

The Fight to End Aging Gains Legitimacy & Funding - ph0rque
http://www.wired.com/medtech/health/news/2008/06/methuselah

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technoguyrob
Is there anyone who reads this that has a valid argument in dissent of
gerontology? I'm curious, as I know several people (all religious) who take
offense at things like this because it's "unnatural." I haven't heard any
solid argument, yet, though.

EDIT: Also, I think it is unfair to label people like de Grey or Kurzweil as
simply "afraid to die." They just see it as a necessity for reaching the
boundaries of human exploratory possibilities. Although it is true that new
minds produce new insights, it is undoubtedly also true that if a single
person could live for two centuries instead of one in a healthy state of mind,
he could probably do more research in his field than two separate people in
those centuries, since he would have both the advantage of more overall
knowledge and passing on that greater collective to his colleagues and
students (who in turn will likely benefit more than from a 50-year-old
professor that has had less experience in the field).

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streety
Ignoring the question of whether these individuals are afraid to die is there
actually anything wrong with that? Identifying your fears and then working to
combat and overcome them is commendable in my opinion.

I suppose you could argue that if you had 1000 years ahead of you the drive to
do great things may be weakened. Why start today when the tools available in
the next century would make everything so much quicker.

Similarly, I know that, at least in the biological sciences, there is a
frequent joke that for an area where a certain theory has held true for a
number of years but where new technologies are revealing errors the
retirement/death of the incumbent professors is often required before better
theories get the consideration they deserve. Knowledge comes at a price and
sometimes a fresh start is needed.

These arguments are incredibly weak though.

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geuis
I have had a chance to listen to Aubrey de Grey for a few years and see him
speak in person. Everything he talks about is backed up by research and
findings that have been making enormous strides. Quite exciting and inspiring.

