Discussion Is anybody else scared by the potential of biological immortality developing?

[ijustwishtodie]

I'm not sure if I'm the only one but I'm extremely scared of the idea of biological immortality developing in the future. Technology is advancing at such a rapid rate to where I feel like it may actually be possible to develop biological immortality in a few decades. The reason why I'm scared of this is because of the idea of society forcing this biological immortality upon everybody in society. If not society, then family.

It may first sound like a massive stretch to force biological immortality upon everybody but, then again, this is the same world where you get involuntarily sactioned in a mental hospital for expressing suicidal thoughts. This is also the same world where everybody tries to make suicide methods as difficult as possible to access... just look at how the media are trying to ban this site for example. Hence, in a world like this, I don't think that forcing biological immortality upon everybody is much of a stretch. They already believe that the right to die doesn't exist anyway.

I'm just scared that my lifespan will be artifically extended even further than what it currently is and I can't stop panicking over this...

 

[Agon321]

No, I'm not afraid.
I most likely have different views than most people on this site.
I believe that the human species should constantly develop.

The question is also what you call immortality.
I doubt complete immortality will be achieved.
However, if humanity continues to develop, we will extend our lifespan.
But it will still be possible to kill a person normally.
Immortality has different meanings.
We will not be Gods immune to fire, bullets, etc.
At least not in the foreseeable future ;)

In my opinion, your concerns are unnecessary.
People will still be able to CTB in the future.
We will not suddenly become magically immune to, for example, SN.

In a few dozen years, a person may be able to live to be 150 years old.
Of course, only wealthy people will be able to afford it to begin with.
Of course, provided that our species continues to develop rapidly.
Maybe I also underestimate us and AI will completely change the rules of the game.

 

[Suicidebydeath]

I think immortality for humans is a pipe dream, there's a lot of other problems they can't even fix yet. Life extension however is proven by centuries of advancements, although I'm sure we'll reach a cap and right now we're just extending the life of really old people which isn't the best QoL either.

Even then, I think it'll be an opt-in thing, and only the rich and powerful will have access to it at first. Given that rich and powerful people that don't want to die are still dropping like flies, I don't think we're anywhere close.

Humanity should focus on making advancements for the people who are suffering first, and I think that's more achievable than giving immortality to the masses or even the R&P.

When a billionaire reaches 150 and still has the body of someone in their 20s is when you know we're close, I can't see that happening for a long time. Keep an eye out for age regression technology, once people stop aging or start getting younger, you'll know. The first step will probably be tech that regulates our body automatically, that's how I'd do it. They already have something like for type 1 diabetics, they just need to develop something for general health and roll it out.

If I had personal control, I'd stamp out obesity+diabetes etc with tech, and roll out free cosmetics to everyone that needs it. It's much easier and fairer to balance things than increase life expectancy or anything else to 11/10 past the natural limits.

 

[wCvML2]

From what I've seen, the anti-aging technology we have is basically just improving health and slowing down aging but not becoming immune to death

 

[gingermacie]

If it does come to fruition within your lifetime, it will surely only be accessible to the wildly wealthy. Just look at the billionaire already trying to reach 120. For other demographics it will be decades upon decades, so I definitely wouldn't worry.

 

[sserafim]

If they made everyone immortal, then infinite growth would be sustained and achieved. Capitalism requires and relies on it. The system would have an endless supply of workers forever, until the end of time. There would be an infinite supply of human resources and capital. Because we would never die, we would work for the rest of our lives, which would be until infinity or the heat death of the universe. This honestly sounds terrifying to me. I don't know why people want to become immortal. It sounds so boring to me. Maybe the beauty of life is that it doesn't last forever

 

[ClaudeCTTE]

I'm not worried at all because I live in the third world.

In the third world, technology arrives centuries later, so if immortality were to come to my town, it would probably be in 1000 years.
There are people in my town who still don't know what the heck AI is, so I don't think they'll be thinking about more advanced things.

On the other hand, people in my town are so stupid that they believe they can cure cancer and extend life using esotericism or praying...

 

[ijustwishtodie]

Even then, I think it'll be an opt-in thing, and only the rich and powerful will have access to it at first. Given that rich and powerful people that don't want to die are still dropping like flies, I don't think we're anywhere close.

