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Dickson Despommier tells us the story of how the insatiable millionaire John D. Rockefeller turned an eye to the untapped market of the American South and ended up eradicating the hookworm (and, in the process, a number of other awful afflictions) with an ingenious contraption. Then Patrick Walters introduces us to Jasper Lawrence, a modern-day entrepreneur whose passion for hookworms stems from lifelong battles with allergies and asthma. But unlike Rockefeller, Jasper sees this parasite as friend, not foe.

Photo: flickr/grumpies 
A bit of background on Mr. Rockefeller 
1920 educational silent film about hookworm

 

via wnyc.org

Ah, “a passion for hookworms…” This interesting tidbit via Mark Hall!