We humans thrive on bad news; we're pre-programmed to respond to threats, and predictions of apocalypse. Good news bores us, so we don't hear much about the remarkable improvements in the human condition in recent years. Here's a quick review of significant developments.

* Life expectancy, perhaps the most objective...

America's 40-year war on drugs has succeeded admirably in:

• Putting more than 400,000 nonviolent offenders behind bars. Most of these prisoners are otherwise law-abiding citizens whose only offense is possessing or selling substances that other people want. Under minimum sentencing laws, they are often locked up for longer...

The use of contraceptives has taken off all over the world and there appears to be no turning back. In the early 1960s, only 30% of the world's couples used birth control, and in the developing countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin American a paltry 9% of couples were using...

Melinda Gates drew some nervous laughter at a recent TED-x presentation by bringing up the subject of sex in a discussion on contraception. She deserves our applause for doing so because, as clearly related as these subjects obviously are, we family planning specialists rarely put them together.

The purpose...

In 1964, as a field officer for CARE in India, I helped arrange for a shipment of food to a Punjabi village that had been devastated by floods. As I went about my duties, seeing that the food was properly stored and provided to all comers, a woman in a...