Naked Science Forum

On the Lighter Side => That CAN'T be true! => Topic started by: thedoc on 24/04/2015 11:55:08

Title: Is it a good idea to become immortal?
Post by: thedoc on 24/04/2015 11:55:08

Death is a terrifying thought to many people: Is the best solution just to become immortal?

Read the article (http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/index.php?id=9&tx_naksciarticle_pi1%5BshowUid%5D=429&cHash=918010dd44) then tell us what you think...

Title: Re: Is it a good idea to become immortal?
Post by: Paul Oatt on 16/06/2015 19:22:18

Hello everyone this is my first post here.   [:)]

Living forever has its appeal, I can't deny I have never wished for it, but what would be the cost to our planet? 

I am sure that any such gift would be expensive, it would be something that only the rich could afford and the inequality would be staggering. We already measure inequality, deprivation and life expectancy and the ability to live forever would skew the results beyond all recognition.   

Supposing ithe gift eventually becomes affordable to more people, the population in the west increases, the inequality continues in the poorest most deprived areas of the world, but overall our global population increases, as well as the demand on natural resources, leading to food scarcity,  increased anthropogenic carbon, climate change and more natural disasters. 

I am assuming whether or not you have the gift it will only allow you to live forever barring accidents to quote Patrick Troughton, and we will still need to be able to eat, and avoid being caught in a natural catastrophe.  So in short the ability to live forever might be the thing that actually kills us all. 

Title: Re: Is it a good idea to become immortal?
Post by: PmbPhy on 21/06/2015 05:57:10

I'd never want to live forever. Life would just get so incredibly boring after a while that it wouldn't be worth living for. Think about it. After so long you've done everything. At least all the things that you'd want to do.

Title: Re: Is it a good idea to become immortal?
Post by: Colin2B on 26/06/2015 22:56:31

Quote from: PmbPhy on 21/06/2015 05:57:10

Life would just get so incredibly boring after a while that it wouldn't be worth living for.

You would just have to hope that there were lots of exciting new discoveries in science, .......or lots more pseudo scientists to do battle with.
Question is, which will grow faster?

Title: Re: Is it a good idea to become immortal?
Post by: PmbPhy on 28/06/2015 19:45:40

Quote from: Colin2B

You would just have to hope that there were lots of exciting new discoveries in science, .......or lots more pseudo scientists to do battle with.
Question is, which will grow faster?

The number of scientific discoveries that can occur is finite and it will take a finite amount of time to discover/invent them all. However the number of pseudo scientists is as infinite as the universe will be old. But we really can't live forever because the universe will eventually reach a heat death.