In this excerpt from "The Formula for Better Health," Tom Frieden explores how Alice Hamilton transformed public health in her fight against lead poisoning.

John Green opens up about his struggle to remain hopeful while writing about suffering and injustice.

The integration of artificial intelligence into public health could have revolutionary implications for the global south—if only it can get online.

Environmental progress is happening quickly but we must keep pushing for change.

According to the CDC, 50 countries worldwide have drinkable tap water. But look closer, and the picture is more nuanced.

Undeterred by years of failure, Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman proved that mRNA is the future of vaccines.

Tardigrades can completely dehydrate and later rehydrate themselves, a survival trick that scientists are harnessing to preserve medicines in hot temperatures.

Let us share this miracle with mothers in poor countries.

The chances that a newborn survives childhood have increased from 50% to 96% globally.

Researchers found that the average penis increased in size from 4.8 inches in 1992 to 6 inches in 2021. But in some regions, they shrank.

From COVID and cancer vaccines to a steady drop in the number of people living in extreme poverty, there are reasons for optimism in 2023.

About the project The goal of driving more progress across the world—scientifically, politically, economically, socially, etc—is one shared by many. And yet, debates about the best way to maximize progress […]

About the project The goal of driving more progress across the world—scientifically, politically, economically, socially, etc—is one shared by many. And yet, debates about the best way to maximize progress […]

As with any "big idea" progress means a lot of different things to different people and not everyone comes into the discussion with the same priors. Some experts are primarily focused on material progress while others emphasize the importance of moral progress. So to start the discussion, we asked each expert to define the term as they see it from their specific vantage point.

It is wrong to think that these three statements contradict each other. We need to see that they are all true to see that a better world is possible.

It’s simple to make, easy to use, and should work against any variant.

Explore the key highlights from the UN’s latest release of its world population estimates.

The catastrophic birth defect anencephaly affects about 1 in 4,600 pregnancies in the U.S. It is largely preventable with folic acid supplements.

Scientists ranked countries on their end-of-life care. The U.S. fared poorly.

Despite the enormous flood of recent reports, there’s no good evidence for a lab leak. At the very end of 2019, a new disease began to emerge in humans: COVID-19. Originally […]

And how it might ensure that future generations won’t have to face anything like this ever again. As of April 6, 2020, more than 1.3 million people worldwide have tested positive […]

Now is not the time to panic. But it’s the perfect time to get informed. The typical human body is made out of some 10²⁸ atoms distributed across approximately 100 […]