Summary

Wellbeing and science are connected. Science has made our lives better. Scientific advances have improved our lives in the USA. Neil deGrasse Tyson is a good source of information on how science has affected our lives. Contact your elected officials and demand that they support science and scientific research. Educate people you know: they may not know about science. Work together to promote science and to promote our wellbeing.

Wellbeing and Science

Wellbeing and science are correlated. Let’s explore the connections between wellbeing and science.

Science Makes Our Lives Better: Wellbeing and Science

Look at your life, especially if you are 50 years or older. Recall your lifestyle when you were 10 years old. What do you see today that you did not have then?

Cassettes were the common means to listen to music. Nintendo had just come out. You did not have a cellphone. You likely did not have a computer. You may have had a pushbutton telephone, if you were rich (at least where I come from). Likely you had a rotary telephone and you may have had telephone service on a party line (as we did). If you had a car (we did not), you rolled up or rolled down the windows, your car was likely standard (manual) transmission and not automatic transmission, and paper maps were your best friends (unless the driver had developed a superpower in the visuospatial network of the human brain by repeated use of visuospatial skills).

Scientific research has allowed us to have medical treatments that are effective.

Science has improved the techniques used in archaeology and forensic investigations.

Science gave us the tests to detect the HIV virus.

Scientific studies help us understand what is in our foods and what those components do to our bodies.

Science has improved the technology in our cars.

Science has improved the construction of our homes, the heating of our homes, and the cooling of our homes.

History of Science for a Better Life in the USA

I defer to an expert on the history of science in the USA, an expert who is far more knowledgeable than I am and who is a true historian and scientist. Neil deGrasse Tyson has produced many audiovisual materials to educate us. Check out one of latest videos which provides a brief history of science’s contributions to our society in the USA and how we have benefitted.

Neil de Grasse Tyson recently offered a brief history of science contributing to our quality of life in the USA.

Wellbeing and Science: Why Housing Is Important to Health

Science helps us understand our lives. Science helps us to improve our lives. Science helps us to remedy problems which affect our health. Let’s look at the importance of science to housing.

Science has contributed to the development of materials and technology used in the construction of our homes. The strength of building materials and the ability of materials to withstand fire are due to scientific research. The properties of insulating materials have been studied and determined based on scientific research. The optimization of refrigerant use in our cooling systems and in our refrigerators is due to science. The safety of our heating systems results from scientific studies on combustion; the flammability of construction materials; the frequency and the means employed for cleaning and maintaining furnaces and chimneys; the required ventilation; the equipment to detect heat and to detect smoke and to detect carbon monoxide or gas; and the output of energy from a heating source and the estimated area the heating source will actually heat.

The previous paragraph almost sounds like an ad for DuPont. It is not. But, there is something to be said for the DuPont campaign of years ago which touted the benefits of chemistry for our lives.

We take science for granted in our homes.

Wellbeing and Housing Are Connected

Our wellbeing is connected to our housing situation.

Think about it. Recall the first homes in which you resided. I remember the apartment on the first floor in the front of a building on a well-traveled street, with pedestrian and vehicular traffic day and night. I returned home from work around 1am or 2am and by 7am the hustle and bustle outside awakened me. I had no air conditioner and could not afford one. The neighbour brought cockroaches into the building: that was fun. The bathroom ceiling caved in and showered my bathroom with sewage which the landlord took months to repair. In an apartment building across the street, there was an apartment in which it was known that methamphetamine was being manufactured and the local police could not do anything because this was deemed a federal issue. Trust me, the environment affected my wellbeing.

Science has elucidated the impact of our housing situation on our wellbeing.

A recent study reviewed by Culli (March 2025) delineated some of the variables linking housing and health: physical issues in the housing complex, the cost of housing relative to income, and the quality of the neighbourhood. The cost of housing affects our wellbeing.

Take a look at the current cost of housing, specifically homeownership. According to an article in March of 2025, over 94 million households (70% of households) could not afford the median price of a house in the USA (Zhao, 2025). This is based on data analyzed by the National Association of Home Builders. (By the way, data analysis is scientific analysis).

