On Wednesday night, we got a crash course in how our bodies recognize harmful invaders and fend them off. Neat, right? Our immune systems are well-trained armies that can spot foreign bacteria and viruses -- and even remember them for later.

Class reminded me of one of my favorite stories of where a word comes from: the history of the word vaccine.

Back in the day, lots of people died from the disfiguring diease smallpox. These days, we...

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