X-Message-Number: 20492
From: "Mark Plus" <>
Subject: Re: Russian scientists seeking to lengthen human life
Date: Sun, 24 Nov 2002 07:57:51 -0800

In Message #20486, Basie wrote,

>Russian scientists seeking to lengthen human life

>  Interfax. Saturday, Nov. 23, 2002, 4:55 PM Moscow Time

>MOSCOW. Nov 23 (Interfax) - Russian scientists are working on technology to 
>at
least double the lifespan of humans, if not increase it "to infinity," a
researcher has said, adding that experiments have lengthened the life of 
mice
and rats 30% to 35%.

>http://www.moscowtimes.ru/doc/HotNews.html#30353

Russia has some more serious problems interfering with human flourishing 
than aging. The life expectancy, especially for men, has collapsed to nearly 
Third World levels, fertility has declined, and the population is rapidly 
imploding. Russian civilization is literally dying off:

http://www.rand.org/publications/RB/RB5054/

Progress in Russia won't be sustainable if the society's fundamental 
substrate goes to hell. If it weren't for foreign subsidies, Russia probably 
would have given up space launches already.

American civilization, while in vastly better shape than Russia's, isn't 
immune to entropy, either. A lot of the nation's weaknesses revealed by 9-11 
are inter-related, and it's too soon to see whether our civilization is 
responding to the challenges effectively.

Mark Plus
It's not "religious" or "science fictional" if you can do it.

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