Are We Getting Close to the Possibility for Eternal Biological Life? Maybe YES!
Did you ever imagined how it will be when you could live 100s of years instead of the 80-90 years currently being the average age of women and men in most of the western world? Already in the 80s I was getting signals from the scientific community in our abilities (sometime in the future) to prolong human life with a good number of years.
Back then I was (and still am) fascinated about this!
I sometimes do this thought experiment / question with peers:
- Assume you have a pill in front of you that gives you absolute eternal life, no chances to die, not from deceases, not from any weapon, not from anything, truly a life that never ends
- Question: Would you consider to take/swallow that pill?
- When No: Why Not?
- When Yes: Why Yes?
- When between No/Yes: Explain
I generally get an instant and clear answer: "No Way I would take that pill". Most of the time with the reason: "I cannot handle all the losses that I'll experience, over and over again." Fair reason, I must admit!
I personally am somewhere in between the Yes and No: ie I consider to take that pill.
The reason is simple: my curiosity in how technology will develop, how technology will change the way we will continue to live on this planet, and maybe other planets somewhere in the galaxy, the discovery of life on other planets, the survival (or not) of the human race, and what will be after that, the better understanding and maybe even the discovery of the great secret of the universe and all and everything in it, is so strong that I consider to deal with all the negatives of an eternal life. However, it is not a absolute 100% YES for me at the moment. In the last 30/40 years of my life, I repeatedly ask myself this question and although I move slightly closer to a YES over time, the consequences of a eternal life are very big...and once the pill is swallowed, it is definite!
How about you?
But there may be a middle way, prolonging of life to maybe 200 or 300 years! That is far from eternal, and I would immediately opt for that option, no matter what! An absolute clear YES!
In recent year we heard from time to time the scientific community telling the world they are progressing in controlling cell ageing, and with that the control of ageing of living species, hence maybe humans as well.
Research at the University of Lunds in Sweden suggest we are close to the ability to stop ageing of cells, and maybe even reverse the ageing process. Tests on mice looks very promising.
Our blood changes as we age due to epigenetics, a process by which our gene expression is silenced or activated over time, without modification of the genetic code itself. With this in mind, the team of researchers at the University of Lunds took a look at the hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) of aged mice to see if they could unlock the mysteries of how our cells age.
HSC cells are progenitors to all other blood cells. As we age, scientists believe that our cells age, too. Aging blood cells mean we’re more vulnerable to diseases like leukemia, which target those cells specifically. Likewise, the researchers at the University of Lunds observed reduced functionality of the blood of their aging mice. But when the old mice were provided with induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells — essentially a batch of fresh stem cells — something quite fascinating happened. The iPS cells served as a “reset button”, reprogramming the blood stem cells and sparking a rejuvenation of sorts. Researchers observed that the progenitor HSC cells in the old mice began to produce blood cells functionally similar to those seen in younger mice.
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I know I'm a little behind the comment, but you have to be interested in cryogenic, it's like taking that pill and when you wake up, if you wake up you'll be over many years.
It is indeed super cool, but we shall not end up in destructive like the guys in Flatliners, the movie from a long time ago, 90s I think or end of 80s? Maybe more like that movie with Mel Gibson, I think he also woke up after many years and had to deal with the new environment.
Another theory says we died lol :) and basically, our mind lives this simulation. I do not know if you've heard of Mandella Effect and I've lived to ask how the hell 2 experiences, one of them is the kidney where they were sitting and the other where the heart is located. Mmmm is a lot to talk about to know.
Yep, know the Mandella Effect :)
I would definitely take the pill. It is usually considered "evil" to want to stay alive forever and it may also sound like a meaningless existence but I like the idea of being 'there' through all steps of humanity. You could live virtually countless lives as countless personalities and enjoy everything that humanity has to offer.
Also, I would get to see all the technological innovations till there is possibly no more things left to create! It would be marvellous and magical to experience such a time :)
I think we are on the same page regarding the reasons for eternal life. Maybe the pill will come in the ability to download our brains, our knowledge, our consciousness. Then we can easily end our life as well, if we manage out backups right (ie 100% control them and being able to delete them).
If the 'Eternal Life' pill would have the characteristic that I could end my life whenever I wanted, I would for sure take it. However, if life would indeed be eternal without any chance to terminate it (assuming any new technological or whatever new development will also not make it possible to end the chosen eternal life); I still find eg 100 Gazillion years living quite a long time and this may be a bit too long; living may get boring, I'm afraid, and when having a boring life even 100 years is long.
