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Life is a countdown. To you know what.
Sure, we all know this, but then we cross some kind of threshold. We reach a certain age and find ourselves measuring time. Counting down the numbers of years we might have left. At least I do.
It’s not the sort of thing you want to dwell on. Please don’t. But ... I’ve read enough obits to come to the conclusion that when I reach my 80s it will be time to gear up. The climb ahead might get rough.
The body is a wonderful, amazing machine but after 80 years of bending, stretching, twisting and absorbing whatever ... well, then a gear or two might be getting fragile, or just stop working.
Yes, it can happen before the 80s. I’ve had to repair a few body parts already. And no age is totally safe. Still I am convinced the 80s are going to be tougher. So I’m counting down the years till I walk through that portal. Or hobble, whatever the case may be.
But hold on. Stay with me. Let me tell you about this article I just read that suggests science can slow down time, that perpetual treadmill we’re stuck upon. Actually, the guy being quoted says we’ll be gaining back a small amount of time in our own lifetime and that could be happening within the next five years.
It’s called “longevity escape velocity,” according to computer scientist and futurist Ray Kurzweil. He’s being quoted in an online Popular Mechanics article by Jackie Appel.
“This is a very controversial concept, and one that – even if possible – would require widespread access to cutting edge medical technology,” Appel writes.
But Kurzweil explains: “It sounds super sci-fi, but it’s basically the idea that as our life extension technology gets better, our life expectancy could increase by more than we age over a set period of time.
“For example, as medical innovations continue to move forward, we would still age a year over the span of a year. But our life expectancy would go up by, say, a year and two months, meaning we would functionally get two months of life back.”
He thinks this could be happening by 2029. Shortly after I step into the scary 80s.
“Past 2029, you’ll get back more than a year. Go backwards in time,” Kurzweil has said. “Once you can get back at least a year, you’ve reached longevity escape velocity.”
He’s crediting this to major medical advancements and technology. He notes it took two days to create the COVID vaccine that became available in 10 months.
“There’s many other advances happening,” he said. “We’re starting to see simulated biology being used and that’s one of the reasons that we’re going to make so much progress in the next five years.”
OK, OK, don’t get over excited. The article also points out that improving the “life expectancy” number does not guarantee adding years to life. Life is unpredictable after all. There’s a lot of variables controlling our health. (What did you snack on last night before going to bed?)
Kurzweil has a decent track record for predicting technological advances, like the proliferation of cellphones and laptops. He also said a computer would beat a chess champion by 1998. That happened in 1997. But he’s also been wrong plenty of times. So … place your bets.
But ... I don’t need a futurist to tell me that medical advances are having a huge impact. In my lifetime people are living longer, and more advances are rapidly coming.
I expect my kids and grandchildren everywhere will enjoy amazing medical discoveries and longer, healthier lives if they have access to advanced medical treatment. That is still a challenge for some.
Overall, though, I would not be surprised to witness some astonishing medical advancements in my near future.
As I trudge through my 80s.
• Lonny Cain, retired managing editor of The Times in Ottawa, also was a reporter for The Herald-News in Joliet in the 1970s. His PaperWork email is lonnyjcain@gmail.com. Or mail The Times, 110 W. Jefferson St., Ottawa, IL 61350.