An Interview With a KrioRus Director

Igor Artyukhov of the Institute of Biology of Aging is director of research for Russian cryonics provider KrioRus, and here is interviewed by Pravda:

Pravda: If you live forever, then you stop rushing somewhere. You can always take time because it would seem that you will always have time for everything, that you can do everything later.

Igor Artyukhov: If you know you'll die anyway, you do not rush either. And most of us, by the way, live by this principle. Few people can write a book, trying to finish it before the end of life. Most of us just live. You can not bring the meaning of life from the outside. People set all goals themselves. If life is long, they will be able to set a lot of goals and reach them. If life is short, people just die. Imagine how much Galois could do, who at age 20 proved an important mathematical theorem. Let us understand one simple thing - there is nothing good either about aging or death. This is something that we have imposed on us by nature, events, our lifestyle. We do not know any laws of nature that could make aging and death inevitable. If we can cope with aging, then we should do it. Many say that it is not like this, they say that it is contrary to the laws of nature. This is incorrect. They mention the second law of thermodynamics, which has nothing to do with aging. Moreover, it turns out that there are ageless creatures in the world. The naked mole rat revealed no signs of aging. This is a tiny animal, the size of a mouse. Maybe we will be able to make man ageless too.

Pravda: Old age - this is still weakness. Imagine how young people will suffer, when they are forced to endure endless moods.

Igor Artyukhov: Depression is one of the manifestations of senile debility, when a person wants to die soon. It happens that people commit suicide at this age. But this is a manifestation of aging, and we want to fight with it. If we can push aging away, elderly people would stay longer in sober mind, they would feel useful to society.

Pravda: How can we make old age not feeble and horrible, but joyful and fulfilling?

Igor Artyukhov: Well, you first need to make it come as late as possible. In the words of biologist Ashley Montague, "I want to die young as late as possible." From my point of view, if it were possible not to die, it would be better to do without it. If this is impossible, then we must find a way to postpone death. My mission is to extend the active period of life in perpetuity.

Link: http://english.pravda.ru/society/stories/03-12-2012/123012-aging_death-0/

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