We have conquered or quelled many diseases that used to kill people in droves: smallpox, measles, polio and the plague. People are taller, and formerly life-threating conditions like appendicitis, dysentery, a broken leg or anemia are easily remedied. To be sure, there is still too much malnutrition and disease in some countries, but these evils are often the result of bad government and social inequality, not a lack of food or medical know how. The Story of the Human Body: Evolution, Health, and Disease