I thought this too initially as most people are okay with their situation and slaving their lives away. However, I feel like this would be an exception as, in the cases where people are okay with the rich doing their usual stuff, people can still stay in their little imaginative bubble where they see the world through rose tinted glasses. When it comes to biological immortality however, I just can't see people being okay with such a technology existing without it getting used on themselves or their older loved ones who could be on the verge of death. I feel like people would be more active in trying to seize those technology for themselves because this is life and death that is being concerned here and many people want to avoid death at all cost. Perhaps I'm wrong but I hope I don't live long enough to find out

Humanity should focus on making advancements for the people who are suffering first, and I think that's more achievable than giving immortality to the masses or even the R&P.

I agree but unfortunately humanity tend to prioritise quantity of quality

If I had personal control, I'd stamp out obesity+diabetes etc with tech, and roll out free cosmetics to everyone that needs it. It's much easier and fairer to balance things than increase life expectancy or anything else to 11/10 past the natural limits.

That would be a nice thing to do but sadly people tend to prioritise quantity over quality. I feel like members on this site would prioritise quality instead due to what we've been through

From what I've seen, the anti-aging technology we have is basically just improving health and slowing down aging but not becoming immune to death

I don't think that being immortal completely is possible due to entropy and finite resources but the thought of having a body which cannot die from aging sounds terrifying to me

If it does come to fruition within your lifetime, it will surely only be accessible to the wildly wealthy. Just look at the billionaire already trying to reach 120. For other demographics it will be decades upon decades, so I definitely wouldn't worry.

I thought the same thing initially as people are okay with the rich doing whatever they want. However, I feel like this would be an exception to that as they would have the potential to access technology with can save their, or their loved ones, lives for a couple more years. When it comes to life and death situations specifically, I just can't comprehend the idea of people not trying to seize the technology for themselves as many people are terrified of death and want to avoid it at all costs

If they made everyone immortal, then infinite growth would be sustained and achieved. Capitalism requires and relies on it. The system would have an endless supply of workers forever, until the end of time. There would be an infinite supply of human resources and capital. Because we would never die, we would work for the rest of our lives, which would be until infinity or the heat death of the universe. This honestly sounds terrifying to me. I don't know why people want to become immortal. It sounds so boring to me. Maybe the beauty of life is that it doesn't last forever

This truly is scary to think about. I don't think that people will ever decide that enough is enough. They'll always want to work to further expand their influence in the universe and to colonise other planets. This truly is terrifying

I'm not worried at all because I live in the third world.

In the third world, technology arrives centuries later, so if immortality were to come to my town, it would probably be in 1000 years.
There are people in my town who still don't know what the heck AI is, so I don't think they'll be thinking about more advanced things.

On the other hand, people in my town are so stupid that they believe they can cure cancer and extend life using esotericism or praying...

Fair enough to all of this. Also, with regards to your last paragraph, I understand what you mean as I've had my fair share of experiences with a third world country. It's sad to see people think that they can pray their issues away and that they genuinely believe in a god that cares about them

 

[Blurry_Buildings]

To me it sounds really cool but really unfeasible for many centuries.

I'd actually prefer a world with biological immortality because then there wouldn't be a constant stress to succeed. Assuming physical health issues could be cured as well, it'd be nicer to relax and just know that you'll be around in a perfectly functioning painless body for as long as you want.

(unless you get into an accident or are murdered - can you imagine how annoying it must be knowing you're biologically immortal but still going to die because your self driving tesla-copter just crashed itself into another self driving tesla-copter midair? Idk how I would be able to process my irritation about not being able to live to sue for damages as I went up in flames)

 

[Praestat_Mori]

No, because if that ever were to become reality I'd be long gone even by natural death. But honestly as long as my life is good on all levels I wouldn't mind living 200 years.

 

[N33dT0D13]

I am not at all worried or hopeful about any form of immortality being achieved in my lifetime.

 

[derpyderpins]

Nah. First off, if the elites could live forever they'd want the rest of us dead, so normal people wouldn't have access to it. Second, I don't spend time worrying about big happenings. Too many scares have come and gone or been delayed. At this point something truly terrifying would be a nice change of pace because at least it would be interesting.

 

[vitbar]

It might even be good for the pro-choice argument as enough people might eventually want a way out.