Quote of the day—BioViva Science

In fiction and the popular imagination the quest for youth is associated with a bevy of unsavory characters: pharaohs, vampires, and Saturday morning villains. Yet the real face of longevity research is us, all of us. All of us who have ever had to watch a friend or family member lose everything to an age-related illness, all of us who have had to sit by while a “natural” process executed an innocent person. What sort of perverse imagination could think anyone deserves to die in this way?

BioViva Science
Email sent on November 11, 2021
[I’ve had many people tell me something to the effect of there being something wrong with wanting to live for much longer than the currently expected lifetimes. The reasons were varied and none were compelling to me. Probably the best was something to the effect that there needed to be “room” for new people with new ideas to prevent a stagnation of civilization and possibly technological advancement.

The worst was rather personal.

As my mother was sliding away with Alzheimer I had a friend cheerfully tell me I should enjoy the natural aging. As that is what she did as her grandfather as his brain failed and he could no longer recognize family and friends or speak coherently.

I didn’t accept her advice then and I don’t now.

There is evidence scientists are close to effective treatments if not outright cures for dementia. With my family history I see this as a race between scientists and time. I have a rather keen interest in this race as my life has a much higher than acceptable risk of being decided by the winner.—Joe]

Share

12 thoughts on “Quote of the day—BioViva Science

  1. While I haven’t had the misfortune of age-related illness, so far, in my parents, I disagree with the notion we need to make room for others and new ideas.

    I’m fascinated by the world. I would love to experience centuries worth of history. My main issue is not the physical aspects but the fact, as my mother has stated to me herself, I no longer recognize the world. The world and experiences I grew up with and were deemed normal. I literally do not comprehend all of the things that are seen as acceptable in a social sense.

    So either I’m not normal or they aren’t and I don’t think it is me. It is painful and disconcerting to watch people want to destroy what is around them for petty social reasons or they are too comfortable they’ve become bored and are creating conflict to find meaning. Without realizing they are actually destroying the very structures and society they take for granted as having always existed.

    I don’t know if I want to see the end result of that. I would from a distance like hermit on the mountain, looking down. I sure don’t want to interact with it. But nowhere in that confusion do I have a view of “four score and then make room for some more”. Nope, I got here first and I going to ride the ride for as long as I can. The Universe is too much fun to not want to interact with for a long time.

  2. My father had Alzheimer’s and intra-cerebral hemorrhage, so for about ten years he gradually lost his mental faculties, until he couldn’t work, not for pay, nor at home, he forgot who we were, who his wife was, where he lived, until he was just a ghost wandering the house he built. eventually he lost the swallow reflex and got Aspiration pneumonia, and died over the course of three days. It was hard because we, his sons, got caught by this while we were still at home, and our lives were essentially on hold while we slogged along coping. And it’s not right to say that it was my choice to help.

    I said once that I would rather die outright than put my family through this, and I have also said that whenever I die, I want to go fast enough to not bankrupt everyone, but also slowly enough so that people can get used to me not being around anymore.

  3. I am not so optimistic. Do we really know and understand the diseases that affect us as we get older? We had a war on cancer forever and the only real treatment (except for 1%) for terminal cancer is still chemo both for palliative and maintenance reasons. Dementia seems even less well understood.

    About half of my relatives had prolonged illnesses at the end. The lucky ones died of sudden cardiac events. I do not expect things to change much.

    We treat our pets better.

