On Preventing the Global Aging Crisis
KurzweilAI looks at the recent scientific publication promoted by the LifeStar Institute: "Unfortunately, most biogerontologists see aging-intervention strategies as a considerable deviance from mainstream thinking, which is based on the notion that aging is a certainty and that pursuit of any kind of 'fountain of youth' or life-extension therapies will only end in failure. But de Grey is not swayed by the skeptics. He says perspectives are changing ... Five of the other authors [of the paper] are among the absolute top tier of biogerontologists, whose views are universally respected in the field. Their voice here will make a huge impact on thinking about the issue, both within the field and beyond. The surprising conclusion from the past two decades of research on biological aging is that aging is plastic. Within a species, maximum life span is not fixed, but can be increased by dietary manipulation (particularly calorie restriction) or genetic manipulation. ... But a new world of indefinite lifespans has also raised questions about potential population impacts. ... 'Contrary to what is widely assumed, however, the net effect should be relatively minor,' the authors respond, reasoning that new human births have a greater effect on population than adding a fraction of life span to existing humans. ... A policy of aging as usual will lead to enormous humanitarian, social, and financial costs. Efforts to avert that scenario are unequivocally merited, even if those efforts are costly and their success and full consequences uncertain. To realize any chance of success, the drive to tackle biological aging head-on must begin now."
Link: http://www.kurzweilai.net/how-to-prevent-a-global-aging-crisis