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A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

economist.com

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Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#51
post #26

Another article covering this with an interesting quote, "Mid-life crisis? It’s been said that young people dream of being rich, and rich people dream of being young." [0] [0] https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/09/04/1034364/altos-la...

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Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#52
post #18

“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.” – Max Planck[1] Often paraphrased as "Science progresses one funeral at a time." I don't think we really want immortality or unnatural longevity. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck%27s_principle

I would agree “we” don’t. Whoever “we” is. The problem is the hypothetical billionaires and politicians expanding their power with elongated lifespans. Imagine the ramifications if Supreme Court justices lived 50+ more years, for one example.

Of course, we'd have to change how many things work in the world, this specific example seems like a rather simple one to change.

Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are forgetting the iron law of real-life business stories: the better they seem, the worse they are.

>the better they seem, the worse they are Is this common knowledge? I've seen it empirically but I don't know how much is that a widespread feeling. (Not being snark or sarcastic).

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Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#54

There have been several companies formed in the past few years whose premise is researching in industry anti-aging or basic science more generally (Calico, Altos Labs, Arcadia, etc.)... Does anyone understand the underlying economics or motivations? They can't be gambles when they raise $B's, and I'm too cynical to believe these are altruistic endeavors. Certainly there is research that cannot be reasonably expected…

They can be gambles when they raise billions. Welcome to biotech investing, where even 20 year old public companies with 5B+ market caps can have very little to show for it!

Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#55

“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.” – Max Planck[1] Often paraphrased as "Science progresses one funeral at a time." I don't think we really want immortality or unnatural longevity. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planck%27s_principle

Most people won't have access. Just the ultra elites.

Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are forgetting the iron law of real-life business stories: the better they seem, the worse they are.

>the better they seem, the worse they are Is this common knowledge? I've seen it empirically but I don't know how much is that a widespread feeling. (Not being snark or sarcastic).

I think it's a principle everyone knows but nobody can bring themselves to put in to practice.

Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#57
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the neural reattachment seems really hard. Where are we on spinal cord recovery after a complete sever? If you are an oligarch and don't mind murdering a healthy young type o- isn't that really the only barrier?

> Where are we on spinal cord recovery after a complete sever? It's been performed in animals, though it resulted in paralyzation and subsequent euthanization. Human attempts have been prepped for on several occasions, but never carried out. Past human candidates have been paraplegics, but I think you'd find even more willing patents amongst those with terminal cancers. It would probably take trial and error before w…

Lets make sure we solve the monoclonal bodies thing before the reattachment thing. I'm pretty sure there will be some dying oligarchs that aren't worried about scalability or immunosuppressants.

Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#58

it's good to see billionaires putting money into health moonshots (vs real moonshots). Helps so many more people.

If immortality was somehow cracked, it would cause the end of civilization if it became available to everyone. Imagine the population of Earth ballooning to 12+ billion. Instead, it would be kept for the billionaires. Imagine the staggering inequality of 180-year-old trillionaires and their kin, that never ever relinquish their hordes. It's straight out of a cyberpunk dystopia. (Tessier-Ashpool comes to mind)

Re: A $3B bet on finding the fountain of youth

#60
post #5

There's nothing Silicon Valley billionaires will throw money at faster than the ability to live longer/forever. Makes sense in a way, but pretty much everyone in the field will tell you that the science is simply not there yet. Calico is similarly funded and has been at it for a decade now, with nothing to show for it.

I have snake oil for sale

You do? How much! It seems hard to get the temp right, during rendering, so I often burn the fat and...

(Even snake oil has value...)

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