Fitness amongst young adults varies widely from one country to another, and is strongly associated with both socioeconomic development and gender equality, a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the Journal of Sport and Health Science reports. The results indicate that levels of development and gender equality in a society can affect differences in physical capacity and therefore public health in general.

A historian explores how a little-known Illinois company, the Americana Corporation, helped shape the modern nursing home in postwar America. Her research shows how architecture was central to this shift, not just housing older adults but creating an entire system of care. By examining the physical and institutional design of Americana’s homes, she uncovers how midcentury ideals around aging, medicine and profit became embedded in the built environment – a legacy that continues to define long-term care today.