The first sign was a feeling of general apprehension, which soon led to shivers, pains, and headaches. Then the perspiration set in. The victims would be swamped by a torrent of sweat, which led to insatiable thirst and delirium. Finally, they’d feel an overwhelming urge to sleep. If they succumbed, they’d likely end up dead. The fatality rate was up to 50%.
此病最初的症状是一种莫名的紧张不适，很快开始寒颤、疼痛和头痛，然后开始出汗。患者出汗量很大，从而导致极度口渴和精神错乱。最后，他们会感到极度嗜睡。如果没能扛住，最终可能会死亡。此病死亡率高达50%。
Dubbed “The English Sweat”, this alarming malady swept across the city, killing 15,000 people in just six weeks. Eventually the epidemic fizzled out, but not before it had spread to Europe, leaving plenty of mourners in its wake.
这种令人惊恐被称为“英国汗热病”(The English Sweat) 的瘟疫席卷伦敦，短短6周就导致15000人丧命。虽然瘟疫最终销声匿迹，但在此之前曾蔓延到欧洲，留下大量失去亲人的哀悼者。
To this day, no one has any clear idea what caused the mysterious English Sweat. But the leading theory is that this mega-outbreak wasn’t caused by the flu, Ebola, or any of the infamous diseases we often hear about.
时至今日，没有人清楚是什么导致了这种神秘的英国汗热病。但主导理论认为，该病的大爆发不是由流感(flu)病毒、埃博拉病毒(Ebola)、或任何我们经常听到的臭名昭著的病原体引起的。
Instead, the culprit was a type of hantavirus – a rare family of viruses that typically infect rodents.
其罪魁祸首是汉坦病毒(hantavirus)，属於一种罕见的病毒科，通常经啮齿类动物传播。
It may have been centuries since the dreaded sweating sickness of 1485, but we can still learn from the past. The flu is seen as a likely candidate for the next pandemic – not the only candidate. And if the scientists have got it right, failing to take D-list viruses seriously could be a catastrophic mistake.
距离1485年那场可怕的汗热病已过了几个世纪，但我们仍然可以从这一瘟疫吸取教训。流感病毒被认为可能是造成下一次瘟疫大爆发的候选凶手——但流感病毒不会是唯一的候选者。如果科学家们是对的，未能认真对待那些致命病毒可能是灾难性的错误。
