In 1950, a newborn could expect to live about 46 years on average worldwide; today it's over 73, according to the UN. Vaccines, antibiotics, clean water, better nutrition and falling child mortality explain this unprecedented leap. After the dip caused by Covid-19, the curve has recovered and moved above its pre-pandemic level.
That's the estimate from a WHO-led study published in The Lancet in 2024, covering the half-century since the Expanded Programme on Immunization was launched in 1974. It works out to about six lives saved every minute, mostly infants. The measles vaccine alone accounts for around 60% of those lives.
According to the World Gold Council, about 216,000 tonnes of gold have been mined in all of human history. Because gold is so dense (19.3 tonnes per cubic metre), it would fit in a cube about 22 metres on each side, roughly the height of a seven-storey building. Strikingly, about two-thirds of it has been mined since 1950.