Bill Gates explains why we should all be optimists We sat down to talk about breakthrough technologies, China, and reasons to be cheerful with this issue’s guest editor. Gideon Lichfield There are a lot of worries today about technology’s harmful effects. How do you retain your famous optimism about it?

Look at how long people are living, the reduction of under-five mortality, the reduction in how poorly women are treated. Globally, inequity is down: poorer countries are getting richer faster than the richer countries are getting richer. The bulk of humanity lives in middle-income countries today. Fifty years ago, there were very few middle-income countries. Then there’s the ability of science to solve problems. In heart disease and cancer we’ve made a lot of progress; in some of the more chronic diseases like depression and diabetes … Even in obesity, we’re gaining some fundamental understandings of the microbiome and the signaling mechanisms involved. So, yes, I am optimistic. It does bother me that most people aren’t. See the rest of the issue Subscribe Maybe you have successful person’s bias? Of course, we have to factor that in. In my own life I’ve been extremely lucky. But even subtracting out my personal experience, I think the big picture is that it’s better to be born today than ever, and it will be better to be born 20 years from now than today.