Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

Visualizing where happiness comes from

Researchers asked 10,000 participants to list 10 things that recently made them happy. One author broke down the responses into subject-verb-object categories, isolating the people and events that made responders satisfied. The result highlights how simple things like having dinner or watching a movie made someone happy. Dive in and look for some ideas or tips on feeling happy today with this fascinating visualization.

Check out America's happiest places to live

Where are the best overall places to live in the US? This list focused on finding the happiest towns in America, given the ongoing reconsideration of how people want to live and work in the post-pandemic world. The selection process involved...

An interactive map of 250 American places worth visiting before you die

The Smithsonian created ten categories of landmarks—from history and food to oddball Americana and architecture—to enrich your celebration of America's semiquincentennial. You can sort by region or category, see a map of each location, and learn each spot's significance in a clean, aesthetic user interface.

An interactive sound map of 8,000 locations around the world

Cities and Memory's global sound map covers 140 countries, featuring paired recordings: original field captures of a moment in time and an artist's recomposition built from the same source. The structure treats every location as both document and raw material, giving 2,500 contributors the same prompt with unpredictable results.

In 2026, Finland was named the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year

Analysts attribute Finland's joy factor to its wealth, social safety network, and high life expectancy, among factors. The results were based on answers from roughly 100,000 people in 140 countries and territories. Respondents were asked to rank their life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10. Finnish respondents gave an average life satisfaction score of 7.7; Afghans answered 1.4. The US, in 23rd place, reported an average score of 6.8.

A report on social well-being around the world

This extensive report provides quantitative evidence on social well-being trends for 36 countries. Data cover demography and family characteristics, employment and wealth, mobility and housing, health status, social expenditure, subjective...

People who feel connected to nature also report a higher well-being

Based on data collected from over 38,000 participants across 75 countries, spending time appreciating Earth's beauty appears to increase one's satisfaction with life. Whether it's a hike in the woods, a dip in the ocean, or time spent watching the sunset, the findings held true across a wide range of economic, cultural, and environmental contexts. The findings also indicate that connection to nature fosters experiences of being present and attentive, which are strongly linked to mental health.

An interactive look at your own life through demographics

This interactive site allows you to understand the journey of your life in numbers and dates. World Data Lab asks users to enter their date of birth, country of birth, and sex at birth. The site then provides an interactive page tailored to your...

Google Search trends reveal truths about society that traditional surveys miss

Studies of human behavior show that survey respondents may lie to present themselves more favorably. By studying anonymous search data, researchers have uncovered hidden racism, mental health struggles, and interest in taboo or stigmatized topics.

An interactive map of race and ethnicity across the US

This map by CNN shows race and ethnicity across the United States. America is more diverse and has more people than ever before. According to the 2020 census, much of its growth is occurring in and around metropolitan areas. By plotting the US...

In 2026, Finland was named the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year based on its wealth, social safety network, and high life expectancy, among other factors.

Explore this animated story about loneliness that situates modern statistics about isolation

This beautiful "scrollytelling" story—weaving together animations and text as a user scrolls down a page—takes a reader through a typical weekend day in 2021, drawing data from the American Time Use Survey. It underscores the loneliness that many people may experience, highlighting potential unaddressed mental health needs.

Explore interactive global maps of cancer prevalence

Cancer is a ubiquitous disease, with populations across the globe having incidence rates that reflect various risk factors. The Cancer Atlas lets users explore a comprehensive global overview of cancer statistics, including incidence, mortality, prevalence, and survival rates across various regions and Human Development Index categories.

The world's 10 best places to live

The Economist Intelligence Unit's Global Liveability Index ranked 173 cities based on stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. The report shows an overall increase in livability scores compared to previous...

Mapping the origins of the world's crops

Food has evolved alongside humanity, and through globalized trade, much of the world can enjoy foods once isolated to one region. Examine where your favorite foods originated from and see how diet differs across cultures with these interactive...

See the UCLA Loneliness Scale, often used to measure global loneliness

This 20-question survey, first established in the late 1970s and subsequently revised and often adapted, aims to measure the subjective experience of loneliness. Respondents rate various items on a scale of 1 (Never) to 4 (Often). One revision of the test (not included here) offers an abbreviated three-question version that focuses on how often you feel companionship, left out, and isolated.

Does money buy happiness?

