NOVA Online | Bioterror | Ask the Expert

Ask the Expert

At this time of heightened anxiety over bioterrorism, many people have questions about the threats of biological weapons and what can be done to defend against biological attacks.

Below, see bioweapons expert Jonathan Tucker's thoughtful responses to questions emailed to NOVA by concerned citizens. Please note: We are not accepting any new questions.

        Responses, Set 3: Posted November 21, 2001
        Responses, Set 2: Posted November 16, 2001
        Responses, Set 1: Posted November 14, 2001

Jonathan B. Tucker, Ph.D., is an expert on chemical and biological weapons in the Washington, D.C. office of the Monterey Institute of International Studies. He directs the institute's Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program.

Before joining the Monterey Institute in 1996, Dr. Tucker worked for six years for the U.S. government. In February 1995, he was a biological weapons inspector in Iraq under the auspices of the United Nations Special Commission.

Dr. Tucker has published numerous articles and reports on chemical and biological weapons issues. He edited the volume Toxic Terror: Assessing Terrorist Use of Chemical and Biological Weapons (MIT Press, 2000), and wrote the new book Scourge: The Once and Future Threat of Smallpox (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2001).

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