Why Do We Die ??

[Cyclone]

It's a area of biology with lots of research going on though and there are quite a few interesting avenues being explored that could increase lifespans.

Edit, there are certain types of cell that are in effect immortal. They reproduce cleanly and age as most cell lines do, so theoretically it's possible for an organism to be immune from ageing (not immortal though).

[mojoworking]

Death does not concern us, because as long as we exist, death is not here. And when it does come, we no longer exist.

~ Epicurus

[Cyclone]

That only applies to your own death, not the death of others.

[mojoworking]

That only applies to your own death, not the death of others.

 

Please address any complaints to the ancient Greeks

[DragonofAna]

We die so we can go round and do it all over again with slight changes in an attempt to prove a point - a bit like someone experimenting will carry out the same test over and over until certain he/she has it right.

 

When you have finished the experiment then you will not need to come back and die again.

 

At least - that's one theory.

[Cyclone]

Please address any complaints to the ancient Greeks

 

You chose to quote them, are you now saying that you don't agree with what you quoted?

[Jabberwocky]

Imagine living for ever, it`d be hideous! Once you get to a certain age the thought of karking it doesnt have the same effect as it did when you were young... Actually... come to think of it... Once you get to a certain age then you can more or less guess how many years you have left...

 

 

I`m 50 this year...

 

Ok I just scared myself.

 

I reckon that we have to snuff it for evolution to work properly, if things didnt die then the planet would be waist deep in Blue-green algae or whatever the hell was first on Earth after it formed and evolution would have stopped dead and we wouldnt be here.

 

As for prolonging human life... I`m not sure that`d be a good idea, we have too many people and too few resources as it is so imagine the West with thirty times the population it has now, all living forever, all clawing for limited and dwindling resources.

 

The planet would get poorer and eventually these immortals would be living in a stone age that they had caused by their greed for life.

 

Unless of course, we get out of low Earth orbit and start using the minerals and what have you of the moon and asteroids.

[Nazo]

This was one of the chapters in '13 things that don't make sense', a really interesting book I read recently. Apparently scientists don't really know why we die, and in fact there are some organisms on the planet which don't age and die. There is speculation why it might be but they don't really know for sure.

In fact there seems to be quite a lot going on around us that scientists have no clue how to explain.

[Berberis]

I thought I would start a happy thread joke

 

On a serious note why? Everything seems to have a friggin expiry date. Can't genetics find a cure for ageing & we all live forever Or am I just being floaty asking this Q?

 

DNA and RNA replicate imperfectly, so over time we become more and more "old" with flaws that cause many a disease associated with old age.

[[Matt]]

Death does not concern us, because as long as we exist, death is not here. And when it does come, we no longer exist.

~ Epicurus

 

Mark twain later adapted that quote to say: -

I do not fear death. I had been dead for billions and billions of years before I was born and had not suffered the slightest inconvenience from it.