As countries get richer, deaths from infectious diseases fall first, but the benefits keep going. Wealthier nations also have much lower rates of chronic illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, cancer and diabetes, which are the main causes of death in rich countries today. Cleaner water, vaccines, better nutrition and antibiotics cut child and maternal deaths early on and lengthened lives, so more people survive long enough to develop chronic conditions in the first place. Yet the gap between rich and poor countries also shows that prosperity brings more than medicine alone: access to diagnosis, treatment and healthy living conditions matters just as much. Over the last century, the typical cause of death has shifted from infections in childhood toward diseases of old age.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.