Longevity

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Age Reversal Breakthrough: Harvard/MIT Discovery Could Enable Whole-Body Rejuvenation (scitechdaily.com)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/1577242

Age Reversal Breakthrough: Harvard/MIT Discovery Could Enable Whole-Body Rejuvenation::In a pioneering study, researchers from Harvard Medical School, University of Maine, and MIT have introduced a chemical method for reversing cellular aging. This revolutionary approach offers a potential alternative to gene therapy for age reversal. The findings could transform treatments for age-re

Here is the actual paper to read as well. It's outside my field, but it seemed interesting: https://www.aging-us.com/article/204896/text If anyone has a bit more experience, I'd love to hear more.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Since we have done nothing to curb the birth rate, if this was real, which it isn't, it would be a terrible idea.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

We've done so much to curb the birth rate that most first world countries are facing population collapse. Without immigration, far less than replacement levels.

But even then it's still a terrible idea, since biological immortality would have massive consequences for all parts of society, and many of the consequences would be really bad. I mean, we already have leaders who are dying of old age in their offices as we watch, imagine if suddenly they're 20 again? Presumably they'd never give up power again and they'd just become an immortal aristocracy...

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Massive consequences sure, but to say that it would necessarily be bad overall is an argument from appeal to the status quo. We can't say for sure that immortality will bring negative consequences, and we have plenty of reasons to desire it.

You could flip your question on its head. If the young knew they could not inherit political power by comfortably sitting back and waiting for the elders to die out, would they not be more inclined to seize the power for themselves, or at the very least to be more active in the democratic political discourse?

For example, in Russia right now everyone is just waiting for Putin to die of butt cancer so they can all go home. But what if they knew for sure that Putin will survive a thousand-year reign and is ready to wage forever war? Then they might actually risk their own neck and try to overthrow him.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Agreed! I'm sure this would be priced so only the 0.001% of the rich would be able to get the treatment, assuming it gets refined and tested for efficacy. The article makes way more out of the results than the paper does, which is a bit annoying.