51: Malaria - Revision history

82.132.237.90: /* Vaccination */ Rereading the objection, and noting the now out of date nature (and 'floating' time-window, as it was written) of the measels deaths situation, made some relevency changes.

2026-04-30T18:40:45Z

‎Vaccination: Rereading the objection, and noting the now out of date nature (and 'floating' time-window, as it was written) of the measels deaths situation, made some relevency changes.

82.132.237.90: Undo revision 411470 by 2601:243:2581:B100:180:59C1:33DE:C006 (talk) The text had no malarial content. An 'excuse' for an Anti-Vax edit?

2026-04-30T17:38:06Z

Undo revision 411470 by 2601:243:2581:B100:180:59C1:33DE:C006 (talk) The text had no malarial content. An 'excuse' for an Anti-Vax edit?

2601:243:2581:B100:180:59C1:33DE:C006: /* Vaccination */ This was a weird nonsequiter. There are no vaccines against protozoan parasites, so this is just a random paragraph whose apparent relevance is that "it involves medicine, and medicine is kinda associated with diseases".

2026-04-30T16:35:46Z

‎Vaccination: This was a weird nonsequiter. There are no vaccines against protozoan parasites, so this is just a random paragraph whose apparent relevance is that "it involves medicine, and medicine is kinda associated with diseases".

FaviFake at 11:21, 25 April 2025

2025-04-25T11:21:17Z

FaviFake at 11:21, 25 April 2025

2025-04-25T11:21:10Z

FaviFake at 11:20, 25 April 2025

2025-04-25T11:20:33Z

FaviFake at 16:11, 26 March 2025

2025-03-26T16:11:19Z

1234231587678 at 01:16, 13 February 2024

2024-02-13T01:16:31Z

Icandostuff: /* Transcript */ Not capitalized in the comic

2024-01-29T05:51:56Z

‎Transcript: Not capitalized in the comic

172.69.43.138: /* Explanation */ "Better the devil you know (and invite to stay for tea...)." Which might not necessarily be correct, of course.

2023-11-04T16:52:45Z

‎Explanation: "Better the devil you know (and invite to stay for tea...)." Which might not necessarily be correct, of course.

@@ Line 28: / Line 28: @@
 ===Vaccination===
-At the end of the 1990s, a study reported what would turn out to be made-up health threats from MMR-{{rw|vaccines}}, which created an {{w|MMR vaccine controversy}} and lower vaccination rates, even after they were exposed as false. This made {{w|pox parties}} more popular as the "natural alternative." However, even usually-"harmless" diseases like {{w|measles}} can (rarely) have complications and side-effects, up to and including death, which are by far more common and/or more severe than the actual health risks involved in vaccination. In the past 20 years, 2 Americans died from measles, both people with compromised immune systems. Also none, or late immunization, may create an immunization gap through which nearly extinct diseases can reenter a population (see e.g. {{w|Epidemiology of measles}}). If this gap can be closed (or made small enough), it is possible to make a disease extinct. This was actually successfully done with {{w|smallpox}}, and is now attempted with the {{w|poliovirus}} (Causing {{w|poliomyelitis}}, also known as infantile paralysis). A [[XKCD Marks the Spot|comic]] with poliovirus eradication as topic has been released.
+The comic's invoking of an equivalent to '{{w|pox parties}}' draws parallels to the arguments surrounding how best to deal with diseases other than malaria, such as viral ones, for which various different forms of exposure are possible, from intentional exposure to the full pathogen in 'controlled' conditions through to attenuated versions or even entirely non-functional 'look alike' material solely produced to [[2425: mRNA Vaccine|'train' the immune system]].
 ==Transcript==

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:38, 30 April 2026
Line 26:		Line 26:

	The title text blames [[David]] for the idea, while the original caption just seems to give him credit. He also mentioned David in [[42: Geico]] and [[100: Family Circus]].		The title text blames [[David]] for the idea, while the original caption just seems to give him credit. He also mentioned David in [[42: Geico]] and [[100: Family Circus]].
		+
		+	===Vaccination===
		+	At the end of the 1990s, a study reported what would turn out to be made-up health threats from MMR-{{rw\|vaccines}}, which created an {{w\|MMR vaccine controversy}} and lower vaccination rates, even after they were exposed as false. This made {{w\|pox parties}} more popular as the "natural alternative." However, even usually-"harmless" diseases like {{w\|measles}} can (rarely) have complications and side-effects, up to and including death, which are by far more common and/or more severe than the actual health risks involved in vaccination. In the past 20 years, 2 Americans died from measles, both people with compromised immune systems. Also none, or late immunization, may create an immunization gap through which nearly extinct diseases can reenter a population (see e.g. {{w\|Epidemiology of measles}}). If this gap can be closed (or made small enough), it is possible to make a disease extinct. This was actually successfully done with {{w\|smallpox}}, and is now attempted with the {{w\|poliovirus}} (Causing {{w\|poliomyelitis}}, also known as infantile paralysis). A [[XKCD Marks the Spot\|comic]] with poliovirus eradication as topic has been released.

