1. Brent Wieland
INTS 3301_d02
Fall 2014
Instructor J. Imamura
November 9, 2014
Global Inequality and Conflict Final Paper
Global Research Interest #3
The Ebola Virus or hemorrhagic fever is a severe illness that is often fatal for humans.
Symptoms of Ebola are eerily similar to those of the common cold and flu, including fever,
physical weakness, body aches, diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pain, and most severely internal
and external bleeding that has been observed in some patients. Due to the fact that these
symptoms are similar to a common cold or flu, and even to other viral infections such as
Meningitis, Malaria, and Typhoid Fever, Ebola usually goes misdiagnosed, which leads to death.
However, kidney and liver failure distinguish the Ebola virus symptoms from a common cold
and flu (WHO, 2014, Pg. 1). Early diagnoses and treatment is key to healing a patient. The
incubation period for Ebola is typically from 8 to 10 days, but in some cases it may take up to 21
days for a person to exhibit the symptoms (CNN, 2014). Ebola is extremely infectious, meaning
that it only takes a very small amount of the virus to infect a person, but the virus is not highly
contagious, because of how the virus spreads. Ebola only spreads with direct contact of infected
bodily fluids. A person who is asymptomatic, meaning that a person who is not exhibiting
symptoms cannot spread the virus, they can only spread it once symptoms have appeared. The
CDC published that “Ebola is not transmissible if someone is asymptomatic or once someone has

2. recovered from it. However, the virus has been found in semen for up to three months.”
According to the CDC, men who have recovered from the virus are still able to transmit the virus
seven weeks after healing, as the virus itself is not out of the patient’s body.
The Ebola virus was first discovered in 1976 by Peter Piot, who was 27 at the time and
was working with the institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium received a blood
sample from a Belgian nun who had recently died in the Zaire province, which is now the
Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Belgian nun was first diagnosed with yellow fever and
was thought to have died as a result of it. However, the cause of death was found to have been
caused by an unknown new virus, later identified as the Ebola Virus. In recent studies, scientist
have found DNA evidence tracing Ebola from 20 million years ago. They do this by looking at
the DNA evidence of rodent fossils. “Our own DNA is riddled with viral DNA, which makes up
at least 8 percent of the human genome. Most of it has mutated into useless baggage, but some
has been transformed into useful genes (useful to us, that is)” (Carl Zimmer, 2014) Viruses from
time to time insert their DNA into ours, passing it on to future generations. The DNA the
scientist found in the rodent fossils is similar to the Ebola virus of today, which leads the
scientist to think that the Ebola virus has existed for millions of years.
The Interdisciplinary aspect of this outbreak is in two categories: Education and
Economics. The Ebola Virus is directly related to these two aspects, affecting greater elements of
society worldwide. Without either of these two elements, the Ebola crisis in Africa would not
have the great effects it is having today. The 2014 Ebola outbreak first began in Guinea, Africa
and then spread to Sierra Leone and Nigeria. A recent study has shown that the patient zero has
been identified as being a toddler who first contracted the virus, but there is no known evidence
of how the toddler contracted the virus. The virus is only known to spread by fruit bats and forest

3. primates. “After the child's death, the mother suffered bleeding symptoms and died on December
13, according to the report. Then, the toddler's 3-year-old sister died on December 29, with
symptoms including fever, vomiting and black diarrhea. The illness subsequently affected the
toddler's grandmother, who died on January 1, in the family's village of Meliandou in
Guéckédou” (CNN, 2014). The lack of adequate medical facilities and supplies accompanied
with lack of education of infectious pathogens allowed for the misdiagnosis of Ebola and
handling of the patients led to the current Ebola epidemic. This shows the high importance of
education and a well off economy in order to prevent crises such as the Ebola outbreak.
The first Ebola outbreak occurred in Central Africa near tropical rainforests, where
human populations are at a minimum, which allowed the virus to be contained and not to spread
to any other areas. However, this did not last long because the current outbreak is affecting major
urban areas allowing the virus to spread more easily to large groups of people. With the outbreak
situated in large urban areas, the virus will spread quickly due to transportation systems such as
airplanes and automobiles. This is evident in the urban context of places such as Guinea, Sierra
Leone, and Liberia. Because their high population living in the urban areas have a very weak
health systems lacking the infrastructure and resources to treat and prevent events, such as the
epidemic we are seeing now. Also, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia have recently emerged
from long periods of violence and instability, complicating the situation further. We have
recently seen examples of the virus spreading to the United States. For example in Dallas, Texas
the spread of the virus resulted in people infected and one death. Lately, New York City has the
most recent diagnosis. Also, an import case was diagnosed in Madrid, Spain. The virus has
spread throughout Africa by direct contact with infected bodily fluids and health care workers