All things you mention will indeed be a reality. And yes, the option to terminate should be there too. A 100 Gazillion years is just meaningless to live. haha!
I know, but that is what eternal means; It actually means even Gazillion to the power of Gazillion years. And even more than that....Pfff....That is really a little bit too long I'm afraid.
Since there is no such thing as genuine eternity, I'll take whatever I can get. My list of things to do, learn, and be is long enough that I've decided 35,000 years is only a start. I'm busy, I don't have any time for this dying nonsense.
LOL
The proposition of unconditional immortality is ridiculous; the universe is impermanent. Here it is down and dirty: live as long as you would like. If you aren't getting off on it, blow your brains out. It's that simple. Also, lose the religious mumbo jumbo because it is a delusion feeding on your fear of death prolferated for profit by the religionists. Here is some good news about life extension:
Update: Life Extension Technology
It is a philosophical approach to discuss the topic of immortality, life extension treatment and such. I'm ok if such question is something that you find ridiculous. I do not, and I find it a good way to understand the reasons why individuals want to choose either or and/or come with different answers, like yes, but...or not, but...
Everybody has their believes and views in life and I'm always open to discuss different views. A good way to learn, not only about yourself, but also to understand other people better.
Interesting for sure! If you look at all the stuff science is coming up with to extend life, soon we will not need these freezers anymore, used by some people who want to be brought back to life when their decease or whatever it is they were waiting for, can be cured. Also, when this guy I recently heard is correct, we could be able to download our consciousness, our I, onto a devices and use it to be copied to something else, maybe a robot, and continue life like that.
Absolute NO. Choosing yes is a mistake, but isn't that part of learning? Hardest lesson possible...
O WOW, if we need to learn from this mistake, than we are doomed :) No possibility to re-adjust the decision, it is a 100% one way street! That makes the question also very interesting. BTW, you are the first one to comment with NO; All the others commented with an absolute YES or didn't except the question as is. Thanks for your view and comment!
Now we're talking, that's what I mean. I thought you can't discern the matter and I'm glad it isn't so.
Well, I can, I even mentioned that in my original post. When we could extend life, I would immediately go for that option, but still doubting eternal life. Anyway, in 'real' life all people I ask the same questions returned with NO, no one said YES. On Steemit, all said immediately YES, but you.... hahahaha Real life, at least my Real life and surrounding is quite different to Steemit life...not sure of that conclusion is solid, but at least that is what I can make of it with the experiences I had so far.
Yes I've read that but from your comment I see a firmer attitude. Extending life would most likely lead to an absolute yes as approaching deadline. Under pill influence you'll no longer have your original judgment.
I all for extending my life with lets say 100 years! When possible even 200 years. Indefinite, well, that is a bit too long I think; 100.000.000.000 Gazillion years I just cannot imagine I can keep my life interesting enough :)
When you phrase it like, "would you take a pill..." part of me recoils because it sounds a little like magic, or something out of a black box. But the truth is that when mankind was created, we weren't supposed to die. That came later, and it's a corruption that entered as a result of choices we made. I find it fascinating that this "corruption" that leads to death is becoming more and more known from a scientific perspective, and even that there are potential steps that can be taken to mitigate this corruption in a physical way. Assuming there were no ethical concerns with the treatment, I would be open to taking treatment to slow down or even reverse cell aging. I'd of course have to study it pretty thoroughly and figure out what the unintended consequences might be. For example, I'd still want to keep my "old" brain. I wouldn't want my brain to revert back to childhood thinking or anything like that. But being able to live a bit longer than the normal lifespan does have a certain appeal for me. I'm also interested in at some point accepting the inevitability of death so that I could get on with what follows. Like you, I think this is a fascinating field of research, and it is my hope that it will be guided by good general morals and principles.
Fully understand your way of thoughts.
Well, biologically we are meant to die. That is determined by what made us what we are, a biological body that will die by itself. Only when we created science, we may be able to take steps to prevent us from dying.
