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bioterrorist

bioterrorist

3 9.6
A person who uses germs to harm and frighten people for political or criminal reasons
  • noun
  • /ˌbaɪoʊˈtɛrərist/
  • Offensive
: bioterrorista
  • They feared that some bioterrorist could create an Organism that could wipe out the world.
  • bioterrorist attack
  • impact of a bioterrorist

Examples

  • To assess the impact of an aerosol release of Bacillus anthracis, this article collects the available evidence on the potential benefits of environmental detection relative to the costs of a bioterrorist attack like the one in 2001, which occurred in the absence of any such detection.

    Academic text (2005)
  • The probability of a bioterrorist threat may never go away, but biological surveillance will prepare communities to respond to a catastrophe in a manner that minimizes human losses and serves to enhance public health assurance in potentially vulnerable communities.

    Academic text (2005)
  • But in a bioterrorist attack, there is no neat division between the act and its consequences.

    Academic text (1999)
  • The impact of a bioterrorist attack can be reduced by employing biological detectors.

    Academic text (2005)
  • They also show the importance of early treatment by estimating the high medical costs of a bioterrorist attack relative to the cost of early intervention.

    Academic text (2005)
  • Filoromo et al. describe the use of interactive screen savers to enhance clinicians' recognition and response to bioterrorist attacks.

    Academic text (2007)
  • Could the outbreak have been the result of an accidental release of a military biowarfare agent, as suggested in a Scientific American news report (Horgan 1993), or even a deliberate bioterrorist attack?

    Academic text (2002)
  • Recently, inhalation anthrax cases have resulted from exposure to African-style drums made of animal hides and from bioterrorist attacks (6, 7).

    Academic text (2014)
  • The human and economic impact of the bioterrorist attack depends on several factors: the agent or toxin used, the probability of infection, the number of people exposed, the speed of detection, the availability of treatment, and the potential for secondary transmission (if a contagious agent like smallpox is involved).

    Academic text (2005)
  • The authorities are implementing new policies to combat potential threats from bioterrorists.

Synonyms

terrorist
vsbioterrorist
  • NSFW
∞ 6.2

A person who uses violence or threats against ordinary people to reach political goals

is specific to harming people by biological agents rather than general violence

Surface Forms

bioterrorist singular
bioterrorists plural

Morphology

bioterrorist = terrorist (transparent) = bio + ist

The word is transparently formed by adding the biological prefix 'bio-' to 'terrorist', yielding a terrorist who uses biological agents.

Etymology

Bioterrorist combines bio- meaning 'life', the same bio- in biology, and terror meaning 'fear'. So a bioterrorist is someone who uses living things, like germs or viruses, to cause 'fear' or harm.