  4. Survival of the species, and survival of the fittest, are at direct odds with each other. So the whole making room argument don’t go far.
    Looking around at the world today. We once again see a minority out to destroy everything good and wonderful. Insane.
    But lets not be hypocrites. Most of us do insane crap. We forget to use logic, reason, mercy, and a host of other virtues most of the time.
    If we call science, and those working to prove their theories, theoreticians.(other wise their engineers). Then it’s just a matter of finding the theory that fits most of the known facts.
    Maybe growing a soul is the the ultimate expression of survival of the species and the fittest?
    For many hours and days as I toiled in life. I ask the question why it was so hard.
    One day the answer came to me that the most beautiful flowers grow in shit.
    Does it ever occur to us it’s not suppose to be pleasant from this perspective?
    If it was suppose to be a wonderful place. We only had what, 3.5 billion years to get it done? And we got no one to blame for this shithole but ourselves, right?
    “Nothing goes up to heaven that didn’t come down from heaven.” Maybe we were f–k-ups? That god is giving a chance at redemption?
    And this is suppose to be a good way for us to consider your options?
    Face challenges on multiple levels? Work thru problems. Learn how to keep our guard up? We only think this is a bad place because we can’t see a better place, or a reason for the pain.
    AA taught me that the first part of not being a total f–k-up, was admitting I was one.
    And if you think I’m insane for believing in something I can’t prove. Then I’m not any more insane than most of you? At least I don’t think shit just happens all on it’s own. You know, The theory of evolution by total natural coincidence, billions of times over? What a load.
    And certainly less insane than 90% of those that rule over us to our destruction?
    Their lying to us all, again, for the 1,000th. time. And were just going to let’em git away with it. Were all so insane, we let them lie to us about things that were disproven in 8th. grade biology class.
    This place is as close to hell as I want to get! Save me Jesus please!
    As I’ve said before. You live 200 years. you get a mortgage for 175.
    I’ve been some insane morons slave long enough.
    Death smiles at use all. Smile back and fight as hard as you can to do the right thing. If you get a chance to get back up. Get back up and fight again.
    If there is something on the other side, we’ll find out soon enough.
    And that’s something Bill Gates can buy his way out of.

    • Correction. And that’s something Bill Gates and friends ain’t buying their way out of. Praise the lord!

      • My guess is that Bill Gates has a 50-50 chance or better of “buying his way out”. And my kids have a 90% chance of being able to “buy their way out”. We live in very interesting times.

        • OK, so he lives a thousand years. All he’s ever going to be is more bored by everything around him.
          There ain’t no winning here.
          Ask the richest man to ever live. King Solomon. (the guy collected exotic woman, over 600.)
          ” Every night the most menial laborer in my kingdom sleeps. And for all my riches, I cannot buy a good nights sleep.”
          Ask Mikey Jackson how that worked out? Someone else got bored taking care of his ass. Just one slip, and poof, off you go.
          What he going to do? Put himself in a computer program? And in the middle of his big fantasy scene it decides to update?
          To many moving parts to life. To much dependence.
          We can only hope what he buys is made by the lowest bidder?

  5. What makes people think the drug companies are looking for “cures” for diseases? Notice what they are doing with the vaxx? Continual “updates/boosters”, probably for life (however short it turns out). There isn’t much profit in a one-time cure. That is not their focus, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they had buried any number of cures while hunting for the subscription version of a fix.

  6. “…there needed to be “room” for new people with new ideas to prevent a stagnation of civilization and possibly technological advancement.”

    That notion is straight out of communist revolutionary thinking. If we lived to be 500 years old, think of the knowledge base, the experience, the first-hand knowledge of history, and so on and on, that would be available to young and old people alike. And none of it would prevent the young, or the old, from innovating. Quite the opposite. With a better understanding of the histories of various technologies, and a more complete understanding of science and physics, everyone of all ages would be in a better position to innovate. The idea that one person’s knowledge and experience somehow holds another person back is among the more ludicrous ever presented. It’s just the opposite.

    No, Young Grasshopper; what the communist revolutionaries really mean is that their lies, tricks and manipulations are more readily implemented upon the ignorant and the inexperienced, and that the combined knowledge, understanding and wisdom of the experienced is a threat to their programs. That’s why every leftist revolution has had its youth organizations and has endeavored to separate the generations.

    Ever since the serpent tricked Eve into eating the fruit, evil has always sought after maximum naiveté because that’s where its greatest hope for success resides.

    We aren’t beating death. There is only one name by whom you can be saved.

    • Among Engineers the complaint was that in interviewing experienced applicants for a position, frequently they had, not five years experience, but, one year of experience repeated five times.
      With childhood taking up an increasing proportion of one’s life, the opportunity to actually learn and apply something new to life experience appears within a smaller and smaller window, making the likelihood of new developments less likely.

Comments are closed.