Aubrey de Grey versus S. Jay Olshansky
Anti-Aging Medicine and Science notes that Aubrey de Grey will debate S. Jay Olshansky at BIOMEDEX 2005.
More than 500 participants from Canada, the United States and Europe, are expected to come hear the many prestigious speakers coming from all Four Corners of the globe. Amongst the latter, there will be S. Jay Olshansky, PhD, from the University of Chicago, and Aubrey De Grey, PhD, from the University of Cambridge, who will confront each others' opinions in a conference-debate on immortality, a utopia or a scientific truth?
For a taste of what this debate will look like, you might cast your eye to two articles from the BBC:
Aubrey de Grey - We will be able to live to 1,000
S. Jay Olshansky - Don't fall for the cult of immortality
The brief exchange of comments between myself, Aubrey de Grey and S. Jay Olshansky at the end of last year is also quite informative. The bottom line would seem to be that the only major bone of contention between the two scientists is over timescales relating to the implementation of healthy life extension technologies. This is a very important issue, however, as it ties into funding, public expectations and - ultimately - whether or not real anti-aging medicine is developed in time to save those of us reading this now.