My assertion is actually a theological one, and I mean that originally the biological substance making up our bodies was not designed to die by itself. The dying comes from the fact that something is not working right, i.e., corruption was introduced. But I'm sure fully exploring that dynamic is beyond the scope of this post. I just find it interesting that we can make scientific observations and learn more fully the actual mechanism behind aging and dying, as well as recognize possibilities out there for slowing that process down or even reversing it :)
Understood! Although I have no arm into theology, but I do respect others do, and understand completely the rational you have fro that angle. How cool in the end it'll be when all what we believe can be proven and turns out the be the same. That is one of the reasons I would opt to take the pill for eternal life :)
I definitely love seeing science confirm some of my beliefs, or even more basically, showing us the details of how nature works. But no matter how much can be demonstrated, proved, and shown scientifically, I expect there will always be mystery to ponder--things we don't quite understand, and things that we can understand on a basic level but couldn't every fully plumb the depths of.
agree, and that makes life interesting :)
Life is eternal to those who find Christ, you dont need a pill to live forever....You need the word of God..
"And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?"
From that perspective, I agree with you.
Interesting question when believing in Christ: When was the soul born?
The soul exists before the body, similar to a seed. The body is born upon conception. This is then when the seed is planted...The soul then grows with the body. Then, when you die, the soul returns from where it came, to the father. The soul, has always existed with God, time does not apply to a soul because it is everlasting (unlike flesh) but it does not become conscious of itself until it takes its mortal form, then and only then is it given an image of itself. Although life changes who we are, and so does time..."time" itself is a temporary place for the soul to learn and mature. Afterlife the soul is chained to life it has lived eternally. So really, the soul was never "born" for there is no beginning or end to the soul. Time does not apply to that which is immortal. But I do say this. "For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him"
Thank you for the explanation. I find it interesting to understand your views. Although I do not believe in Christ as such, I truly hope that there is more than what we can see and what science is researching and all the models they are coming up with. Interestingly, I kind a like the model of the Holographic Universe, a model developed by David Bohm. In the Holographic Universe model all the knowledge and what we call matter is combined in such a way that everything is part of everything. Every small piece of 'fabric' contains all the information of the complete of which it is a part of.
Christ is a science of his own, as is God. Science can be broken down into the formation and uses of matter. The study of matter is essentially science. Whether human matter or earthly matter. Matter however, is visible, and is what is "seen". But how do we explain the unseen? How do we explain the feeling and quench for righteousness? Science is good to put thought into, but to put faith into it is foolish. Matter, in some ways, is the mother of all demons. God created the tangible and intangible realm but who is the ruler over each? God is. Who is second after God in the tangible? Christ...But who is third? The Holy Spirit. Then who is the fourth? Our enemy... Satan. He is the one who forces your faith into "matter" and not the creator of "matter". To put your faith in scientific theory is to put your faith in Satan. I dont mean that in a harsh way but it is putting your faith in things that are of perishable matter rather then that which is imperishable matter.... Check out this article I wrote I think youll find it interesting . https://steemit.com/philosophy/@jacobcards/matter-and-essence-of-immortality
Interesting article. Reading all of this, and this conversation result in surfacing so many more questions that I was not able to ask/discuss before since I do not know religious people in the sense you are religious. I do know quite a few spiritual people though, not the believers in God/Christ. Part of my childhood I spend close to a Catholic monastery, and from time to time had school teachers being monks or sisters, so I know a bit from those times.
One of the key questions that come to mind very strongly is: How are you able to give so much faith in God, whilst there is no proof of God's existence. While knowing and stating to have 'faith' or 'believe' in science would be to have believe in Satan? And did I understood correctly from your other article that hell is required for angels and even God to stay warm? But isn't this the home of Satan as well?
BTW, my logic and experiences tells me this already for a long time: There can be no Good without Bad, there can be no Happiness without Sadness. I mean: we need variations to appreciate the different feelings, appreciate the things we do. Reflecting this back to God and Satan. To me both are the representations of the Good and Bad in the world, but merely a representation for the sake of understanding what Good and Bad is; Others may use Ying/Yang etc.
You are wise. And your wisdoms shows in your ability to keep searching for an answer. This philosophy and enlightenment I have obtained is through what is called the "nag hammadi scriptures" & through the reading of well known scripture... They where lost pieces of the bible that where not included by the church do to their complexity. You will find them extremely interesting. Also, your faith in "matter" or "science" isnt directly faith in "Satan" but it is Satan who pulls you away from faith in anything else but God. And you say there is no proof of God... But this is where Christ comes in. Christ was the living proof of God. He was able to free my mind entirely of ignorance and put me on the path of truth. God is woven into your heart as is truth. God is the spirit of truth. So, as science has lied to many (with false scientific theories of the past later to be disapproved in the future) it has also given a lot of truth. Where Christ has only given truth..But who do you credit? A scientist for making this discovery? Or the living God who created the miracle of life? Science is outstanding, I do not deny that. But let us out our awe in the creator and not the observer of the creator for that is truly humble.
