What do India, France, Mexico, Japan, Britain, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, South Africa and the USA have in common? Answer: all of them had elections in 2024.

No wonder that the Merriam-Webster dictionary chose "polarisation" as its word of the year. This describes a society where people have different views, and the gap grows larger and more extreme over time.²

Politics was not the only place with competing ideas. In fact, 2024 was filled with original thinking. Here are four big ideas from 2024:

1. Return of the right. Across the world, right-wingSometimes referred to as 'conservative', this is a range of political beliefs that emphasise the value of tradition, individual freedom and responsibility, low taxes and a hands-off approach to government. ideas and leaders are becoming popular. These include resistance to immigration, attacks on the eliteThe richest, most powerful, best-educated or best-trained members of society. and policies like protecting local industry through tariffsA form of tax on imports. Each product will have a different tariff - for some EU dairy products, such as French cheese, tariffs in the UK will be more than 30%..³

2. Wonders of wellness. In 2024, celebrities began wearing the Oura ring, which monitors your sleep, or else using the Zoe app to check on their gut health. Meanwhile, sales of dehumidifiers, water filters and SPF50 sun cream increased.⁴

3. Bitcoin breakthrough. Many call cryptocurrencyA digital currency in which transactions are verified and records maintained by a decentralised system using cryptography, rather than by a centralised authority. the future of money. This year, the value of BitcoinA virtual currency that is "mined" using computers. Bitcoin was inspired by the idea that currencies' value should not be controlled by central banks. In truth, however, its value has fluctuated much more wildly than that of most centralised currencies. soared past $100,000 (£79,200) - an important milestone. Donald TrumpAn American television personality who became US president from 2016 to 2020, and will become president again in January 2025. is promising to "do something great in crypto",⁵ encouraging banks and even ordinary citizens to start investing.

4. Nuclear renewal. Energy shortages have made nuclear powerNuclear energy is the energy in the nucleus, or core, of an atom - a tiny piece of matter. It can be used to create electricity. popular again in countries such as Britain, Japan and America. Tech giants are also investing in nuclear power because AIA computer programme that has been designed to think.  and data centresA large group of computer servers used by organisations to store, process and distribute very large amounts of data. use so much energy.⁶

Some people think a single year can change the future. Others think history is a process of gradual change. Even the most revolutionary ideas take a long time to develop and spread, or else generate lots of attention, but never influence people's everyday lives.

It is too early to tell whether 2024 was a turning point. But the exciting and frightening ideas that emerged this year will give people plenty to think about. 

Was it an intellectual tipping point?

Yes: This year has changed how people think about far-right politics, nuclear power, money, health and house building. Any one of these ideas could profoundly alter our everyday lives.

No: It is exciting to think that one idea could change the world. In reality, people are slow to adopt new ways of thinking, while historical changes take time to embed.

Or... It is too early to tell whether 2024 was an intellectual revolution. New ideas only matter once they enter politics, business, culture and the public conversation.