Who Wants To Live Forever?

Hello and welcome back to today's blog as we continue to live in ever changing, unprecedently difficult times. Please keep following the rules and guidance, and if you do leave the house for whatever reason, stay alert. This is another thought-provoking, deep philosophical blog that will probably leave you with more questions than answers (I got very confused planning this one). Have you ever been there thinking about what happens after you die (I do that way too much)? Well what if we didn't have to ask ourselves that. What if we could live forever? I realise this sounds crazy and, frankly, impossible. However, there are scientists researching this all the time. Currently our cells in our body degenerate (the ageing process), but researchers are trying to slow down that cell degeneration process or stop it entirely - hence the title of this blog. Before I get started I want to throw a disclaimer out there. I am not a scientist. If I get any facts slightly off then please do not shoot me! I already have one science friend who will be more than happy to correct me.

Now I don't want to start with the obviously shallow reason, but I shall. Money. Imagine having an absolute endless time frame to amass it. You could make fortunes beyond belief! Not only would you have an infinite amount of money, but you would have all the time in the world (quite literally) to spend it! You spend a million, no worries. You'll probably make thousands more millions before the Earth finally dies out (maybe a future blog there)? You wouldn't have to leave any money for loved ones in a will as you would out live them (and everything else) - it would be all yours! If this is you one day, please remember not everyone would be immortal. Spend some of your money contributing towards good humanitarian causes - it's not as if your money will ever run dry!

Or perhaps you're an events lover who never wants to miss anything ever again? We all love to speculate questions such as "When will people travel to Mars?" or "Do you think Bury will ever win the Champions League?" (sorry Bury fans first team that came to mind). You will be able to see these things with your own two eyes. You might even see a cure for all types of cancers. With this huge wealth of knowledge you will be able to collect, you're sure to be a huge asset to historians and academics. Or for the more adventurous of you, find a way to take part in future events - you could be the one landing on Mars!

If you're a good person like I am (there might be some who disagree), then this gives you the power to do some genuine good for the world. You can help people for ever and a day. It's your chance to be a true hero in the world (maybe not as much of a hero as Spider Man - I love that guy). You can jump into any situation and try to help people. If you see someone tied to a railway line (why would you?) you can go and jump in front of the train to help them. What's the worst that happens - the train hits you and you're fine after a few days in hospital. You have the opportunity to take risks in life, push yourself to the limit, jump out of that helicopter like you've always wanted to do!

All the good things that would come with immortality - now a reality check. It's not all good at all. Largely because immortality does not mean eternal youth. Yes you might grow old later and be younger for longer, but the ageing process will be slower than it was. This leads to a longer period of actually ageing (nobody likes to be told they're getting older) and once you're old that's it. No going back. It's not like driving a car, missing a turning and putting the gear stick in reverse. Ageing is irreversible. As Justin Donaton once said "So if you're in a shop buying immortality in the very distant future, make sure you pick the youth and invulnerability with it."

If you've ever seen Torchwood: Miracle Day then you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. It was impossible for any human to die. Anything could happen to you and you'd just shake it off (yes I knew I could get a Taylor reference in here somehow)! Everyone lived until they were literally a pile of bones. Old age was long and painful - hence why you buy the invulnerability and youth as well as immortality.

Now when I'm by myself for long periods of time I get bored quickly. Well, imagine being alone forever (however long forever is - you decide). You would be living in an endless vacuum of time. You would probably try to keep such a low profile that your life really wouldn't be worth living anyway. You would see your parents die, your children, grandchildren, great grandchildren. You could marry seven, eight, nine different people - you would attend all of their funerals. Your life would be a gigantic pit of misery, grief and sorrow. Nobody wants, or deserves, to live like that.

The big question is whether immortality would be worth the money? Personally, in isolation, absolutely not. However, what if there was a way to become immortal whilst also being invulnerable and young forever (imagine one continuous sweet 16 - how awesome)! Let's face it, we all want to stay young. We all have that age that treated us like royalty, when we could do no wrong.

But for me another important question is "Would you try immortality if it was reversible?" Almost like test driving a new car for the weekend. If you got to old age (which clearly you would - you're immortal) and you were miserable and lonely all the time, then you could walk into the local Tesco and say "Tried it, don't like it, want my money back" (try to be more polite). Hopefully one day we will have the option of all three. Let's allow scientists to keep working to slow those cells down!

I just want to close this blog by saying (and I hate sounding soppy) thank you all so much for the support on the previous entries! I am genuinely blown away by the support and the nice comments I am receiving. Doing something you love and other people being so supportive is honestly the best thing in the world. You guys rock!

Come back Monday.

Connor

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