On May 7, 2018, while the latest movie in the Marvel Comics Universe, Avengers: Infinity War, is breaking box office records, we stop to ask about the main premise of the film, the arch villain Thanos and his plan to reduce life in the Universe by half in order to prevent an overpopulation catastrophe. Our question is, “Has anyone tried this plan in real life?”
Digging Deeper
In a word, yes! The most populous country on Earth, China, instituted a “One Child” policy whereby married couples were limited to having only one child. This plan went into effect in 1979 and lasted until the draconian measure was relaxed in 2015 (effective January 1, 2016), with couples now allowed to have 2 children.
