NYU Stern · 2026

ZIP Code Destiny

From cradle to grave

Vishal Singh

Life expectancy at birth in census tracts, one ridge for each tenth of the deprivation rankingTen ridgelines, one for each tenth (decile) of U.S. census tracts ranked by the Area Deprivation Index, from the least deprived tenth at the top to the most deprived tenth at the bottom. Each ridge shows how life expectancy at birth, 2010 to 2015, is distributed across the tracts in that tenth, from shorter on the left to longer on the right, with each tract weighted by its population. A short tick under the crest of each ridge marks its median. Every ridge is drawn on one scale and encloses the same area. The ridges step to the left from top to bottom: each tenth is centered on a shorter life expectancy than the one above it. The ridges at the bottom are lower and wider than the ones at the top. The ridges overlap, so some tracts in the most deprived tenth have a longer life expectancy than some tracts in the least deprived tenth. Tracts with a large share of residents in group quarters, such as prisons, nursing homes and dormitories, are left out. Tract estimates are modeled and carry error, so each ridge is wider than the true spread across places.
Each ridge is one tenth of U.S. census tracts, ranked by neighborhood deprivation from the least deprived at the top to the most deprived at the bottom. The tick marks the median. Further left is a shorter life expectancy. Life expectancy at birth by census tract, 2010 to 2015 (USALEEP, National Center for Health Statistics), grouped by national Area Deprivation Index decile (Neighborhood Atlas, 2023) and weighted by tract population. Tracts with many residents in institutions and other group quarters are left out. Tract estimates carry error, so each ridge is wider than the true spread across places.