Today, on the radio, there was a discussion of stem cell research and it’s possible effect on our life expectancy. The scientist who was being interviewed claimed that there are people in their 40s and 50s right now who will live to be 150 years old!
What interested me was that they weren’t talking about extending life as we are presently, but that the treatment would return the person to the physical status of a healthy thirty year old. He claimed that you would look and feel like a thirty year old at 150 years!
It brought to mind the stories by Robert Heinlein, and his character, Lazarus Long. Science fiction is slowly becoming science fact.
My mother said that she didn’t care to live to be 100. I’m sure I must have said something like “How can you say that!? Think of all the wonderful things left to do!” But, by 90 years, she had lost most of her friends, and all the family from her generation and older. I wonder if she would have opted for regeneration, or to be allowed to follow those she loved.
The doctor said that they would be able to reverse the trend toward Alzheimer’s, but once someone developed the disease, they would not be able to return the memories that had been lost.
Can you imagine almost doubling your life expectancy? Would you rush to do it, thinking of all the grand children and great grands and so on that you would get to know? Would you study another language? How would you support yourself? Would you have three or four different careers, or would you choose to be an expert in one subject? Think of 130 years of trying to decide what meals to fix! Would you have the same husband or significant other for the entire time, or would you marry every 45 years or so?
I really like the idea of having a 30 year old body again. I’d like to be free of the knees and feet that hurt, and the achy back after gardening and so on. But……I don’t yet know how I feel about the trade offs.
What would you want to do?