SLEEP

Worries about their world can exact a toll on the mental health of young people

A Sense Of Place

ILLUMINATION: The skylight spanning most of the roof of Gordon Hall is an architectural feat of utility and beauty. Throughout the years, it has allowed natural light to filter into the top floors of building’s interior: It has illuminated some of the collections of the Warren Anatomical Museum, and it has warmed the atmosphere and provided a window on the weather for staff working in several of the School’s core administrative offices. Soon, it will provide a portal to the sky for a reconfigured space designed to fill the flexwork needs of an even broader range of administrative and support departments.

CLASS NOTES: Alumni share suggestions for skills they have found valuable and that today’s MD students might find useful to augment their coursework as they prepare for the evolving demands of the practice of medicine.

SPECIAL REPORT MENTAL HEALTH

10 A World in Peril by Charles Schmidt

The existential threat posed by climate change leads to anxiety in many young people.

18 Loss of Separation by Stephanie Dutchen Microplastics are everywhere, including in our bodies. What might this mean for our health?

20 Broken Links by Elizabeth Gehrman

Loneliness among young people is on the rise, sparking concerns over their mental and physical health.

26 Stand in Line by Jake Miller

The need for mental health care among pediatric patients is growing, but the resources to provide that care are not keeping pace.

30 The Unblinking Eye by Ann Marie Menting

A filmmaking team uses visual narratives to tell stories that allow for understanding and humanity.

34 Inside View

The beauty of the brain is captured in photos.

FEATURE

45 Energy Grid

An excerpt from We the Scientists by Amy Dockser Marcus.

DEPARTMENTS

4 Commentary A letter from the dean

5 Discovery Research at Harvard Medical School

9 Noteworthy News from Harvard Medical School

40 Five Questions by Catherine Caruso

Natasha Archer on how academic medicine helps advance science and improve patient care

41 Roots by Catherine Caruso

Judith Edersheim on wedding law with medicine to better inform legal decisions

42 Student Life by Elizabeth Gehrman

PhD candidates on their neuroscience research

49 Rounds Alumni on the skills clinicians should learn today to better prepare for tomorrow