As a species, we have always been obsessed with immortality. Our earliest recorded legend is the Epic of Gilgamesh, where the protagonist finds and loses the secret of immortality. In Greek mythology, the goddess Eos gains permission from Zeus to allow her human lover Tithonus to live eternally, forgetting to ask that he also not age. He winds up so decrepit that she turns him into a grasshopper to give him a more dignified life. It is clear that the quest to extend our time will not stop. In the early 20th century, average global life expectancy was 45 years of age - it’s now almost 70.

In this issue of beyond one we examine the changing conception of human age, and the various facets accompanied by those changes. We start with the premise that human beings may live to 150 or even 200 by the end of this century. We look at the multitude of implications from health care to marriage to creativity to the longevity of our institutions that will result from a longer lifespan.

Even amongst all of the challenges discussed in this issue, the over-arching outcome is largely positive - our ability to impact the world will be magnified with our extended time on this planet, and the related knowledge we acquire. Imagine Bach, Rockefeller, FDR, Van Gogh, or Mother Theresa had three times more time on Earth. The questions we should examine as we think about the new paradigm of age are why we want to live longer and more importantly, what are we going to do with this time?

Along with the Epic of Gilgamesh and the myth of Eos, modern human history is littered with stories of human beings attempting to conquer the immutable cycle of aging and mortality.  Even today, heroes like Indiana Jones and Captain Jack Sparrow set off on blockbuster adventures in the quest for eternal youth.  Although immortality is as elusive as it always has been, there is accumulating evidence that the human life will extend beyond our understanding of a ‘normal’ human lifespan.  Aubrey de Grey, a British researcher on aging has boldly stated that the first person to live to one thousand years has already been born. In this talk and in ...Read more

The discovery of the germ theory in the mid-nineteenth century led to a huge increase in life expectancy.  The simple act of hygiene - washing hands, brushing teeth, sanitation etc. - was the advent of human biotechnology. That simple discovery enhanced the human lifespan from 30-50 years to 60-80 years.  Some of the first couples to celebrate their 50th anniversary were documented in just 1939.  Prior to that, a 50th anniversary was akin to immortality. We as a species have jumped light years in biotechnology in under 200 years.

It’s said that a revolutiona ...Read more

Part of the reason creativity diminishes as we age is that our willingness to embrace change decreases; familiarity and security become more attractive for evolutionary preservation. Without putting ourselves in new and challenging positions, there is no chance for curiosity, wonder and awe - the preconditions for playfulness.

An interesting book review by Benjamin Swharz of ...Read more

It is our innate desire as human beings to create legacy; it's an extension of the evolutionary desire for survival. What we create as legacy comes in a wide array: relationships, art, and even our children. It’s no wonder that our businesses, organizations, and institutions are mirrors of the yearning to extend our lives beyond mortal years.

We only have to glance at the corporate world to witness the manifest belief that longevity is a primary indicator of success. Brand identities are badged with “established since” qualifiers, and business books that teach lessons in long-term preservation, such as Jim Coll ...Read more

A rendering of all of the existing satellites currently orbiting the planet.

A recent edition of Newsweek entitled 100 Places to Remember Before They Dissapear aims to open readers’ eyes to the wondrous places around the globe that are under attack by the current global changes – not just in climate, but in human populations, technology and geography.

This issue reminds us of a simple truth we often forget - the ...Read more

We cannot discuss the future of human beings without discussing the transhumanism movement, a growing contingent of thinkers who believe that we should extend human life and capacities through the merging of technology and biology.  Transhumanism is at the center of a critical ethical debate of our day: should we artificially extend the definition of humanity as advances such as nanotechnology and biotechnology become available?

One of the most articula ...Read more