Introduction
Senescence; or rather; the process of aging is one of the inevitable things we experience as humans. But have you ever imagined the possibility of circumventing the natural process of senescence; maybe in an unnatural way? Well, if you have imagined this, then I guess we are thinking alike. Here we would be looking at the possibilities of circumventing senescence.
[Image Source: Pxhere. CC0 Licensed]
Age Limit?
You may be wondering who pegged the average lifespan of humans at its present value. But it might interest you to know that in the prehistoric times (according to some "oral traditions" which is still a valid source of history), people lived way longer than this our contemporary time.
According to a Chinese ancient medical record; it was indicated that a particular doctor and acupuncturist from the Qin dynasty; Dr Cuie Wenze lived over 300years. Does this send any signals to you? And don't get it twisted, some people had also been recorded to surpass that age in the ancient time. Permit me to make a quick reference from the Holy book; Bible:
According to Gen 5 vs 27, it was indicated that Methuselah lived to be 969years. Source: Bible
We are not diverting to religion, but I just want to draw a little reference to buttress my points. If these things are so, why then is the average upper limit of the human life brought down from those high 3-digits?
Based on a publication recently released by the Frontiers, it was indicated that; in apposition with the biological and environmental factors, there has been a certain limitation to the average lifespan of the human species. Though this could be based on some theoretical framework, but we are not unaware of the fact that many factors; including genetics, and over-dependency on technology; have parts to play in this.
You could ask; what has been the recognized upper limit of the human age in this our contemporary time? Okay, according to Berthelot, et al, this has been pegged at somewhere between 115 and 120. But as it were, how many people have been seen to be up to 120 years lately? That is the reason some believe that "age-curing" is still a thing of the future. But it is my honour to remind us that the future is already here with us. No wonder it has been stated by the duo of professors Adrien Marck and Jean Francois Toussant that:
The potentials of the modern humans (which includes; lifespan) is dependent on a long term evolutionary parameters. Prof Marck et al; Paris Descartes University. [paraphrased by me]
[Image Source: Wikimedia Commons. Public Domain Licensed]
Going beyond limit
There have been propositions that would potentially extend the average lifespan of the modern humankind.
Note this: We may not be talking about immortality yet (which could be the ultimate destination of age extension), but just a little extension beyond the normal. But all these things hinge on this fact; which I have said before and would love to reiterate here again:
If scientists are making advancements to prolong the average age of humankind, they should also try to make humans live through it healthily. No one would choose the option of living long in a vegetable state. @samminator
But as it were, the advancements have already begun in the extension of the limits of our age. And we would be looking at some of them briefly and the potentials in them.
1. Cybernetic Immortality
This is the sub-discipline of the digital immortality we had talked about sometimes ago. There is no disproving to the fact that the advancement of technology has charted a new course in the existence of humankind. No doubt, almost every part of the human body can now be replaced by cybernetic implants (thanks to emerging technology).
But do you know the resultant effect of this cybernetic augmentation in respect to age defying? Okay let's look at it this way: As humans age, the organs in the body get degenerated as an effect of senescence. Now, with the possibilities of bionic/cybernetic augmentations, these natural organs can be replaced (or augmented) with artificial ones, thereby reversing the degenerative effect of the organ on the entire body.
[Image Source: Pxhere. CC0 Licensed]
Take look at this scenario: We may have heard of the man; Stan Larkin, he was diagnosed of cardiomyopathy, which resulted in the surgical removal of his heart, and was replaced with prosthesis. He lived with this prosthesis for 18months (doing his normal activities) until a matching donor was found for him. Now, if this is possible, how would it not be possible to replace other degenerative organs with a bionic one in the future? Remember this; the future is now here.
Maybe in the future, we could get to a point where technology can replace every biological organ in the body (yes! including the brain). No doubt, these human enhancements could potentially extend the upper age limit of humans indefinitely. Also, in the not-so-far future, we could see the rise of many cyborgs (Cybernetic Organisms) and fewer un-augmented organic humans. Believe me, a point could approach in the future where bionics; which were earlier seen as therapeutic aid for lost or dysfunctional body part; would be willingly subscribed by many in the bid to extend lifespan and stop or reverse the process of senescence. Just like I've said before:
The future would favour technology over biology
2. Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
Tweaking of the human gene has been made possible, and more so, the advent of advanced powerful gene editing tool; CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat) has further made this possible. We have seen amazing feats achieved in the field of genetic engineering, that even human embryo has been edited at the gene level; as exemplified in the case cited here.
