I haven't done any current research on the subject, so I am speaking from recall of earlier study. It seems that AIDS originated in Africa from an unknown source. At least that is the theory based on fragmentary tracing of the disease back to it roots.

Given the many areas of abject poverty in Africa, it isn't too surprising. Malnutrition weakens the immune system and makes people suceptible to new diseases quite readily. Even though there is little or no evidence to support this, I suspect that starvation had people eating non-traditional foods - including our near cousins. Our genetic closeness to monkeys and apes could easily provide the transfer venue for a mutated virus. It is no mistake that Ebola only occurs in poverty stricken areas of Africa where "bush meat" is the only survival strategy. Somewhere in this scenario there is a connection to these terrible diseases.

I've read the conspiracy theories of AIDS being a man-made creation designed to depopulate Africa. But I haven't heard of any scientist with credibility support those claims. Usually, it comes from some politician or religious leader trying to explain away their failure to try to curb the disease.

The same goes for an "accidental" release of the virus from some super-secret lab.

We know that viruses and bacteria can mutate at tremendous rates. Given poverty driven malnutrition, it's a wonder that we don't have a dozen diseases like AIDS.

The 'net is not very helpful with this ... fact.

Unfortunately CT skills are not googlable.

AIDS was first discovered in primates and simians, SAIDS.

It's crossover is still subject to mass speculation, but transmigratory viruses are nothing new.

It is. I had not before this week discovered how uncertain this is. Asking a few people their view these last days, there does not seem to be much public awareness -- perhaps this has something to do with the Internet: search results democratize truth; one has to go to about page 450 of search results before anything but the dominant line appears. Information is less accessable in the information age than it has ever been.

Vana,

The problem with information today as compared to just a few years ago is that there is too much of it. We're overwhelmed by it. To gather all the information on a specific topic requires much more than it used to. Being "knowledgable" is no longer having a Reader's Digest subscription.

Axiom: How much you can "know" is directly proportional to how much your ass can take sitting in front of a computer monitor.