An excellent example of how blinkered most people are by the world in which they grew up - people are indoctrinated to live the life their parents lived. But we don't live in that world, and the number of beads in the jar can be radically increased through the application of biotechnology over the decades to come.
If we choose to do that of course. But if everyone walks through life with blinkers, assuming that it can only be the same as that of their parents, then nothing will change.
The future depends on people who break their indoctrination and work to make things different. Acceptance of what you saw as a child is death and stasis.
You could focus on supporting the cryonics industry instead, if your judgement is that you're on the wrong side of the line no matter what. The same point stands: if you are blinkered, you will not do this.
The author is not going to single handedly push forward the cryogenics or life extension industries.
Maybe life will be significantly longer in the near future, maybe not. In the 60s we expected moon colonies around now and in the 50s top researchers considered AI almost around the corner. Science predictions are meaningless. From what I see right now my parents at their 60s aren't much different from my grandparents at the same age.
Comments
An excellent example of how blinkered most people are by the world in which they grew up - people are indoctrinated to live the life their parents lived. But we don't live in that world, and the number of beads in the jar can be radically increased through the application of biotechnology over the decades to come.
[Ob reference: http://www.sens.org ]
If we choose to do that of course. But if everyone walks through life with blinkers, assuming that it can only be the same as that of their parents, then nothing will change.
The future depends on people who break their indoctrination and work to make things different. Acceptance of what you saw as a child is death and stasis.
If you're 60 now, you don't necessarily have "decades to come", so the author's sense of urgency is understandable.
You could focus on supporting the cryonics industry instead, if your judgement is that you're on the wrong side of the line no matter what. The same point stands: if you are blinkered, you will not do this.
http://www.longevitymeme.org/topics/cryonics.cfm
The author is not going to single handedly push forward the cryogenics or life extension industries.
Maybe life will be significantly longer in the near future, maybe not. In the 60s we expected moon colonies around now and in the 50s top researchers considered AI almost around the corner. Science predictions are meaningless. From what I see right now my parents at their 60s aren't much different from my grandparents at the same age.
Cryonics is just magical thinking. You might as well read 'The Secret' and request eternal life from the Universe.