Manu Joseph: Why we should be thankful for human nature, billionaire dreams and even Donald Trump’s policies

As this is my first column of the new year, I thought I would do something challenging—write what is good about the modern world. Here are a few things:Billionaires versus death: Billionaires do not have the heart to leave the party of life. That is where they become extremely useful to us.

They are pouring billions into medical research that they will have no choice but to share with all of us someday. Their greed could help us live longer.The superrich have been directing private capital towards curing ageing, which they consider a disease, and also other diseases no one disputes are diseases. Even though Bill Gates spends most of his philanthropic billions on the diseases that rage among the poor, he also spends sizeable amounts on finding a cure for neurodegeneration, like Alzheimer’s research.

Recently, the American Food and Drug Administration cleared a blood test for early detection of Alzheimer’s. This has excited Gates. He usually knows more than what he shares in his periodical releases.

If his public optimism is any indication, we might very soon be able to prevent diseases that harm the brain. Jeff Bezos, too, is funding research on ways to reverse cellular ageing, which would simultaneously solve cancer, cardiovascular disease and neurodegeneration. Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have pledged billions to the radical goal of curing all disease by the end of the century.

They are among the superrich of America who believe that if they can survive the next few decades, somehow push their lives another half a century, the future of science will further prolong it for them, and further advances may further this. Some scientists claim that the future human might be able to live hundreds of years. Even