4. account for 10% of the death rate in Africa. The Ebola epidemic started in Guinea then spread to
Liberia and Sierra Leone, all three of these countries have widespread transmission.
The death rate of Ebola has varied since the virus emerged in 1976. According to the
WHO, death rates are 25% to 90%, the average of the current outbreak is 50%. Education has
played a big role in the spread of the virus. In regions of Africa, education systems are under
developed or nonexistent. Since education is not prevalent in areas of West Africa, the people do
not know how to properly treat patients and contained the virus. Since there is no known cure for
Ebola, treatment centers can only provide basic care such as sufficient hydration of the patient,
fever reduction to keep the patient stable. In America, hospitals are prepared to deal with the
Ebola virus with advanced containment centers, properly trained medical staff and knowledge on
how to fight and reduce the spread of the virus. The medical conditions here in America stem
from adequate and well-established education systems that result in well-trained medical
personnel to treat such outbreaks. In Africa, it is the opposite in the medical field, there are very
few schools that teach how to treat and contain viruses or they do not exist at all. Also, the
economy plays a great role in the building and improvement on educational and medical
facilities. The money and resources that these countries get are just not enough to counteract a
large-scale outbreak of a virus. “Ebola has already left over 3,700 children orphaned or
abandoned in West Africa. We (SOS Children’s villages) must increase our support to help
children impacted by this deadly disease and other disasters around the world.” (SOS-USA,
2014). The public is now learning about a very serious and sad issue of the orphaned children of
Ebola. In Liberia, according to the United Nations Children Fund, 4,000 children have either lost
both of their parents or one of them. (UNICEF, 2014) The orphanages in Liberia are at full
capacity and can no longer accept new children. Moreover, already massive issue of Ebola arises

5. a whole different humanitarian crisis of what is going to be done to help the children who cannot
get into foster care. If left out on the streets they can become a new victim of Ebola and help
spread it. The only people who are taking in the orphaned children who cannot get into the
orphanages are survivors of Ebola. This is due to the fact that unfortunately there is a stigma
towards people who have been around Ebola patients and survivors, “the community is afraid of
them,” (Greg Ramm, Fox News), country director for Save the Children in Liberia mentioned. In
order to help alleviate this new issue, the people of Africa need to be educated, letting them
know that people who pass their 21 day quarantine infection free and people who survived the
virus are safe to be around.
Education is a fundamental element of society. A world without education would be an
environment of intolerance and violence. This is seen in developed countries and undeveloped
countries how profoundly education affects how society works. The lack of education in Africa
has contributed to the Ebola crisis in many ways by not teaching the importance of proper
hygiene to avoid pathogens for example. Also, not having proper education does not provide
knowledge on how to treat virus victims or to contain them. A big problem in West Africa is the
cost of education is out of reach for most. The cost for full board is $750, $30-uniform/shoes,
and $30 School supplies (Asante Africa, 2014). The average family in West Africa makes only
two dollars a day. If the school children were able to attend school this will help prevent future
problems and conflicts about Ebola. The education issue in West Africa not only affects the
region but the whole continent leading to ripple effects all around the world. The children in
West Africa are not required to attend school because the families need the children to help
maintain the house and work in their crops. The typical family in West Africa has a total of six
kids, who help do the house-work and farm-work. The need for family members to work at home

