Indefinite lifespan possible for many alive today, experts say

By Dick Pelletier

Imagine playing basketball at the age of 200 with your great-great-great grandchildren; and living in a powerful body that can never age or get sick; and finally, imagine flying an inter-galactic spaceship in the next millennium. If life extension enthusiasts reach their goals, this could become your future.

More and more researchers now say that achieving indefinite lifespan is only a matter of time. Aging is a destructive biochemical process, but today, scientists are on the brink of understanding and eliminating many of its life-destroying processes.

British Telecom’s Futurologist Ian Pearson believes that biotech and nanotech advances expected over the next three decades will be sufficient for us to make a realistic stab at ending most unwanted deaths. “Unless one is unfortunate enough to die from accident or disease, many alive today have a good chance of not dying at all”, he says.

Other experts agree. In a 60 Minutes television interview, famed anti-aging researcher Dr. Aubrey de Gray said that gene-mapping success will soon produce drugs tailored to individual needs, therapies to cure hereditary ailments, and stem cells that rejuvenate organs.

“First generation therapies will give us, maybe thirty extra years of healthy living”, de Gray said. “New therapies will add another thirty or fifty years; keeping us one-step ahead of the grim reaper”. He adds, “What I’m after is not living forever, I just want to help people avoid death for as long as they want to”.

Futurist Ray Kurzweil, in a recent C-Span2 broadcast confirmed that we are in early stages of profound medical revolutions spawned by the intersection of biotech, infotech, and nanotech. “Soon”, Kurzweil says, “biotech upgrades will add more than one year of life expectancy each year”.

In his recent book Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever, Kurzweil explains how we can ‘bootstrap’ our way to an indefinite lifespan by maintaining good health today, then let biotech and nanotech miracles rejuvenate our bodies and minds over the next two decades.

Responding to concerns that living longer would put a strain on government resources, proponents counter that life-extension technologies will increase people’s health span, not add extra years in a nursing home. When 80-year-olds possess the same physique and mental agility as people in their thirties, they will be among the most economically productive members of society.

For those who feel longer lives could become boring, advocates ask, “would death be more exciting”? An indefinite lifespan will be as boring or invigorating as we make it. Living longer will also encourage stronger interest in the future, which could help people become better citizens, creating a more peaceful and productive world.

Will indefinite life spans become reality? Experts say they will. To stay alive is a basic human drive. It is a precondition for all other activities. Life-extension is the natural progression of medicine, from slowing down diseases and the effects of aging to preventing them altogether. It follows instructions laid down by religions: “Human life is sacred and should be cherished and preserved”.

So, get ready for an incredible era that will add many healthy, happy, and exciting years to your life. Enjoy what promises to be a remarkable ‘magical future’.

This article appeared in various print publications and on-line blogs. Comments always welcome.