Generally, we’d all like to live a long life, perhaps even forever. For most of us, our means of immortality are mundane. We have kids to carry on our family name. We write books that we hope will be read after we’re gone. But for some, that’s not enough.
In an article for the Washington Post, Theo Zenou examines how the uber-rich are investing in technology that could reverse aging and disease and prolong life. While today’s obsessions is powered by Google, Peter Thiel, and Jeff Bezos, the longing for longer life goes back millennia.
Gilgamesh wanted to live forever, as did Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of Japan. In the 16th century, French noblewoman Diane de Poitiers drank gold to preserve her good looks, thanks to the teachings of alchemy. Pope Innocent VIII was injected with the blood of children, but died anyway. Elizabeth Bathory bathed in the blood of virgins. The Nazis believed the Holy Grail could stave off death.
Nowadays, the quest for eternal youth is more science-focused. Researchers are attempting to recode our cells to engineer longevity. Scientists suggest that natural selection favored species with shorter lifespans, so we should naturally be able to select back.
Can cells be re-set for immortality? Should we join Walt Disney in the freezer to await future treatment? How else do people extend their lives? And, given the state of the world, why would you want to? What happens next?
