When the world’s population was several million fewer than the total number of Indians in the world today, Reverend Thomas Robert Malthus predicted that unchecked population growth would lead to famine, starvation and high rates of death. As countries release their updated population numbers—the United States did so in December, India did so last month, and China’s numbers should be coming out this month—it’s interesting to look back at his forecast, even though technological advances like vaccines, the pill, antibiotics and tractors in the intervening two centuries have so far prevented it from coming true.