6. requires no need for any of them to go get a formal education. Now with the Ebola crisis raging
across West Africa, the crops are left unattended and not harvested. The economy in West Africa
relies on the crops to make their income, and with a ban on the export of crops from this region,
income cannot be generated to help fight the epidemic. “In the Red light Markets of Monrovia,
the Ebola-stricken country's capital, Liberians were forced to pay 150% more for cassava, a basic
for flour and bread.”(CNN, 2014). The Cassava plant is a root type crop that is a vital ingredient
in the Liberians diet. Now with the price so high, the residents already don’t make much income
so they are forced to make very difficult decisions on what to spend their little money on.
Another important crop in Africa that is at risk from the epidemic is the cocoa supply. “The most
"at risk" commodities are gold and cocoa, Mulholland said, noting that over 70 percent of global
cocoa supply comes from West Africa.” (CNN, 2014) If Ebola spreads to more provinces in
Africa, these economic powerhouses will be disrupted. The lack of farm workers creates very
high food prices adding to the woes of the African people. Also, without workers to tend for the
farm lands, the fields will go wild and down the road it will take a lot of resources to get the
growing fields back in order. The ripple effect of the export ban causes economic problems not
only in West Africa but all around the world, where food prices and demand rise as supply
becomes limited. The economy in West Africa has been in an unstable and fragile state prior to
the Ebola outbreak due to civil wars and unrest. Now, with the emergence of the outbreak the
economy is strained even further. The toll of the economic impacts of the past conflicts in West
Africa has prevented the construction of new schools and hospitals in the now severely impacted
regions by Ebola. Now, the existing medical facilities are dilapidated and the undertrained staff
lacks the important medical supplies to stem the growing tide of infection. The same problems

7. affect schools that are part of this region, they are in the same state as the hospitals with no
monetary funds to help advance and educate the Western African people.
The condition of the education system and economics situation in West Africa both
connect in the manner were the education systems is not adequately supplied due to the lack of
economic resources to teach the future generations to know how to prevent and treat biological
hazards such as Ebola. Both the Education and economics issue in West Africa then contribute to
the rest of the world ailing in economic issues. The problems in West Africa are not just a
problem that will heal itself, but the world needs to act on the issues.
One could argue that there are a multitude of solutions to the Ebola outbreak such as
potential vaccines, isolation, travel restrictions and herbal remedies. However, a longer term
solution can be to educate the population on how to properly treat biological hazards, and
education in the medical field. Of course, economics plays a vital role in how medical treatments
and facilities are produced and how education curriculums are implemented. Well-established
medical facilities and schools are very important to building a solid foundation for communities,
to ensure the well-being. If a solid financial budget were established then, creating quality
education and medical systems would come at ease. The ZMAPP vaccine has shown promise in
treating Ebola patients. We saw here in America the effects ZMAPP has on Ebola patients,
showing results in just a few days. An example is the cure of Ebola from two missionary nurses.
Unfortunately, making the ZMAPP vaccine takes a large amount of resources and yields small
amount of vaccine material. Unfortunately, the issue of inequality exists on who should get the
vaccine but, because there is such a limited supply of the drug but, there is a potential solution to
the inequality problem. The federal government has announced it will put the production of
ZMAPP into a large scale operation with the help of America Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

8. and the Welcome Trust. In producing large amounts of the ZMAPP vaccine, I believe that the
decision of who will get the treatment will be a thing of the past. Until the production rate of
ZMAPP increases, the most developed countries can do is to aid West Africans by sending over
medical supplies and transportable medical facilities to the Ebola ridden areas to help the
overcrowded and understaffed medical facilities to help stop the spread of Ebola.
The amount of uneducated people in Africa shows that there is a need to educate the
public here in America and abroad, by helping the West African people realize the importance of
their children getting an education. Since the average amount of children in a family in West
Africa is around six, if each one of those children were able to get a good education, then the
economy will benefit from it from the now skilled members of society. If future outbreaks were
to happen, the effects of Ebola would not affect the region as it is doing so now. Also, West
African communities depend heavily on foreign aid. If the developed countries contributed
economic resources to help build quality schools and medical facilities then, the children will get
a good education and then go into a good job in turn this will stem the dependency on foreign aid
and create the foundation for a prosperous economy. Through developed countries providing aid
to the undeveloped countries and the West African people educating themselves on areas of
economics, hygiene and the importance of creating a vision for ones future is vital for the
community and the world to stop large scale outbreaks from occurring.

