 | Do you want to live forever? |
Via another community that I frequent (slashdot.org), I found out about a remarkable individual whose proposal is that we all can live forever. Seems crazy, but the arguments certainly are persuasive.
Aubrey de Grey, a computer scientist who has taught himself natural science, claims that aging is, in his words, “something we need to fix.” In other words, by removing the ageing process as a factor in the degeneration of the physical self, we open the door to protracted life.
When I read the article at first, I was very sceptical, but to my own non-medically-trained self, de Gray paints a cohesive and consistent argument which, to me, makes sense.
Aside from his own claims in the field of cellular biology, what I find most intriguing is the fact that de Gray is entirely self-taught; he carries no formal qualification in his field, yet is regarded with a surprising level of respect and, it’s fair to say, celebrity, in this field. People like this are quite rare in any field - visionaries, you might say - and I am personally fascinated by the kind of person whose intellect and determination allows them to shine in a field against all the odds.
Although this hasn’t got a lot to do with call centres, I reckoned a lot of you might find it a fascinating read, and take a little inspiration out of what is possible with a positive mindset, conviction and a dogged determination to pursue a concept or an idea to the last.
Whether I want to live forever, or even for significantly past my three-score-plus-ten, is another matter. There’s a great ethical and moral can of worms to consider, not to mention the sociological, ethnographical and financial implications of biasing the world’s population toward a higher average age. The planet, as they say, is busy enough at approximately six billion individuals; to push back the house-call from old Grim Reaper is only going to lead to a more crowded planet.
I urge you all to read the article - link above - as it’s very interesting indeed. Please add your comments - I’d love to hear what you think about de Grey’s ideas or the concept of prolonged life…