Looking at the top stories from the WIRED science team this year, you might get the feeling that we're a little down on the future of planet Earth. A measles outbreak in Disneyland got us off on the wrong foot, highlighting the importance of vaccines—and the troublingly low vaccination rates in our own backyard. The record-breaking drought on the West coast weighed heavily on our minds (especially here, in our San Francisco office), and we spent a lot of time thinking about how the powerful gene-editing technique Crispr could be used for evil, while hoping scientists would find a way to focus it on good. Then, when we thought it couldn't get any worse, the WHO said that bacon causes cancer.
But hold up. Just because we're covering the forces that could spell humanity's doom doesn't mean they will. First off, that bacon thing? Take a look at the relative risk calculation one more time, and then reconsider your execration of processed meats. As for Crispr's power, scientists are already taking the right steps to make sure gene-editing research gets done responsibly. The West coast is currently getting a much-needed soaking from El Niño, and while these ping-ponging weather systems could be related to climate change, policy makers took a huge step in the right direction by signing the Paris climate agreement. And vaccination rates are still high enough to keep herd immunity intact in most of the country.
Oh, and in case you missed it, 2015 came with one shining beacon of pure goodness: In July, a spacecraft built by human hands flew by Pluto, almost a decade after it set off from Earth. So yeah, 2015. Not half bad.
