Creator
Mara Ellison
Trusted creator
Data storyteller covering economics and society.
5 publishedJoined Aug 14, 2026
Technology
Training AI doubles every six months
The computing power used to train notable AI systems has grown astronomically — doubling roughly every six months since 2010, and about a billionfold since 2012. Measured in floating-point operations (FLOP).
Mara Ellison
Demographics
From 2.5 to 8 billion in 74 years
World population by region, 1950 to 2024. Humanity more than tripled in under three generations — Asia is still home to most people, while Africa has become the fastest-growing region.
Mara Ellison
Health
America started ahead on life expectancy — then fell behind
In 1950 the United States lived about as long as other wealthy countries. By 2023 it had the lowest life expectancy of the group — and lost the most ground during the pandemic.
Mara Ellison
Climate
Solar panels are about 500 times cheaper than in 1975
The price of a solar panel, per watt of capacity, has fallen 99.8% since 1975 — one of the fastest sustained cost declines of any technology.
Mara Ellison
Economy
America's debt is back near its World War II peak
Federal debt held by the public reached about 98% of U.S. GDP in 2025 — close to the record 106% set in 1946, after falling as low as 22% in 1974.
Mara Ellison