[DIGEST: ScienceAlert, The Telegraph, The Sydney Morning Herald, Phys.org]

Bacteria are evolving faster than we can find ways to kill them. When bacteria become resistant to superbugs—usually through overuse or incorrect use of antibiotics—they become superbugs. These superbugs are now responsible for at least 700,000 deaths a year, and that number is expected to skyrocket to 10 million by 2050. As Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization, said in 2012, “A post-antibiotic era means, in effect, an end to modern medicine as we know it. Things as common as strep throat or a child’s scratched knee could once again kill.”