Princeton economist Angus Deaton just won the Nobel Prize for his research into poverty and development.
The economics award is basically a slap in the face of anyone who thinks that the world is in a downward spiral, because Deaton is as optimistic and rigorous as they come. He's devoted his career to understanding how human development (or the lack thereof) happens.
His most popular work is the 2013 book "The Great Escape," which he describes as the escape from early death and lifelong poverty that much of humanity has achieved over the last few generations.
"Things are getting better, and hugely so," he writes.
The book offers a huge range of reasons as to why.
Here are a few of the greatest hits:
• In the US, life expectancy increased from 47 years in 1900 to 78 years in 2006.
• 42% of people around the world lived on less than $1 a day in 1981. Now it's 14%.
• China and India have had rapid economic development, lifting millions out of poverty.
Not only has Deaton detailed how the world is developing, but he's helped us to understand how it is developing, expanding the collection of data we have on poor countries while working for the World Bank.
"When you read that world poverty has fallen below 10% for the first time ever and you want to know how we know— the answer is Deaton’s work on household surveys, data collection and welfare measurement," writes Alex Taborrok at Marginal Revolution.
Deaton isn't the only brilliant mind that's convinced of human progress.
Harvard cognitive scientist Steven Pinker recently told us that smarter humanitarian policy, better technology, and increased trust in people's ability to flourish are driving progress.
To hear from Deaton directly, watch this lecture.