[Image Source: Pixabay. CC0 Licensed]
According to one of the co-inventors of the CRISPR; Professor George Church, it was indicated that the gene therapy holds a very great possibility in the extension of human age. He also went further to make a witty prediction that he would cure aging before the next 6 decades. A particular statement caught my attention, and I would like to paraphrase it here:
... Gene therapy is not just for curing of rare genetic disorders, but for curing aging too. - Prof Church
How adorable is the fact that "aging" has now been considered as a disease. Okay here's the thing: Unlike the technological advancements to cure aging, the biological advances are grossly unpredictable. Even though the totality of the information needed by humankind to genetically cure aging could be embedded within our genome, but these are not like some kind of storybooks you can just open and grab any info you so desire (in other words, they are majorly encrypted).
Well, maybe in the future, we could decrypt these infos. But another proposition has arisen, and this is the combination of cybernetic augmentation and genetic engineering. Okay, this could sound like some bunch of sci-fi tales, but again; I welcome you to the possibilities embedded in emerging technology.
Have you ever heard of the term Human+ (H+)? Okay these are otherwise known as the enhanced humans. Think about further tweaking of the cybernetic humans with genetic engineering. Now we could be closer than you think to curing aging.
I know some could be wondering how possible this is. Okay the point is this: Scientists can genetically deactivate the gene responsible for senescence, then with an added cybernetic augmentation to boost the organs susceptible to the effect of senescence. I know this would sound like bullshit to the uninitiated, but I would leave you with this quote from Francis Collins:
We are just few years away from achieving immortality... The trials to prolong human life are underway. - Francis Collins [paraphrased by me]
Conclusion
As one of the earnest desires of mankind is to live a little longer, discoveries have been made to that effect. And all these are pointers to the fact that the boundaries set by biology can be crossed. Maybe sooner than later, we could finally "cure" aging and achieve immortality.
Again; I welcome us to the era of an everlasting human race
Thanks for reading
References for further reading
All Images are CC0/Public domain licensed and are linked to their sources
gif by @foundation
We should not push the age limit further. Earth has already troubles in taking care of everyone around here... :/
😂😂😂😂😂
Lol. Maybe we can become multiplanetary and leave the earth, so it can recover from the troubles of taking care of everyone :D
Thanks for coming around sir
That is sci-fi, at least for now. But who knows, maybe in a couple of decades... ;)
Lol. You're right sir. Maybe the future will turn the "sci-fi" to "sci-fact" :D
This is a deja-vu (please check the old star trek movies for instance) :D
I've only seen one star trek movie; "star trek into darkness". It's been a while though, I think 2014. But I would go and check it out again :D
I only remember stuff like automated doors. AM not a big star trek fan :)
Birth control and accidents might solve that problem ... or a yearly purge (lol).
Or wars... Humans are very good in wars :(
Lol. One nuclear warhead detonated will get the job done :)
Yearly purge? Like the movie "purge anarchy" :D
300 years? wow it sounds a number very hard to achieve, especially because there were no modern medicine back them.
When it comes to our age limit, the ultimate solution would be to adopt synthetic forms for our future self, or like you mentioned "Cybernetic Immortality".
This would not only give us close to indestructible bodies, but also a way of achieving immortally by having infinite backups.
The possibility of prolonging our lives in virtual worlds also deserves some consideration.
I recommend you to watch 2 things:
Cheers @samminator
Exactly. For me, Cybernetic immorality is surer than tweaking some genetic codes which you can't even predict the outcome.
Exactly. Our consciousness can be transferred to machines, but that would be when we might have achieved singularity.
I should go get these movies you recommended.
Thanks for dropping by
@dedicatedguy @samminator I just wrote a bit of a comment on this idea but I have an honest question of if we can even consider cybernetic immortality..."humane" if thats the right way to put it.
Once we leave our bodies to enter a virtual system how do you guys figure we would still retain our humanity. Something as simple as fear plays into everyday decisions and emotions, unless we recreate artificial systems to interpret a fear response, leading to chemical release, and so on and so forth, it'll be a hollowing process.
TLDR; My best bet is we live semi-dead in metabolic chambers with augmented reality rigs. Still alive and flesh-bound, but with a veryyyyyyy extended lifespan.
