According to some anti-aging experts a man or woman aged 50 today, provided they are in good health could live forever.
Aubrey de Grey really does think that so long as we can add 30 years to our current lifespan then we can live forever because that 30 years buys enough time until the next "fix" which will prolong the average lifespan by 60 years etc etc. Aubrey de Grey is trying to get a mouse to live past 5 years. After that it’s over to us.
If he is right and he can get his mice to live past 5 years what would it mean for crime if we could all live forever. Here are a few telling questions I have:
1. Would a large proportion of the population become serious and prolific criminals with no fear of God now that death is no longer inevitable?
2. It would only be a matter of time until we mastered brain back-ups (we can already back-up our computers). What would that mean for the offence of murder if a body could simply be replaced and the mind restored? Would homicide become like criminal damage? And what about ID theft if your brain back-up was copied?
3. What about pensions? When would they stop paying out? Would we have to work forever - what would that mean for those in mundane jobs? Would they become deranged?
4. What would it mean for mankind if children were banned to keep population levels sustainable? Would people be sterilised?
5. What would we do with people in prison currently serving a life sentence? In the USA there are serial killers with sentences of 100+ years. Would we give them the longevity treatment and eventually have to let them out?
6. Would people engage in more risky behaviours knowing that should they smash themselves and others to bits that their brains could simply be uploaded into a new body. What consequences would that have for terrorism, serial killing and even war?
6 comments:
That is equating "crime" to life expectancy. Whomever de Grey is I suspect he has no training in genetics. We get old for a REASON and magic pills ain't gonna cut it. Crime & poverty - linked. Crime and "deviancy of the brain" linked. Personally wouldn't people be MORe terrified of serving 100 yrs than 25?
Ciaran - You are right he was first a computer scientist. Check him out on Wikipedia.
Re 25 years or 100? Perhaps not. Because twenty five years is more than 25%of the average human lifespan. But if you could live forever it becomes a mere moment - as would 100 years. Perhaps we would change the way we think about wasted, saving time and serving time?
If it is on Wiki it must be true;) But seriously, time, yes, doing time. If one could serve 100 years and still have the body and mind of a 25 year old that is one thing but genetically I cannot see how humans can slow the rate of aging (that much) it is a bit like "Twilight Zone" where the guy had to choose either a full 20 year tariff or 2 days "speeded up".
Who knows - one time they thought man would die if he moved faster than 6omph or so. Now we have gene therapy. All you have to do is stop our cells from dying or mutating.
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