Based on data from 2023, the cost of housing is increasingly a ‘burden’ for households, whether as homeowners or as renters. The increase is greatest among renters. According to the analysis by Harvard (2025), more than 27% of renters (12.1 million renters) in 2023 were severely burdened, spending over 50% of their income on housing.

And, as Bernie Sanders repeatedly asks, how can a senior, let alone anyone else, survive on $15 000 per year? Yet, 1 in 4 seniors in the USA are subsisting on 15 000 dollars per year.

After rent, utilities, groceries, transportation, and childcare (as the case may be), what is left for clothing, personal hygiene products, medical appointments, dental appointments, and mailing costs? That is not quality of life. That is barely subsistence.

And, with the deadlines approaching for the cuts legislated in the OBBBA, costs are going to rise for health care premiums, health care copays, access to Medicaid, and access to Marketplace subsidies. The cost of living will rise due to cuts to supplemental nutritional assistance (SNAP); due to cuts to agriculture; and due to the detention and deportation of people who plant and maintain and harvest our food crops. Add to that the tariffs which are de facto taxes on the American people, and, voilà, a disaster economically for individuals and farmers and many businesses.

Take Action: Wellbeing and Science Connected

I believe we can take action to improve our wellbeing. I believe that our wellbeing, the wellbeing of our communities, and the wellbeing of the world depend on science. I believe that conspiracy theories and ignorance will take us back in time, if not result in our self-destruction.

Recall the days of the ubiquitous belief that the world was flat. Think of a time when illness was considered to be caused by demons. And, recognize, that in the USA today some people do not embrace science. We have to educate them.

You and I can and must take action to promote our wellbeing.

Call your Governor. Ask what they are doing to ensure housing is being built to accommodate our population and that housing laws are strengthened in favour of renters, not in favour of corporate landlords. Ask your Governor what they are doing to fund and conduct research into poverty, health, community safety, and community wellbeing.

Contact your elected officials at the federal level and demand that they support legislation funding scientific research. Demand that they support funding for science education. Demand that they support healthcare research. Demand that they support agricultural research. Demand that they support engineering studies. Demand that they support the evidence and the research which demonstrate that all of us hail from immigrants, unless your ancestors were slaves or First Nations Peoples. Demand that they support the evidence that immigrants contribute billions of dollars to our economy and make our country fabulous. Demand that they support research to promote communities and businesses collaborating, based on science, in order for all of us to thrive.

US Capitol Switchboard 202.224.3121

Above all, do not hate anyone. Connect with reverence for the science which makes us living human beings. We do not have to agree; we have to get along. We are in this world together. Let’s make our time on earth as pleasant as possible, for everyone. We are all human beings.

Be kind. Be safe. Be compassionate. Be wise.

No music today. I am at a loss for something appropriate for this post.

Disclaimer: This post is not meant to substitute for a consultation with your mental health care professional team.

If you are thinking of hurting yourself or of hurting someone else, please CALL 9-1-1; CALL 9-8-8; or GO TO the nearest emergency room.

Selected References:

American Academy of Pediatrics (2025). Immunizations. American Academy of Pediatrics Patient Care. Accessed online on September 6, 2025, at https://www.aap.org/en/patient-care/immunizations/?srsltid=AfmBOoojRXR_Yok1gGt6BMm_YAiLwLTEjMyuR5RPVA15Q5qLQG0IXJnP

Bernardi, G., Ricciardi, E., Sani, L., Gaglianese, A., Papasogli, A., Ceccarelli, R., Franzoni, F., Galetta, F., Santoro, G., Goebel, R., Pietrini, P. (October 18, 2013). How Skill Expertise Shapes the Brain Functional Architecture: An fMRI Study of Visuo-Spatial and Motor Processing in Professional Racing-Car and Naïve Drivers. PLoS ONE, 8(10). Accessed online on September 12, 2025, at https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0077764

Cleveland Clinic (03/16/2022). Herd Immunity. Cleveland Clinic Articles. Accessed online on September 6, 2025, at https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22599-herd-immunity

Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (July 22, 2025). What’s In the One Big Beautiful Bill Act? Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Accessed online on September 14, 2025, at https://www.crfb.org/blogs/whats-one-big-beautiful-bill-act

Culli, L. (March 14, 2025). New Insights into Connection Between Housing Quality and Population Health. John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management. Accessed online on September 12, 2025, at https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2025/new-insights-into-connection-between-housing-quality-and-population-health

deGrasse Tyson, N. (September 4, 2025). “Science in Health, Wealth, & War” A Social Media Op-Ed by Neil deGrasse Tyson. Accessed online on September 10, 2025, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GsfckziNCU

Ghilarducci, T. (March 27, 2024). Why Bernie Sanders Is Right About America’s Retirement Crisis. Forbes. Accessed online on September 14, 2025, at https://www.forbes.com/sites/teresaghilarducci/2024/03/27/why-bernie-sanders-is-right-about-americas-retirement-crisis/

Habitat for Humanity (September 2025). Women who upgrade housing and improve health in Argentina. Habitat for Humanity. Accessed online on September 14, 2025, at https://www.habitat.org/our-work/impact/habitat-magazine/2025/09/women-housing-health-argentina

Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University (2025). 2025 The State of the Nation’s Housing. President and Fellows of Harvard College. Accessed online on September 14, 2025, at https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/reports/files/Harvard_JCHS_The_State_of_the_Nations_Housing_2025.pdf

Lehman, D. (October 7, 2024). The Remarkable Success of Childhood Vaccination in the U.S. NEJM Journal Watch. Accessed online on September 6, 2025, at https://www.jwatch.org/na57812/2024/10/07/remarkable-success-childhood-vaccination-us

Marchant, J. (July/August 2024). A Buried Ancient Egyptian Port Reveals Connections Between Distant Civilizations. Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed online on September 22, 2024, at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/hidden-ancient-egyptian-port-reveals-180984485/

Rao, P. (March 4, 2025). A Visual Breakdown of Who Owns America’s Wealth. Visual Capitalist. Accessed online on August 31, 2025, at https://www.visualcapitalist.com/a-visual-breakdown-of-who-owns-americas-wealth/

Shmerling, R.H. (September 3, 2025). Measles in Making a Comeback: Can We Stop It? Harvard Health Publishing Harvard Medical School. Accessed online on September 6, 2025, at https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/measles-is-making-a-comeback-can-we-stop-it-202503063091

UN Innovation Network. June 15, 2023. The Neuroscience of Peace and Conflict. Accessed online on March 9, 2025, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxJPHLbipNM

World Health Organization (2025). History of Vaccination. World Health Organization Newsroom Spotlight. Accessed online on September 6, 2025, at https://www.who.int/news-room/spotlight/history-of-vaccination

Zaki, J. (May 14, 2020). Catastrophe Compassion: Understanding and Extending Prosociality Under Crisis. Trends Cogn. Sci, 24(8): 587-589. Accessed online on November 17, 2024, at https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7221394/#:~:text=Extending%20Catastrophe%20Compassion&text=Floods%2C%20bombings%2C%20and%20earthquakes%20are,boundaries%20that%20typically%20separate%20people.

Zhao, N. (March 31, 2025). Affordability Pyramid Shows 94 Million Households Cannot Buy a $400 000 Home. National Association of Home Builders Eye on Housing. Accessed online on September 14, 2025, at https://eyeonhousing.org/2025/03/affordability-pyramid-shows-94-million-households-cannot-buy-a-400000-home/#:~:text=In%202025%2C%20about%2052.87%20million,a%20shortage%20of%20affordable%20housing.

Nota Bene:

USA Government websites are being purged by the current Trump Administration to align the website content with the regime’s political agenda. Please note that any government website cited in this and other posts on this website may no longer contain evidence based or historically correct information. Thus, I am trying to avoid including any references or resources which derive from a USA government website. This is not bias; I take this action in an effort to maintain a factually sound content in my posts.