Ahead of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, we asked scientists, scholars, researchers, and doctors to tell us about the discoveries and developments that define this moment in American science and health. From new tools for exploring the far reaches of the cosmos to innovations changing our understanding of our very selves, these are their answers.
Selected by Emily OsterHealth-wise, recent decades have been dominated by a rise in obesity and associated metabolic disease, significantly affecting the life and health span of Americans. GLP-1s provide the first possibility for a widespread improvement in these issues. Beyond this, it increasingly seems as if they may have wider effects on alcohol and substance abuse and other diseases. Continued understanding of this will reshape how we think about health, food, and beyond. Oster is an economist, author, and professor at Brown University.
Selected by Dr. Pardis SabetiAmerican history is marked by crucibles, from the Industrial Revolution to the atomic age, in which both scientific possibility and human character were subjected to extraordinary pressure. Today, we are living through another one that will define our shared future. AI could help us outpace disease, accelerate discovery, and save lives, but it also opens the door to catastrophic misuse, including via biological threats and bioweapons. The question is whether we can survive our AI-shaped technological adolescence by guiding this power toward cooperation and care rather than competition and mutual destruction.Sabeti is a computational biologist, geneticist, and core member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.
Selected by Bill NyeAs we celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary and how far we have come, I’m thinking about how polio vaccines changed my life and messenger RNA vaccines probably saved it. These advancements are a testament to our country’s position at the forefront of scientific discovery. Today
