Read this excerpt from "edward jenner and the history of smallpox and vaccination." the origin of smallpox as a natural disease is lost in prehistory. it is believed to have appeared around 10,000 bc, at the time of the first agricultural settlements in northeastern africa. it seems plausible that it spread from there to india by means of ancient egyptian merchants. what is the central claim of the excerpt?

Question

Alyson Blackburn

History

7 May, 12:20

Read this excerpt from "edward jenner and the history of smallpox and vaccination." the origin of smallpox as a natural disease is lost in prehistory. it is believed to have appeared around 10,000 bc, at the time of the first agricultural settlements in northeastern africa. it seems plausible that it spread from there to india by means of ancient egyptian merchants. what is the central claim of the excerpt?

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Cristina Whitney · Answer 1

The central claim of this excerpt is that the initial spreading of smallpox is not definitively known.

In this excerpt, the author discusses how smallpox most likely emerged around 10,000BC. Along with this, the author discusses how it is possible that spread from Northeastern Africa to India. However, none of this is proven. These are educated guesses based on resources studied regarding this time period.