"The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible - and achieve it, generation after generation."

-- Pearl S. Buck

As we enter the 3rd millenium, I can imagine a world in which the natural life span is extended, thru genetic therapy and/or new medical techniques to, say, 1000 years. One thousand years of robust health, not 50 years of robustness and 950 years of oldness.

What if this becomes possible? What are the implications? Not necessarily good I would think. In order to prevent runaway poulation, it would be necessary to limit reproduction to one child per person over their 1000 years of life. So the average age would be 400 years or so. Strikes me that this could result in a deadly dull world in which there were few dynamics for change.

On the other hand, it might result in a very mature civilization in which there is no war, no injustice, no passion for killing.

Is such a Methusalah world possible? If so what are the implications?

-- Lars (lars@indy.net), August 17, 2000

Answers

Lars:

Just got back from the west coast. Smoke over the northern rockies is bad. I know that you always comment on my where-abouts, so I am checking in. I am in town for two PhD exams and leave on Tuesday.

I am more worried about the people we have in the here and now. I have three pups on my porch; howling. Nice dogs. Someone dumped them here. Happens when you live in a rural area. I also have a black cat that someone dumped. When we have these kind of people in the world. I don't worry much about what is to come. Too abstract.

Best Wishes,,

-- Z1X4Y7 (Z1X4Y7@aol.com), August 17, 2000.

space mining.

-- Oxy (Oxsys@aol.com), August 17, 2000.

Lars:

As we enter the 3rd millenium,

By-the-by, my species has been here a lot longer than that. :^)

Then, we may differ.

Best wishes,,,,

Z

-- Z1X4Y7 (Z1X4Y7@aol.com), August 17, 2000.

Lars:

By-the-by 2. It is becoming so dark that one can hardly see. Sky is a funny color. STORM. Good site for this stuff if you don't have it:

Weather Warnings

Sometimes, they are late. Will need to unplug stuff soon.

Best wishes,,,,

-- Z1X4Y7 (Z1X4Y7@aol.com), August 17, 2000.

Z--

I just got home, 7:30 PM here. Sky is very dark and it is thundering. No animals were on my steps. You must have a rep as someone who will care for abandoned animals. Sounds like these animal lovers went out of their way to leave the dogs with you. At least they didn't dump them at the edge of a highway.

Thanks for the interesting weather site. A band of red across the center of the country from Atlantic to Pacific. Is this a common pattern? I don't think so. It may be due to space strip-mining.

-- Lars (lars@indy.net), August 17, 2000.

A thousand beers?! ugh I'm feeling hung-over just thinking about that.

-- cin (=oP@cin.cin), August 18, 2000.

P.S...tip for the day...Don't guzzle orange juice on a tequila hangover.

-- cin (=oP@cin.cin), August 18, 2000.

A thousand beers? Childs play!!! Couldn't we make it just a little bit more challenging? Especially if we are gonna be around for a thousand years : )

-- capnfun (capnfun1@excite.com), August 18, 2000.

Geez,a mere 6pak per day equals 2,190 beers in a year,maybe more if ya count the ones for the tequilla hangover : )

-- capnfun (capnfun1@excite.com), August 18, 2000.

Capn--

For historical purposes only--

"May you live a thousand years, may you drink a thousand beers,

Get plastered you bastard, Happy Birthday to you"

This was the 2nd verse of the Happy Birthday song as sung in the 50s. The "thousand beers" referred to that birthday event. The closest I remember to reach the noble goal was one Al Janakowski who drank 120 8 oz glasses and died in his own puke in the basement men's room of the Pretzel-Bell bar in Ann Arbor MI in Mar 1957.

-- Lars (lars@indy.net), August 18, 2000.

Lar's,

What length of time was that set in?

-- capnfun (capnfun1@excite.com), August 18, 2000.

The closest I remember to reach the noble goal was one Al Janakowski who drank 120 8 oz glasses and died in his own puke in the basement men's room of the Pretzel-Bell bar in Ann Arbor MI in Mar 1957.

If that doesn't sound like the perfect way to die, I don't know what does.

-- (hmm@hmm.hmm), August 18, 2000.

Hmm,

You could ask Jim Morrison for the definitive answer, I hear he's sort of a guru on the subject.

Frank

-- Someone (ChimingIn@twocents.cam), August 18, 2000.

There is a brass plaque on the spot where Al died in puke dried.

-- (lars@indy.net), August 18, 2000.

For seventeen years I held up my corner on a mission, a beer mission. It was an astonishing effort when I look back on it. Great beers in OZ, long and cold and heavy boutique fruity dark types that make you wax lyrical in a glow.

Mind you, it's but a memory now, with the occasional flash-back of things we got up to when we were primed.

-- Pieter (zaadz@icisp.net.au), August 19, 2000.

In a word "eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww"

xoxo, sumer

-- consumer (shh@aol.com), August 21, 2000.

Nice writing, Pieter. Well said.

-- Oxy (Oxsys@aol.com), August 21, 2000.

I imagine most of us would really look forward to that yearly beer.

-- Flint (flintc@mindspring.com), August 21, 2000.

Flint,

Or that beerly year : )

-- capnfun (capnfun1@excite.com), August 21, 2000.