I just want to explore the universe but without FTL spaceships I would need to stay alive for a very long time

:deeper-sadness:

  • cilantrofellow [any]
    ·
    3 years ago

    Someone will definitely. Elon or Bezos or Prince William someone at that level of wealth or notoriety will definitely live to 150 or 200. “Ammortality” research is kind of kicking off now with a ton of research on senescence pathways and even anti-aging vaccines, on top of digital stuff which I think might at least create a curated simulacra of personality.

    You and your kid’s life expectancy will probably stay the same or go down though with climate and economic instability. For moral purposes mostly though, can’t just let everyone live forever, unproductive overpopulation population bomb brave new animal farm blah blah blah.

    Edit: This is not to say billionaires will have anything to do with the ability to live forever. We just live in a society where they will benefit most from it and can stand to pull up the ladder behind them.

    • Vampire [any]
      ·
      3 years ago

      The "elites only" narrative makes no sense.

      Firstly, biomedically it's not possible to develop a treatment with just one subject or a few.

      Secondly, commercially it makes no sense to severely limit your market. When cars, the internet, televisions, planes, were invented, they weren't limited to the elite; they were launched to a mass market.

      • EmmaGoldman [she/her, comrade/them]M
        ·
        3 years ago

        Zolgensma, a gene therapy drug that treats the most common genetic cause of infant and child death, costs $2.1 million dollars for a dose. The disease in question affects 1 in 10,000 babies.

        Zokinvy costs it's users around $86,000 per month, and it's used to reduce death risk in those with progeria, which affects around 1 in 18 million.

        You can absolutely launch a drug only affordable to the billionaire class, or targeted at an incredibly tiny population. Whatever the market will bear, right?

      • UlyssesT [he/him]
        ·
        3 years ago

        It sort of is, actually.

        There is no single subject or a few for insulin, but have you seen the price of it in the United States versus what it actually costs to make?

        Human lifespans are already strangled down by life-preserving medicine and healthcare being priced out of the reach of the working class.