Perhaps you've heard of a 2010 study that found more money actually does correlate with an increased level of happiness, but after $75K per year, the happiness level didn't significantly increase. As it turns out, new research has complicated those findings. Listen to this podcast episode for more information.

Explore an interactive map of the unified theories of everything

This interactive concisely describes many highly complex theories ranging from quantum gravity and black holes to dark matter and energy. Supplementary resources, key questions, and possible solutions accompany each description. As of 2026, no developed theory provides an accepted explanation of all observed phenomena in the universe at all scales.

A map of WWII refugees and their stories

Trace the paths of different people and families on this interactive map as they made their escape from the Nazi regime. Primary and secondary sources like letters, documents, memoirs and diaries, photos, interviews, and news clippings showed how many found a path to freedom, from the Kindertransport to individual stories.

Explore an interactive tool that reveals why Americans are unemployed

Among unemployed Americans ages 25 to 54, almost 30% cited being laid off as the reason for their unemployment.

Explore global solar resources with this interactive map

One of the biggest challenges to deploying solar panels is whether electricity can be generated reliably when needed, day after day. This detailed interactive map calculates the solar power output potential of regions worldwide and provides a visual comparison between locations such as North Africa and the US Midwest.

An interactive map tracking conflict in the Middle East

Conflict and peace in the Middle East are constantly in flux. Decision-makers need up-to-date developments – both within individual countries and across the greater MENA region – to identify trends and risks of violence, and opportunities for...

Track where your plastic trash will be in 20 years

This map illustrates the fate of floating plastic 20 years from now. Simply add a location of choice and see the journey unfold.

Why do some people always get lost?

Using GPS, anthropological data, and VR, scientists have learned that one's sense of direction is largely influenced by upbringing. A person's wayfinding ability can be measured by how accurately they point toward an out-of-sight location, a challenge further complicated by imagining they're somewhere else and pointing toward a third location. Anxiety, safety concerns, and dislike of wandering can negatively impact one's sense of direction, which can improve with practice.

Is life all about pleasure? Debating the Experience Machine

If you could plug into an Experience Machine that gave you total pleasure all the time, would you do it? Philosopher Robert Nozick thinks you wouldn't, using this as evidence against hedonism, the view that life is all about pleasure. Explore the nuances of the argument and counterarguments with this accessible article.

Explore what 20,000 letters to an advice columnist tell us about US anxieties and concerns.

This interactive story breaks down common themes—and specific questions—that were posed to Dear Abby, America's longest-running advice column.

This site reaches millions of visitors who are tired of AI chatbots and seeking human connection. Pretend to be an AI chatbot and ask questions, provide answers, and draw for people in real time.

Explore our favorite visualization of the immense scale of space, from an astronaut to the size of the observable universe

Explore an interactive map of battles from the American Revolution, along with detailed summaries of each engagement

44% of Americans say they pray at least once a day—discover how your state's religiosity stacks up against the rest of the country.

See the most iconic photos from four decades of LIFE magazine

20,000 letters to the advice columnist 'Dear Abby' provide insight into prevailing sex, religion, and LGBTQ fears, anxieties, and concerns from the 1950s onward.

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

This real-time tracking of the hantavirus cruise ship outbreak in May 2026 offers a unique glimpse into the global reach of the outbreak and whether the virus sickened passengers and their communities around the world.

Use this calculator to find the dollar value of your mental load, from meal planning to coordinating after-school care for your children.

Children are now three times more likely to say they want to be a YouTuber when they grow up than an astronaut, with some even attending 'YouTube camps' that teach kids how to create content for the platform.

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

Fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef have increased after installing waterproof speakers on the ocean floor that played recordings of sounds from healthy coral reefs.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

Learn how your body is, scientifically, like a firework with its own slow, controlled burn.

In 2009, the nation was gripped by the story of a missing young boy who was believed to be floating over Colorado in a homemade balloon, until it was revealed that he was at home the whole time.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of young men ate standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—as part of government research to better understand food safety.

Recent research found that the brain doesn't seem to massively rewire following amputation—upending earlier beliefs about the cause of phantom limb pain.

Fear or disgust related to clusters of holes and cracks, called trypophobia, may stem from evolutionary processes to help us avoid pathogens.

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

Scientists can determine Earth's past climate conditions by analyzing air trapped in microscopic bubbles within ice cores—columns of compressed snow layers that build up over hundreds of thousands of years.

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

Legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson headquarters in Wisconsin, aiming to make a cathedral-like workplace

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.