10. References
Ebola Co-Discoverer Peter Piot Says Crisis Was 'Avoidable' - NBC News. (2014). Retrieved
from http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/ebola-co-discoverer-peter-piot-
says-crisis-was-avoidable-n228371
CNN Library. (2014, November 1). Ebola Fast Facts - CNN.com. Retrieved from
http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/11/health/ebola-fast-facts/
Zimmer, C. (2014, October 14). Ebola’s past and Future? Phenomena: The Loom. Retrieved
from http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2014/10/14/ebolas-past-and-future/
SOS Children's Villages - Donate. (2014). Retrieved from https://give.sos-usa.org/ea-
action/action?ea.client.id=1808&ea.campaign.id=32369&ea.tracking.id=1X1410EQX01&ea.url.
id=300159&forwarded=true&autologin=true&s_src=ebolacrisis&s_subsrc=redcpcg_ebola&cr=e
bola-childrenincrisis&gclid=CN39y_nM3MECFQaBaQodqEkAdQ
Park, M. (2014, October 19). Ebola patient zero: 2-year-old in Guinea - CNN.com. Retrieved
from http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/11/health/ebola-patient-zero/
New Wave. (2014, August 14). Tulane University - Facts about the Ebola crisis. Retrieved from
http://tulane.edu/news/newwave/081414_ebola_virus_outbreak_facts.cfm
2014 Ebola Outbreak in West Africa - Outbreak Distribution Map| Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever |
CDC. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-
africa/distribution-map.html
WHO | Ebola virus disease. (2014, September). Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en/
Spickernell, S., & Ehrenberg, B. (2014, October 14). Outbreak map: Where has Ebola spread to
so far? And how many people have died? Here's what you need to know | City A.M. Retrieved
from http://www.cityam.com/1412928357/outbreak-map-where-has-ebola-spread-so-far-and-
how-many-people-have-died-heres-what-you
Mulvihill, J. (2014, November 4). Ebola’s orphans: Survivors care for children left behind by
disease | Fox News. Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/11/04/ebolas-orphans-
survivors-care-for-children-left-behind-by-disease/
Why Education - Asante Africa Foundation. (2014). Retrieved from
http://www.asanteafrica.org/why-education-
asante/?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Asante%20Africa%20Foundat
ion%20-
%20US&utm_adgroup=Education&utm_content=25684495354&utm_term=education%20in%2
0west%20africa&utm_exp=&utm_pos=1t2&gclid=CKWn_eyO5MECFcFDMgodDmUAhA
Kottasova, I. (2014, October 9). World Bank: Cost of Ebola could top $32 billion - CNN.com.
Retrieved from http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/24/business/ebola-cost-warning/

11. Barnato, K. (2014, October 3). Retrieved from http://www.cnbc.com/id/102056915
Pollack, A. (2014, October 1). Log in - The New York Times. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/02/world/us-to-increase-production-of-experimental-drug-but-
may-not-meet-demand.html?_r=0

12. Criteria
Points
Possible
Points
Earned
General
Paper adheres to APA formatting (title page, citations,references page,etc.).
Filename is correct. This rubric pasted at the end of the assignment.
10
Writing is clear with appropriate grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Headings
are appropriately labeled
10
Introduction (500 words)
Student clearly identifies a complex problem or issue. It is clear from the writing
that the problem is interdisciplinary. The student provides a clear rationale for the
use of interdisciplinary research process.Incorporates feedback from first
assignment.
20
Literature Review (750 words)
Student provides a brief background for the problem/issue. The student identifies
and discusses meaningful interdisciplinary questions that should be asked about
the problem/issue (inequality, conflict, and environment). Student identifies and
discusses at least 2 (no more than 3) disciplinary perspective for addressing the
problem/issue. The rationale for choosing those disciplinary perspectives is clear.
Incorporates feedback from first assignment.
20
Connections (750 words)
Student identifies the common ground between the disciplinary perspectives.
Student discusses howthis common ground will address the problem in a more
precise way than disciplinary research might.
20
Integrative Framework (500 words)
Based on the common ground, student discusses a new, holistic, integrative
framework for understanding the problem/issue. Utilizes global perspective
concepts learned in the course.Provides a clear understanding ofboth the
interdisciplinary research process and global perspectives in constructing the new
framework for understanding the global problem/issue
20

13. Total 100