Remember, in this case you're referring to, it is our consciousness that enters into the virtual system. And our humanity is embedded in our consciousness. So I believe we would fully (or partly; as it were) retain our humanity.
But thats such a vague answer to me. We really don't understand consciousness at all, how it manifests and to what degree it can be recreated.
The case itself is obviously hypothetical and insinuates there is some master key to consciousness that will allow us to recreate memories, hormonal response, and genuine emotion. There is just no evidence this is even possible, I've heard about digitizing mice and worm brains to put in robots, but none of those experiments take into accounts the "consciousness" of the mouse.
There are advances that have been made to incorporate common sense into machines. I suggest you read about the "The project Alexandria". Now, if this is possible, I believe it would be possible; someday; to recreate consciousness in machines.
Also, I suggest you read the book “Ascribing mental qualities to machines” by John McCarthy
One of the numerous things technology has in stock for us in the future.
The idea that there is a possibility that one can live for a few more years more (or even forever) is a nice one to hear. But i am skeptical about the possible side effects of these processes. Are there any?
The truth is; for every biological border you cross, there is an attendant effect to it. But just like I always tell people "If you can bear the consequences, then attempt the risk". Remember;
I mean, who wouldn't want to live "very" long? It's still better than the option of dying young.
Thanks for coming around bro
Hello friend, thank you for sharing this interesting topic about aging, a natural process that can not be stopped, if it were possible to stop it one day with the help of science, it would be wonderful. It really is everyone's wish.
Lol. Maybe very soon we would be able to stop it :)
Thanks for reading
I'm so up for eternal life. Or at least a few hundred more years.
So much more time I for learning and self-developement. Ah, the possibilities are endless, if we weren't limited by time anymore.
If dying is just another decision you will have to make - interesting times are there to come.
That's the idea; to make "dying" a choice.
We would soon be entering into an era of an everlasting human race. I can't wait :D
Samminator, good post. You might like my post on the SENS foundation here:
https://steemit.com/science/@procrastilearner/the-first-effectively-immortal-person-may-already-be-alive-sens-research-foundation
Oh wow! Thanks a lot
Nice post! I think transhumanism might not get us very far. I think the idea of recreating a "digital brain" might be possible, but the different biological aspects of brain chemistry and hormones might make us less human than what we might like.
I think genetic modification and treatments are the way to go, theres tons of animals who have genes which in some way inhibit, reverse or reduce the effects of telomerase and manipulation of the human growth hormone has been shown to increase lifespan in mice. It's more of a matter of how we can dissect these genes and determine how to use it for ourselves.
Yeah! Like the Immortal Jellyfish (Turritopsis dohrnii). But how do we isolate the gene responsible for that and recreate it in humans with a full prediction of the outcome? Now, that's where the challenges lie.
Well, let's just keep an open mind and watch what the future holds.
Thanks for coming around
I think CRISPR is a very eager candidate for that task and might just lead us to genetic manipulation that was once thought impossible, as in some cases it already has.
And no worries, always happy to have a neat debate on some scifi mumbo jumbo.
Now science is playing around nature
It's going to be good to avert aging but the possibilities is slim... I know vampire live long and don't age, seams like fiction
Lol. Not only playing around nature, but crossing natural borders :)
Hi well written article and definitely deserves a vote
Did you know that scientists have figured out how to store the brain. So it is not a reach to say that we could one day operate without our bodies. slip in and out of cybernetic organisms at will.
Microorganisms and diseases ensure that our life span is lower. So to be ageless we need to be in a contrived environment. maybe a hermetically sealed planet!!
consider the sociological implications. As we live for longer our ability to keep learning does not grow along with our age. that means we stay the same for a much longer time. a wasted life? what would happen to jobs? the same person in the same position for a 100 years.
Given AI would do most of our jobs, we are more useless for a much longer period of time.
points to ponder
If we can preserve the human brain from decadence and also preserve the information in it, then we are one step ahead to achieving digital immortality.
Thanks for dropping by
Biblically, it has been known to us that sin is what has made man deteriorate in age. But i feel the evolvement of the world in terms of the eco system might have a little contribution as well... (Laughs) i am not really sure about that.. Nice work done bro. Kudos to you for this understanding shared
That's a nice point you raised there. Thanks for the comment
Its my pleasure sir.