The mathematical models used to design and evaluate structured mortgage securities, using vast computer power and reams of data, did not save us from the consequences of all-too-human behavior.

As NATO summits go, this weekend's meeting of the alliance's members in Chicago may be memorable if only for being the least memorable one in recent history. Of course, quiet summits are not necessarily bad summits. 

Successfully translating scientific discoveries requires a sense of urgency, which some disease foundations seem to have, and many big pharmas appear to need. Patients waiting expectantly for medical research to produce important new cures are finding bad news almost everywhere they turn.

India is fast undergoing one of the most momentous transformations the world has ever seen. In his book India: A Portrait, Patrick French chronicles that epic change, telling human stories to explain India’s larger national narrative and exposing the cultural foundations of its political, economic and social complexities. Sadanand Dhume, a resident fellow at AEI, will moderate a discussion about this book. Walter Andersen, director of SAIS’s South Asia program, will provide introductory remarks.

By keeping the focus on better health for real people, perhaps we’ll develop both the humility to recognize how little we still understand as well as the drive to ensure — and emphatically demand — that our advances ultimately wind up not only in papers, but also in patients.

We should educate people about their rights, teach consistently about the creation of political parties, work to free political prisoners and build the foundations of freedom.

A poignant story in Thursday’s Boston Globe describes how the O’Donnell family of Boston channeled their love of a son, Joey, who died tragically at the age of 12 from cystic fibrosis, into a successful mission to develop impactful new treatments for this terrible affliction.

Representative Paul Ryan presented a comprehensive reform plan, "A Roadmap for America's Future," aimed at reclaiming the promise and prosperity of our exceptional nation.