My grandmother has a morbid sense of humour not untypical of the English. She used to quip that she wouldn’t live to receive her state pension, insisting that “everyone in our family dies before 65.” Imagine our delight, and her bemusement, when we all got together last month to celebrate her 90th birthday.

Perhaps she should’ve expected a good innings. There has been a remarkable increase in life expectancy in recent decades in much of the world. To see how to eke out more years still, researchers often look at places with a high proportion of old people. One such study formed the basis of our recent article on why Australians appear to outlive their Anglophone peers. Read it, and other stories on longevity, to see if you should expect to attend more nonagenarians’ birthday parties in future—perhaps even your own.