	==Transcript==		==Transcript==

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:35, 30 April 2026
Line 26:		Line 26:

	The title text blames [[David]] for the idea, while the original caption just seems to give him credit. He also mentioned David in [[42: Geico]] and [[100: Family Circus]].		The title text blames [[David]] for the idea, while the original caption just seems to give him credit. He also mentioned David in [[42: Geico]] and [[100: Family Circus]].
−
−	~~===Vaccination===~~
−	At the end of the 1990s, a study reported what would turn out to be made-up health threats from MMR-{{rw\|vaccines}}, which created an {{w\|MMR vaccine controversy}} and lower vaccination rates, even after they were exposed as false. This made {{w\|pox parties}} more popular as the "natural alternative." However, even usually-"harmless" diseases like {{w\|measles}} can (rarely) have complications and side-effects, up to and including death, which are by far more common and/or more severe than the actual health risks involved in vaccination. In the past 20 years, 2 Americans died from measles, both people with compromised immune systems. Also none, or late immunization, may create an immunization gap through which nearly extinct diseases can reenter a population (see e.g. {{w\|Epidemiology of measles}}). If this gap can be closed (or made small enough), it is possible to make a disease extinct. This was actually successfully done with {{w\|smallpox}}, and is now attempted with the {{w\|poliovirus}} (Causing {{w\|poliomyelitis}}, also known as infantile paralysis). A [[XKCD Marks the Spot\|comic]] with poliovirus eradication as topic has been released.

	==Transcript==		==Transcript==

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{comic/sandbox
+{{comic
 | number    = 51
 | date      = January 18, 2006 <!-- The comic was released three days earlier on xkcd.com than on LiveJournal (21/1 2006). We use the earliest possible day-->

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{comic
+{{comic/sandbox
 | number    = 51
 | date      = January 18, 2006 <!-- The comic was released three days earlier on xkcd.com than on LiveJournal (21/1 2006). We use the earliest possible day-->
@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 | ognext    = 52
 | image     = malaria.jpg
-| titletext = The malaria party was David's idea.<br><br>''<span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A LiveJournal caption</span>]:'' <small>'''Current Mood:''' ''Credit to David for this one''</small>
+| titletext = The malaria party was David's idea.<br><br>''<span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A Caption on LiveJournal</span>]:'' <small>'''Current Mood:''' ''Credit to David for this one''</small>
 }}

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 | date      = January 18, 2006 <!-- The comic was released three days earlier on xkcd.com than on LiveJournal (21/1 2006). We use the earliest possible day-->
 | title     = Malaria
-| before    = <big><big><span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A LiveJournal title</span>]: '''Malaria'''</big></big>
+| ognumber  = 49
 | image     = malaria.jpg
-| titletext = The malaria party was David's idea.<br><br><span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A LiveJournal caption</span>]: <small>'''Current Mood:''' ''Credit to David for this one''</small>
+| titletext = The malaria party was David's idea.<br><br>''<span class="plainlinks">[https://web.archive.org/web/20060529063441/http://xkcd-drawings.livejournal.com/#:~:text=1%3A43%20am-,Malaria,-Current%20Mood%3A LiveJournal caption</span>]:'' <small>'''Current Mood:''' ''Credit to David for this one''</small>
 }}
-This was the forty-nineth comic originally posted to [[LiveJournal]]. The previous one was [[54: Science]], and the next one was [[52: Secret Worlds]]. It was among the [[:Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd.com|last eleven comics]] posted both on LiveJournal and on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] after the new site was launched. This comic wasn't published on the same day across both sites, but most of them shared the same posting day. It was released on LiveJournal on January 21, 2006, three days after originally being posted on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com]. See the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] below.
+This was the forty-nineth comic [[LiveJournal|originally posted to LiveJournal]]. The previous one was [[54: Science]], and the next one was [[52: Secret Worlds]]. It was among the [[:Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd.com|last eleven comics]] posted both on LiveJournal and on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] after the new site was launched. This comic wasn't published on the same day across both sites, but most of them shared the same posting day. It was released on LiveJournal on January 21, 2006, three days after originally being posted on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com]. See the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] below.
 ==Explanation==

