Its that time of year. As Future Perfect has in the past, were rounding up our most read stories of the year. This little trip down memory lane can give us a sense of the breadth and depth of Future Perfects coverage and a sense of what stories and subjects you, the audience, are most excited by.This years top 10 list features most of our classic subjects, like animal welfare and factory farming, represented by Marina Bolotnikovas piece on why Thanksgiving is exactly the right day to lose the turkey and go vegan. Our love of attempting to predict the future, as evidenced by our always popular forecast for the new year. And AI safety, as shown by Sigal Samuel and Kelsey Pipers newsbreaking exposs into OpenAI.But there were surprises on the list as well, like outside writers Gil Barndollar and Matthew C. Mais prescient warning that Americas military is running short of its most important component: soldiers. Or Dylan Matthewss fascinating deep dive into the little known State Department intelligence bureau that has a better track record than the CIA when it comes to predicting world events.This time of year, Im always grateful both for our amazing staff and slate of outside contributors, and for the attention of our audience especially those of you who subscribe to this newsletter (and the others weve launched this year: Marina and Kenny Torrellas Processing Meat and Sigals ethical advice column Your Mileage May Vary, which comes twice a month via this feed). Heres to a bigger and better 2025.1) Traveling this summer? Maybe dont let the airline scan your face by Sigal Samuel Ill reveal a little secret of the journalism biz: Timing matters. We published Sigals takedown of airport facial screening in the middle of the summers record-setting air travel season, as Americans took to the skies again now that Covid was more or less in the rearview mirror. Millions of those fliers probably allowed airlines to scan their faces without thinking, but as Sigal wrote, this is something you can opt out of and given privacy concerns, something you probably should opt out of. Keep that in mind this holiday season.2) Youre probably eating way too much protein by Kenny Torrella So I learned two things when this piece came out in January. One, very few of us actually need to hyperload on protein, unless youre an active bodybuilder. In fact, as Kenny wrote, even without trying the average American is already eating significantly more protein than dietary guidelines call for, thanks to our meat-heavy diets. And two, our readers have really, really strong opinions about nutritional science. Im not sure any other single piece this year generated so much feedback.3) Kate Middleton says she is cancer free. But why are she and so many young people getting sick? by Dylan Scott Heres another journalism lesson: If you happen to have a deeply reported story about a somewhat obscure health issue in this case, the rise of certain cancers among young people definitely make sure you push it out when one of the most famous figures in the world becomes part of that story. Dylan Scott, who was a great addition to Future Perfect this year as an editor and writer, brought a deep well of expertise in health reporting to this story on the rise of colorectal cancer in patients under 50. That it coincided in part with the happy news that the Princess of Wales was now cancer free helped it reach a much larger audience.4) 24 things we think will happen in 2024 by the Future Perfect staffYou people just love to read about what we think will happen in the year ahead. (A separate prediction piece that we did for Voxs 10th anniversary, on 10 things we think will happen over the next 10 years, was also popular.) Why is that? Id like to think this is because our audience has deep trust in our ability to analyze the trends that help make up the future, but maybe its just because you look forward to seeing all the wrong predictions we make. Well, good news! If you come back on December 30, you can see just how well (or badly) we did.5) Is oat milk unhealthy? Thats the wrong question. by Benji JonesBenj, who can usually be found trekking to colorful locations around the world to document the plight of biodiversity for Voxs climate section, popped over to Future Perfect in February to dismantle the case against oat milk. As Benji explained, foods shouldnt be classified through a simple dichotomy of good/bad. And we definitely shouldnt ignore the impact a food has on the environment or the animals we share it with and nondairy oat milk is a winner on both counts.6) America isnt ready for another war because it doesnt have the troops by Gil Barndollar and Matthew C. MaiOne of my goals in 2024 was to make the future of war a bigger part of Future Perfects coverage. Whether we like it or not and I do not conflict is on the rise, and the technology we use in war is changing rapidly. Thats why I was so happy to see this outside piece from Catholic University senior research fellow Gil Barndollar and Defense Priorities contributing fellow Matthew C. Mai earn such a wide readership. It connects two major trends demographic change and the rise of global conflict and shows how theyre intersecting in a way that is dangerous for the US.7) 8 million turkeys will be thrown in the trash this Thanksgiving by Marina BolotnikovaJournalism lesson No. 3: Never let a major holiday go by without capitalizing on audience interest. Factory farming stories over Thanksgiving have become something of a tradition for us, but Marinas piece was a real tour de force. She began with an unobjectionable premise Americans dont actually like turkey that much and developed it into a call to action for those who care about animal welfare to take back Thanksgiving. Sidesgiving, anyone? 8) Warren Buffetts breakup with the Gates Foundation will hurt the world by Kelsey PiperAt Future Perfect, we do our celebrity breakup news a little differently. There is surely delicious gossip behind multibillionaire philanthropist Warren Buffetts decision to not give away his fortune after his death to the Gates Foundation, as had been long planned. But Kelsey was much more concerned about what would be lost when Buffets $137 billion fortune goes to his three adult children, rather than to one of the most effective global health charities ever developed. As she put it: Three eccentrics have to agree on how to spend $135 billion sounds more like the premise for a sitcom than a process that will accomplish real good with that much money.9) The obscure federal intelligence bureau that got Vietnam, Iraq, and Ukraine right by Dylan MatthewsDylan Matthews is currently better known as the guy who started an endless round of discourse about whether its ethical to give money to rebuild Notre Dame instead of saving the lives of children. (It is not.) But I know that there is nothing Dylan likes better than to dig deep into an obscure part of the federal government and interview DC elders about what things were like in the old days. That side of Dylan came up with one of my favorite stories of 2024: a profile of the State Departments Bureau of Intelligence and Research, which has put far bigger and better funded intelligence agencies to shame with its oracular predictive powers.10) I lost trust: Why the OpenAI team in charge of safeguarding humanity imploded by Sigal Samuel and Leaked OpenAI documents reveal aggressive tactics toward former employees by Kelsey Piper Im cheating slightly by including two stories in one slot, but hey, Im the editor. The reality is these two stories are deeply connected, part of a series of investigative reports into ChatGPT-maker OpenAI that we put out in May. In the first, Sigal Samuel got former OpenAI employees to give her the inside story of how the AI startups superalignment team the people charged with keeping future superintelligence safe went kaput. In the second, Kelsey Piper received company documents showing that CEO Sam Altman wasnt being truthful about the way OpenAI was using the threat of blocking equity sales to keep former employees in line. These stories broke news and created real change in perhaps the most important AI company out there. Theres no better example of Future Perfects impact on the world in 2024. A version of this story originally appeared in the Future Perfect newsletter. Sign up here!Youve read 1 article in the last monthHere at Vox, we're unwavering in our commitment to covering the issues that matter most to you threats to democracy, immigration, reproductive rights, the environment, and the rising polarization across this country.Our mission is to provide clear, accessible journalism that empowers you to stay informed and engaged in shaping our world. By becoming a Vox Member, you directly strengthen our ability to deliver in-depth, independent reporting that drives meaningful change.We rely on readers like you join us.Swati SharmaVox Editor-in-ChiefSee More: