Michael Crichton, Amazon.com

During the dry season, Dhaka is one of the most polluted cities in the world. Air pollution levels during this period of the year reach 13-16 times higher than the international quality standard, and that outdoor air pollution kills 14,000of the city's residents annually.

The need to reduce air pollution in the capital may seem obvious. But using scarce resources to fight outdoor air pollution means less funding will be available from the national budget, international donors, or private citizens for other proposals that can do good.

Bjorn Lomborg gave a speech at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusettes on 24 February 2014. The talk, entitled "Prioritizing Our Greatest Problems Versus Prioritizing Our Efforts to Find Solutions," discussed the smartest ways to tackle today's most pressing global issues. 

According to WPI, "the University Lecture Series provides a forum for speakers of national and international importance to enhance scholarly and scientific learning and to stimulate the intellectual climate of the university and surrounding communities."