Skip to main content

The Learning Hub: The fight against the world’s deadliest animal continues






The fight against the world’s deadliest animal continues

Screening system to determine what mosquitoes are equipped to smell
By Bill Gates | August 14, 2023

Compared to a shark bite, a mosquito bite seems pretty mild. But the reality is, I'm a lot more afraid of a tiny mosquito than a great white. And my fear is backed up by data. Mosquitoes and the diseases they carry kill more people in a single day than sharks kill in 100 years.

So each year, I like to call attention to the world’s deadliest animal—along with the incredible science and innovation mobilizing to defeat the diseases it spreads. This week, I’m sharing stories on my blog about the people leading this fight, the places they’re focusing their efforts, the technology they’re using (and creating from the ground up) to make an impact, and the obstacles that are still in the way.

1 A storied fragrance company in Switzerland is tapping into its massive scent library to figure out whether some fragrances that smell nice to humans can repel malaria-carrying mosquitoes.

2 A biotech company is developing genetically-modified mosquitoes to combat an urban mosquito strain that migrated from South Asia and the Arabian Peninsula—which, if left unchecked, threatens to put another 126 million people in Africa at risk of malaria.

3 A Cameroonian scientist left his university in the United Kingdom to study insecticide resistance in mosquitoes in the field—while cultivating the next generation of African malaria researchers in his home country.

4 A British geneticist is studying the mosquito collection at London’s Natural History Museum to better understand how the insect evolves and mutates over time, which could inform the efforts to make better insecticides and next-generation malaria vaccines.

And that’s just the start. Check out Bill Gate's Instagram and YouTube channel throughout the week to learn even more about mosquitoes—including why the fight against a warming planet and the fight against malaria are so closely connected.
© 2023 The Gates Notes

©The Learning Hub 2023

Comments

Post a Comment

Your feed Back is always welcomed.. for an amazing experience here

Popular posts from this blog

THE LEARNING HUB: 6 LESSONS FROM THE HAPPIEST MAN ON EARTH

1. There are many things more precious than money It is easy to be enslaved by the mindset that money is the most imperative treasure in society. Money is always transient, just like most things in life. It comes and goes, but how much are you willing to pay for the fleeting pleasure? The consequences of a money-mentality are much more damaging than the value of money itself. Are you willing to put your mental, emotional, and physical well-being on the line? There are things more precious than money. Here are a few: -Experiences -Genuine connections -A feeling of purpose -Genuine concern for helping others -Eddie says, “there are many things in this world that no amount of money will buy you, and some things are priceless beyond measure.” 2. Weakness can be turned into hatred Weak people lack the ability to maintain any level of emotional intelligence. People who lack emotional intelligence and a strong sense of self are easily influenced to hate. Their values and convictions are not b...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE LEARNING HUB: When you wake up in the morning...

When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: the people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous and surly. They are like this because they can't tell good from evil. But I have seen the beauty of good, and the ugliness of evil, and have recognized that the wrongdoer has a nature related to my own - not of the same blood and birth, but the same mind, and possessing a share of the divine. And so none of them can hurt me. No one can implicate me in ugliness. Nor can I feel angry at my relative, or hate him. We were born to work together like feet, hands and eyes, like the two rows of teeth, upper and lower. To obstruct each other is unnatural. To feel anger at someone, to turn your back on him: these are unnatural. ~Marcus Aurelius Book: Meditations https://amzn.to/3qjadxq (Art: Painting by Maximilien Luce)
Post a Comment
Read more

GatesNotes GatesNotes The Clean Industrial Revolution is in London at the BE Summit

GatesNotes GatesNotes The Clean Industrial Revolution is in London at the BE Summit A composite of climate-related imagery including industrial pipes, solar panels, a tractor in a field, steam from manufacturing, farmers harvesting crops, a crane on a construction site, windmills, a man holding a tablet in a field, and construction workers preparing rebar for concrete. By Bill Gates | June 25, 2024 The problems caused by climate change are often in the headlines. It’s less often that we hear about the progress being made in the fight against it. But through my investments and work with Breakthrough Energy, I’m lucky to have insight into a lot of the most exciting innovations—and the companies bringing them to life. At this year’s Breakthrough Energy Summit in London, over 100 of them have gathered to share the solutions they’ve been working on that are ready to get to work and tackle climate change today. They include: Window glass so energy efficient that it performs like a see-throug...
Post a Comment
Read more