Also, when I said that Hell keeps God and the angels of heaven warm, I find alot of truth in that in the sense of "comfort". Hell comforts heaven in the sense of reassurance that not every soul will be granted everlasting life (actually more then you think wont)... Christ however, told us to pray for our enemies and to leave the judgement of who makes it into heaven completely unto "the father"...In this way Christ becomes equal to God because he is so merciful. He is always forgiving before death but after death is a different story... That is why you must proclaim your faith to Christ TODAY. You are a friend! And I have followed you! I enjoy taking about these things it really gets my brain working through discussion rather then just writing peace!
I certainly enjoy this discussion as well; In fact, through discussions one can come to much better understanding, than simply by trying to form a good post; Why? Well, because of the other(s) who will challenge your thoughts through questions and reasoning. That is the reason I like discussion, two/multiway conversations, rather than one way (posts in a sense, are one way, it can provoke discussions though and in my mind it should).
I cannot promise I'll start reading these soon, but you got me interested. Can I find them on the Internet?
I followed you as well. Thank you so much for this discussion and all your clarifications of regarding your views to the world. I cannot object at all your views, and I will not object any of them. I cannot promise that I'll develop faith in God/Christ though, but I always like to learn. Hence my interest to read some of the work that helped you to your current views.
I am going towards 110 and nothing can stop me. Awesome article and interesting thoughts
I would take even 2 pills 😜
WOW, 2 pills, that means even if there would be a chance one pill can be reversed, you have another eternal life. You are the first one giving such an answer to me, such a clear YES!
Our overlords are not interested. I guess the big question is why we are so happy to die for them while carefully avoiding bodily harm in the opposition.
I could list at least 100 instances where we are actively killing people for disproportionate small rewards. I could also list at least 100 methods and technologies that would dramatically extend life of which the less credible would no doubt produce a shit storm of recycled propaganda against them. It is absurdly illogical behavior compared to collectively working to make the obvious ones happen, or at least attempt to sort the list properly without the least interesting causing foam in the corners of the mouth.
I like this one for being a simple mechanical solution with huge implications:
http://billionsinchange.com/solutions/renew/
I'm less pessimistic then you are. Even when we have great (mostly political) forces against prolonging life, I actually think that the big pharmaceuticals will actually want to earn a lot of money for life extending medicine. Most big corporates are in it for the short term, and on the short term, these companies can make a lot of money.
And even when the big companies do oppose the prolonging of life to 100s of years, there will be new startup companies jumping on it to further research. Next to that we have all other developments like AI, AI integrated with human brains, downloading the human consciousness and so on. Meaning, at many levels of technology we will see steps towards possibilities of eternal life.
Of course we can debate if we really want humans to live for 300+ years and longer, since this will have a dramatic impact on the scarce resources we already have; But that is a different question and debate.
The solution presented with the link you provided. Interesting to say the least. Since this is on offer, I'm sure some of use actually buys the system. It always starts with a very very small group, the real innovators. Over time, these type of solutions will become more known by the public and more people will actually start questioning of they want to use such solution, or not.
The question to you is: Would you take the pill that gives you eternal life?
Absolutely I would take that pill. Or two as @mammasitta suggests. :)
And what is the reason for the absolute solid YES?
It is easy to say that I want to live forever, but specifically I want to be ME forever. I am not a believer in an afterlife where I am able to be myself... at best I would just be recycled into energy with no personality or ego left.
Understood. But maybe afterlife doesn't exist at all? At least our consciousness is not preserved, who knows. The interesting fact is: we all will know when we die!
Will you be YOU forever? Throughout our live we change, we see the world, and ourselves differently when we are 10, 20, 40, 60 years old. How will this progress when we reach 200 years, and what about 2.000 years old. And that is still far far far away from eternal, so what about 1.000.000 years old?
I'm not in the for sure YES camp, because I would reach an age of 100.000.000 years, which is unimaginable by me what it means to live for that long knowing that 100.000.000 years will also become 100.000.000.000.000 years old. That is such a great factor older than what we have to deal with currently.
Yes I will always be me forever, because I am. Things that I can observe about myself can change, will change and have changed. But I am not the things I can observe. I am me, and I will always be as long as I live.
Appreciate your views!