Shareables - Hope & Optimism #5

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Hey everyone,

It’s been another mixed week, particularly with the Russian conscriptions. However, if we look hard enough, there’s always a silver lining on the events happening in the world. We’ll always lean towards human resilience and the relentless pursuit of improving life overall. Let’s dive in.

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(1) Over 1 million organs have been transplanted in the US!Many of us don’t give it a second thought, but if you stop to think about it, modern medicine is truly a marvel. Since the 1918 influenza pandemic, human life expectancy has constantly been on the rise. We owe it to the many advancements that have been made in pharmacology, sanitation, and medicine. It’s even more profound when we remember that for most of humanity’s existence, life expectancy was far lower in the 20-30 year range.

This helps us understand the magnitude of a recent milestone: over 1 million organs have been donated and transplanted in the US. Here’s a bit of history: the first organ transplant occurred in 1954 with the lead surgeon, Dr. Joseph Murray, receiving a Nobel Prize in Medicine for his role. Transplants remained low in frequency until a breakthrough in anti-rejection medicine was discovered (which makes sense considering the body probably doesn’t like foreign objects being put into it). In 2021, more than 41,000 transplants occurred, and we’re optimistic that the number of lives saved by transplant procedures will only continue to increase from here on out. Below is an animation that shows the increase in life expectancy by country from the 1950s to 2015. Phenomenal progress if you ask us! (Full article)

(2) 17-Year-Old Invents Low-Cost Machine Learning Software That Can Detect Elephant PoachersIn Hope & Optimism #2, we talked about how wildlife species were making a massive comeback in Europe with many of them recovering significantly from their endangered status. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for species in other countries and different problems will require different solutions. While elephant poaching is illegal, poachers are still en masse and in full force; Africa’s forest elephant population fell by 61% between 2002 and 2011. Thankfully for Africa’s elephants, 17-year-old New Yorker Anika Puri has a say in it.

Inspired by her visit to Mumbai where she came across ivory jewelry, Anika developed low-cost, real-time machine learning software that can detect poachers with a whopping 91% accuracy, approximately 4x more effective than existing detection methods. She spent 2 years developing software that analyzes the movement patterns of humans and elephants as seen in thermal infrared videos recorded by patrol drones. It’s awe-inspiring that a 17-year-old can be at the forefront of conservation efforts, and we’re excited to hear that Anika will be attending MIT in fall 2022 with the intention to expand her technology to cover other endangered species around the world. (Full article)

(3) Scientists predict the hole in the ozone layer will close in the next 50 yearsWhile climate change is at the top of almost everyone’s list nowadays, it seems that many have forgotten about the gaping hole in our ozone layer. The ozone layer’s most commonly understood purpose is to reduce the amount of UV sun radiation that comes through to us, thereby reducing the possibility of skin cancer. The following reality came as a massive shock to us - in 2021, the size of the hole in the ozone layer was bigger than the size of the continent itself. In 1987, seven years after scientists realized that man-made chemicals were destroying the ozone layer, the Montreal Protocol was signed by 197 parties to reduce usage of these chemicals, creating one of the first universally ratified treaties in United Nations history. In early 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) observed that the concentration of harmful chemicals in the middle level of the stratosphere dropped by over 50% since the 1980s. Recovery isn’t guaranteed, but if we maintain this progress, we’re on track to repair the hole in about 50 years. (Full article)

“Today we understand that the future of humanity very much depends on our planet, and that the future of the planet very much depends on humanity.”

• Dalai Lama

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