-Report of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Operation Crossroads, June 30, 1947

Biological weapons have a long history in warfare. The first accounts of biological warfare date to the 6th century B.C. when the Assyrians poisoned the wells of their enemies with rye ergot (a disease of rye and other cereals caused by ergot fungus, similar in effect to LSD) and again when Solon of Athens poisoned an aqueduct with hellebore, (an herb purgative) during the siege of Kirrha. During a naval battle in 184 B.C. against King Eumenes of Pergamon, Hannibal's forces hurled clay pots filled with venomous snakes onto the enemy's decks. Hannibal defeated the Pergamene, as they were forced to fight man and snake.

Can biological weapons used throughout history be classified as weapons of mass destruction suc

But the popularization of variolation was a double-edged sword. Those living in the countries where variolation was popular could be presumed to know four facts; (1) that smallpox in previously unexposed population could be devastating, (2) that smallpox could reliably be produced by exposing healthy individuals to materials obtained from smallpox victims, (3) that individuals seemed to become infected only once, and (4) that the dangers of smallpox could be significantly reduced by the practice of variolation.

- Line item in the ledger for Ft. Pitt, June, 1763.

Biological agents can be spread in a variety of ways; most commonly we think of poisoned water supplies and crop-dusters spreading diseases among the population. While this type of attack is likely to happen today, the technology of biological warfare hasn't always been very technological. In 1346 during the battle of Kaffa, the Tartar army hurled the corpses of their plague-infested comrades over the walls to incite an epidemic within the enemy's troops. It is hypothesized, that this incident is the direct cause of the second outbreak of the black plague, which had a significant impact on the depopulation of Europe (25%).

From today's perspective, and certainly mine, these attacks are clearly considered biological warfare. In the cases of the poisoned water supplies in the 6th century B.C., the same techniques are being used today. In an unprotected water supply, a saboteur could place a small amount of Ricin (an extremely deadly toxin derived from castor beans) contaminating billions of gallons of drinking water, thus potentially killing millions. Since the attacks on September 11, attempts have been made to protect our nation's water sources from that sort of terrorist threat. Though the biological agents used in the 6th century B.C. themselves were not deadly, the physiological and psychological effects they produced would render the enemy's attempts to resist useless. Also, the deliberate use of smallpox as a weapon against the Indians shows a clear understanding of the effects of biological weapons. The effects of such attacks show without a doubt, the deadly potential of biological weapons. Though biological weapons in use today may be more sophisticated due to advances in science, the

Some common words found in the essay are:
Pylarini Smyrna, Commander-in-Chief British, Pergamon Hannibal's, Webster's Dictionary, North America, , Kaffa Tartar, Trent June, Captain Ecuyer, William Trent, biological weapons, biological warfare, mass destruction, weapons mass, 6th century, 6th century bc, century bc, weapons mass destruction, biological chemical weapons, biological chemical, chemical weapons, biological agents, nuclear biological, nuclear biological chemical, physiological psychological effects,
Approximate Word count = 1542
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)