University of Wisconsin–Madison

Historical events

  • A generation lost to dust

    This study examines the long-run health consequences of being in utero during the Dust Bowl, one of the most severe environmental disasters in U.S. history.

  • Cicada resting on tree branch

    A noisy clue to hidden health costs

    This study uncovers a surprising link between cicadas and shorter lifespans, not because of the insects themselves, but because of the pesticide surges triggered by their emergence.

  • Childhood flu, shorter lives

    This study finds that boys who lived through the deadly 1918 influenza pandemic, especially in high-exposure cities, died earlier as adults than those who didn’t.

  • Large crowd of men, many wearing hats, listening to speeches at mass meeting of Works Progress Administration (WPA). They are workers protesting congressional cut of relief appropriations. Taken in San Francisco, California -- Photo by Dorothea Lange

    Fewer bank deposits, shorter lives

    This study examines how being born during the Great Depression impacted how long people lived.

  • Torn Roe V Wade newspaper headline in red and blue on the US Constitution with the United States Supreme Court in background

    Legal abortion and lifelong health

    This study examines the long-term health benefits of early-life exposure to legal abortion.

  • Mill closures, shorter lives

    This study finds that boys born in New England counties hit hard by the textile industry collapse in the 1920s–30s lived about 3.6 months less if they stayed in those areas.

  • Clinic for polio victims. Nurse helps group of children patients in small room. She is crouching while holding a little boy's hand, while other small children sit and watch. A girl with a walker also stands in the corner watching.

    Polio’s lifelong toll

    This study reveals that early-life exposure to the 1916 polio epidemic had long-term consequences on male longevity.

  • Social Security cuts and the toll on longevity

    This study examines how a 20th-century Social Security policy cut retirement benefits for certain birth cohorts, resulting in reduced income and shorter lifespans.

  • The lasting impact of WWI veteran bonuses on children’s longevity

    This study looks at how a surprise one-time cash bonus in 1936—given to World War I veterans—affected the long-term health of their children.

  • Frazier president Penny Peavler and director of marketing Andy Treinen dump a barrel of bourbon to mark the opening of "Spirits of the Bluegrass: Prohibition and Kentucky. Bourbon dumped to open Spirits of the Bluegrass, October 29, 2015.

    The longevity of dry laws

    This study examines the long-term health effects of early-life exposure to alcohol prohibition in the U.S.

  • The pest that helped kids live longer

    This study explores how a devastating pest, the boll weevil, accidentally improved long-term health for children growing up in the early 1900s Cotton Belt.

  • When film fuels harm

    Exposure in early life to the social and racial hostility sparked by the 1915 film Birth of a Nation led to significant long-term health impacts on Black Americans.