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Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

theguardian.com

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Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#211

Post by rms »

tokenadult wrote: post #105

The article reports, "Turner said a 'magic pill' that reverses ageing is several years away, partially due to the cost of the compound, which would be about $50,000 a day for a human." That suggests several things. The clinical trials will be small in the beginning, and thus the small-n studies will not have much statistical power. There will be some kind of patent scramble related to any patentable technology that c…

If nothing else, I think this is emblematic of where we are in both the news cycle and the scientific cycle with regards to anti-aging research. After decades of small progress in anti-aging research, we're at this neat convergence of increasing public interest in anti-aging research combined with promising early results and vastly increased funding in the area.

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#212

Post by LaGrange »

twobits wrote: post #67
_random_ wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe most people are not capable of understanding the possibilities of a strong AI? It's not like we will just have a nice sounding personal assistant.

What can't one understand about "infinite 'free' labour"?

"infinite 'free' labour”

We used to call that „slavery”. There’s ethical considerations to AI, and treating it as a potential source „free labour” is one of the reasons I believe humanity shouldn’t be allowed to play with matches.

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#213

Post by thenerdfiles »

Natsu wrote: post #192
thenerdfiles wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Philosophers" haven't had "serious philosophical issues" with this topic since Spinoza. Heck, even the Stoics. It's theology that has a problem, not philosophy , where theology crafts its ideas, very often, from the architectures of philosophical thought. Outside of a theological context, there isn't much of a debate anyway. Again: the Stoics. We do ask philosophers about "right to die" and "permissibility of stem c…

> No one asks a philosopher if that philosopher personally thinks some act is okay or not okay... I've seen counter-examples of this in newspapers, where they have them weigh in with their opinion (on the news pages, not editorial), being quoted as an expert.

Like how the Daily Show calls its "news correspondants" "experts"?

Being an expert on ethics and describing one's stance is more than just opinion. It's a trade. We expect philosophers to have distinguished opinions, opinions they have defended and examined, partly inherited from history of philosophy itself. A philosopher can give its personal opinion, but usually they identify it as such. We do often want to know what the person thinks, in which case we're asking the person, not the philosopher. The person just so happens to talk like they do most of the time.

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#215

Post by Tepix »

31reasons wrote: post #169
Vardhan wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that the goal of life? Incessant scientific progress?

Yup. There may be thousands of earth like planets in our galaxy alone. Shouldn't we explore them some time in future ?

With 100 billion stars in the Milky Way, we're talking millions (or more), not thousands.

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#217

Post by trendoid »

rubinelli wrote: post #203
trendoid wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, and hence moral education(which imparts critical thinking and rational moral values) of next generation seems like the most important task to me. Why too much money and power are not the most important things in this world and showing them examples of how they can corrupt you. Learning, sharing and making the world a 'better' place is what should motivate next generation and we urgently need to find a way to br…

But do we really know what we are supposed to teach them? Imagine this magic pill was available three hundred years ago. Imagine what the world would be like, if people who believed slavery was part of life, and that women were inherently inferior to men, were not only alive, but still calling the shots.

We are not sure what will work but thats why new models need to be experimented starting now. Coming up with tools for teaching critical thinking and morality should be on high priority in SV. Yes, magic pill invented 300 yrs ago would have had devastating consequences. But I am not sure whether that sort of thing is practically possible. It seems there is somewhat direct correlation between scientific revolutions(like renaissance) and moral values of the society(dont have data to back that up, just using history as an example).

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#218

Post by coldtea »

davorb wrote: post #185
coldtea wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> At any point in the discussion on whether people have a right to die, or whether it was ok to use tissue from aborted fetuses for stem cell research or whether we need universal health care, has anyone ever asked, "Well, what do the philosophers think?" Yes, many people. In civilised countries that are not all about "pop culture" and where science is not supposed to be half about marketing stuff to people -- people…

> In civilised countries [...] Name one.

I'll give you several: most Western European countries with "public intellectuals" and a vibrant public discussion, from Italy to France.

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#219

Post by DennisP »

tokenadult wrote: post #160
blazespin wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Feedback? Sure. You're doing the "appeal to surface appearance" argument. Not sure, but I don't recall that argument from Critical Thinking 101.

I will acknowledge that the article about him on Wikipedia has a talk page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Aubrey_de_Grey like few other biography of living person (BLP) articles I have seen in years of editing Wikipedia. Wow.

First time I've seen Jimmy Wales jump into a discussion. In Aubrey's defense, in this case:

"I am entirely unconvinced by the quite frankly bizarre claim that the credentialed experts on the board of Mr. De Gray's foundation don't 'count' towards respectability since they are 'conflicted'. Conflicted in that they endorse his work? It makes no sense. Also, be very careful that you are not edging into uncivil personal attack by hinting darkly about his bona fides as a scientist - he has a Phd from Cambridge University based on 'The Mitochondrial Free Radical Theory of Aging'!"

Re: Anti-ageing compound set for human trials after turning clock back for mice

#220

Post by eli_gottlieb »

salient wrote: post #23
ams6110 wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Rather selfish? We'll have enough problems in the coming decades with geriatric baby boomers, you now want to give people the option to live forever?

No. Survival is our strongest instinct. Besides, human population will plateau around 10 billion or so, and we're already seeing trends, from very early ones to pretty advanced ones (Japan), where people decide not to have kids anymore in modern societies, or even have sex with other humans. You're thinking immortality would be a problem given the current conditions . But the conditions will be different in the futur…

We can already feed everyone. The problem is distribution, not production.
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