In their annual letter to the public about their philanthropic work, Bill and Melinda Gates this year chose to focus on nine things that have surprised them.
Their list:
- Africa is the youngest continent
- At-home DNA tests can find serial killers—and could also help prevent premature birth
- The world will build an entire New York City every month for 40 years
- Data can be sexist
- You can learn a lot about processing your anger from teenage boys
- There’s a nationalist case for globalism
- Toilets haven’t changed in a century
- Textbooks are becoming obsolete
- Mobile phones are most powerful in the hands of the world’s poorest women
You can read their explanations in the full letter. On why we still don’t truly understand the cause of premature births—related to the second item on the Gates’ list—read this story from Quartz.
You can also watch a video of Bill Gates explaining to Quartz how he remembers what he reads.
Quartz members have access to other sections of the recent interview with the Microsoft cofounder, including:
- Gates’ belief that socialism has “worked extremely poorly”
- How he would educate himself if he were 15 years old today
- Why his nuclear energy hopes shifted from China to the US
- How he’s looking for the balance between data privacy and innovation
If you’re not already a member, you can sign up for a free seven-day trial here.