a pit viper, and the rattles are attached at the end of the tail. They are added with each shedding of skin. And it doesn't actually sound like a rattle. It's a little bit, I liken it a little bit more to almost like a cicada's sound. It's more of a buzz than a rattle.

A rattlesnake is a pit viper, and the rattles are attached at the end of the tail. They are added with each shedding of skin. And it doesn't actually sound like a rattle. It's a little bit, I liken it a little bit more to almost like a cicada's sound. It's more of a buzz than a rattle.

A rattlesnake is a pit viper, and the rattles are attached at the end of the tail. They are added with each shedding of skin. And it doesn't actually sound like a rattle. It's a little bit, I liken it a little bit more to almost like a cicada's sound. It's more of a buzz than a rattle.

I actually attended a workshop for rattlesnake handling in California in the course of my research, and it was really interesting to be in the position of picking up a rattlesnake with tongs, but being able to handle it and see in many ways that there was no aggressiveness, there was no attempt to bite or anything like that.

I actually attended a workshop for rattlesnake handling in California in the course of my research, and it was really interesting to be in the position of picking up a rattlesnake with tongs, but being able to handle it and see in many ways that there was no aggressiveness, there was no attempt to bite or anything like that.

I actually attended a workshop for rattlesnake handling in California in the course of my research, and it was really interesting to be in the position of picking up a rattlesnake with tongs, but being able to handle it and see in many ways that there was no aggressiveness, there was no attempt to bite or anything like that.

One of the new technologies that's not that new anymore that's changed our perception of snakes is radio transmitters because they were injected into or inserted into rattlesnakes and it allowed researchers to follow individual snakes because each snake was tagged with a particular frequency and could be distinguished.

One of the new technologies that's not that new anymore that's changed our perception of snakes is radio transmitters because they were injected into or inserted into rattlesnakes and it allowed researchers to follow individual snakes because each snake was tagged with a particular frequency and could be distinguished.

One of the new technologies that's not that new anymore that's changed our perception of snakes is radio transmitters because they were injected into or inserted into rattlesnakes and it allowed researchers to follow individual snakes because each snake was tagged with a particular frequency and could be distinguished.

And in the course of doing this, they began to realize that rattlesnakes have social behavior. The mothers stay with their young following birth. Some snakes are kind of chill, if you will. They don't rattle even if you get close to them. Others are a little bit more anxious and rattle when you're still quite far away. Some of them like to hang out with other snakes and avoid other snakes.

And in the course of doing this, they began to realize that rattlesnakes have social behavior. The mothers stay with their young following birth. Some snakes are kind of chill, if you will. They don't rattle even if you get close to them. Others are a little bit more anxious and rattle when you're still quite far away. Some of them like to hang out with other snakes and avoid other snakes.

And in the course of doing this, they began to realize that rattlesnakes have social behavior. The mothers stay with their young following birth. Some snakes are kind of chill, if you will. They don't rattle even if you get close to them. Others are a little bit more anxious and rattle when you're still quite far away. Some of them like to hang out with other snakes and avoid other snakes.