@@ Line 8: / Line 8: @@
 }}
 This was the forty-nineth comic originally posted to [[LiveJournal]]. The previous one was [[54: Science]], and the next one was [[52: Secret Worlds]]. It was among the [[:Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd.com|last eleven comics]] posted both on LiveJournal and on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] after the new site was launched. This comic wasn't published on the same day across both sites, but most of them shared the same posting day. It was released on LiveJournal on January 21, 2006, three days after originally being posted on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com]. See the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] below.
 This comic humorously considers {{w|pox parties}} as a means of preventing malaria. During these "parties", adults gather their children to deliberately expose them to a communicable disease in order to promote {{w|Immunity (medical)|immunity}}. These parties are based on the fact humans can develop an {{w|adaptive immune response}} after being infected by a communicable disease by producing {{w|antibodies}} that will recognize future infections of the pathogen. For some illnesses, such as {{w|chickenpox}}, this response is particularly effective in reducing the seriousness of future infections in individuals with healthy immune systems. Furthermore, some illnesses, including chickenpox, are also thought to be less severe when the initial infection occurs in childhood, rather than adulthood. So, even though vaccinations remain a safer and more effective means of preventing severe disease, pox-parties may be held under the assumption that children will benefit from contracting an illness (and developing antibodies against it) while they are still young and the disease will be, in theory, less severe. Moreover, because transmission is planned/expected (at least for the 'guests'), those concerned may ''feel'' that they are more prepared to watch for and deal with the illness than if infection had occured during some unpredictable future occasion.

@@ Line 27: / Line 27: @@
 ==Transcript==
 :[Four Cueball-like children wearing party hats, a discarded balloon is lying to the right. There is text above:]
-:We had a malaria party
+:we had a malaria party
 :[And there is text below:]
 :but it turned out not to be very much fun.

@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 This was the forty-nineth comic originally posted to [[LiveJournal]]. The previous one was [[54: Science]], and the next one was [[52: Secret Worlds]]. It was among the [[:Category:Posted on LiveJournal after xkcd.com|last eleven comics]] posted both on LiveJournal and on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com] after the new site was launched. This comic wasn't published on the same day across both sites, but most of them shared the same posting day. It was released on LiveJournal on January 21, 2006, three days after originally being posted on [https://xkcd.com xkcd.com]. See the [[#Trivia|triva section]] below.
-This comic humorously considers {{w|pox parties}} as a means of preventing malaria. During these "parties", adults gather their children to deliberately expose them to a communicable disease in order to promote {{w|Immunity (medical)|immunity}}. These parties are based on the fact humans can develop an {{w|adaptive immune response}} after being infected by a communicable disease by producing {{w|antibodies}} that will recognize future infections of the pathogen. For some illnesses, such as {{w|chickenpox}}, this response is particularly effective in reducing the seriousness of future infections in individuals with healthy immune systems. Furthermore, some illnesses, including chickenpox, are also thought to be less severe when the initial infection occurs in childhood, rather than adulthood. So, even though vaccinations remain a safer and more effective means of preventing severe disease, pox-parties may be held under the assumption that children will benefit from contracting an illness (and developing antibodies against it) while they are still young and the disease will be, in theory, less severe.
+This comic humorously considers {{w|pox parties}} as a means of preventing malaria. During these "parties", adults gather their children to deliberately expose them to a communicable disease in order to promote {{w|Immunity (medical)|immunity}}. These parties are based on the fact humans can develop an {{w|adaptive immune response}} after being infected by a communicable disease by producing {{w|antibodies}} that will recognize future infections of the pathogen. For some illnesses, such as {{w|chickenpox}}, this response is particularly effective in reducing the seriousness of future infections in individuals with healthy immune systems. Furthermore, some illnesses, including chickenpox, are also thought to be less severe when the initial infection occurs in childhood, rather than adulthood. So, even though vaccinations remain a safer and more effective means of preventing severe disease, pox-parties may be held under the assumption that children will benefit from contracting an illness (and developing antibodies against it) while they are still young and the disease will be, in theory, less severe. Moreover, because transmission is planned/expected (at least for the 'guests'), those concerned may ''feel'' that they are more prepared to watch for and deal with the illness than if infection had occured during some unpredictable future occasion.
 However, there are major differences between {{w|Poxviridae|poxes}} and {{w|Malaria|malaria}} that make the idea of a malaria party especially absurd: