When We Live Beyond 200 Years Old
Muzi was in an upbeat mood. It was his 185th birthday and he was having his third retirement party after his contracted 20 year tenure as a university professor. Before that he’d been an aerospace engineer and prior to that an architect. His latest health review projected he’d live to around 220 years old and he’d accumulated enough wealth to retire to his cottage outside of Cape Town.
What will it mean when we can live beyond 200 years? Perhaps 300 years? Is this possible and if so, what does that mean for different cultures, the impact on social norms, economic and political systems? What about advancements in AI and robotics as part of that whole?
Our current economic systems are not designed for such a situation. In developed nations, they work around a relatively predictable lifespan. A period of growth and education, career and family time with an accumulation of wealth. Retirement. Death. All within about an average 75 year lifespan, depending on where you live in the world.
In western cultures, there is less regard for the elderly and hitting 55 means you’re on the downswing and considered of less economic value. Asian cultures revere the elderly, so do many African ones. One is still considered economically viable over 55. So here, we see a need to shift how people are valued into later years, based on our current economic…
