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| Immortality | |
|---|---|
| Name | Immortality |
| Field | Biology; Philosophy; Religion; Technology; Literature |
Immortality
Immortality is the concept of unending life, longevity, or persistence of consciousness across time, invoked in scientific, philosophical, religious, and cultural contexts. Scholars, institutions, religious movements, technologists, and artists have debated and depicted pathways to indefinite life, including cellular senescence research, cryonics, mind uploading, eschatology, and mythic narratives. Debates involve empirical studies by laboratories, arguments from philosophers, doctrinal claims by religious bodies, and portrayals by authors and filmmakers.
Definitions of immortality vary across traditions: in biology, medicine, and gerontology researchers like those at Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Buck Institute for Research on Aging, National Institute on Aging, and laboratories led by figures such as Aubrey de Grey, Elizabeth Blackburn, and Linda Partridge examine mechanisms of senescence, telomeres, and repair. In philosophy, discussions among scholars influenced by Plato, Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, John Locke, David Hume, Thomas Nagel, and Derek Parfit probe personal identity, continuity, and survival. Religious definitions are articulated in traditions represented by institutions like the Vatican, Al-Azhar University, Tibetan Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism and movements such as Scientology and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Cultural and legal definitions emerge in contexts involving organizations like UNESCO, World Health Organization, European Court of Human Rights and events such as debates at the World Economic Forum.
Laboratory research spans model organisms and clinical translation: studies using Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila melanogaster, Mus musculus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Hydra inform mechanisms attributed to longevity interventions pursued by teams at Harvard University, Stanford University, MIT, University of Oxford, Rockefeller University, and companies such as Calico Life Sciences, Unity Biotechnology, Juvenescence, Life Biosciences, and Insilico Medicine. Key molecular players include research on telomerase involving Carol Greider, Elizabeth Blackburn, and Jack Szostak, studies of mTOR signaling influenced by work on Rapamycin and researchers at National Institutes of Health, investigations of sirtuins linked to studies by David Sinclair, and autophagy research tied to Yoshinori Ohsumi. Therapeutic approaches under exploration include senolytics tested in trials affiliated with Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins University, regenerative medicine via induced pluripotent stem cells developed by Shinya Yamanaka, gene therapies informed by CRISPR-Cas9 technology from teams like those at Broad Institute and companies like Editas Medicine, and metabolic interventions inspired by caloric restriction studies at National Institute on Aging. Debates about “negligible senescence” reference organisms studied at institutions such as Scripps Research and phenomena in species documented by researchers at Smithsonian Institution and Max Planck Institute.
Philosophical inquiry treats immortality in metaphysics and ethics: debates by Plato and Aristotle contrast with modern treatments by Immanuel Kant, John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, G. W. F. Hegel, Derek Parfit, Bernard Williams, and contemporary ethicists at Oxford University, Harvard University, and Princeton University. Religious perspectives include eschatological doctrines in Christianity articulated by councils such as the Council of Nicaea, interpretive traditions at Vatican II, Islamic teachings preserved in centers like Al-Azhar University, Hindu concepts described in texts such as the Bhagavad Gita and traditions associated with Vishnu and Shiva, Buddhist teachings from monasteries in Tibet and Sri Lanka, and mythic accounts from Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Mystical and occult traditions involve figures and institutions like Hermes Trismegistus, Kabbalah, and Sufism. Modern religious movements and philosophical schools—Transhumanism, represented by organizations like the Extropy Institute and thinkers such as Max More and Nick Bostrom—argue technological pathways, while critics from scholars at Cambridge University and Yale University raise ethical and existential objections.
Technological proposals include cryonics practiced by organizations like the Alcor Life Extension Foundation and Cryonics Institute, whole brain preservation efforts by projects such as those at 21st Century Medicine, and computational approaches to mind uploading discussed by researchers associated with Blue Brain Project, Human Brain Project, Google DeepMind, and theorists like Ray Kurzweil. Artificial intelligence and neural simulation research at institutions including MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Carnegie Mellon University, Stanford AI Lab, and companies like OpenAI interrogate prospects for emulating cognition. Digital legacy services operated by firms such as Facebook (Meta), Google and startup entities offer preservation of digital identity. Legal and institutional frameworks intersect with patent offices, research ethics boards at hospitals like Cleveland Clinic, regulatory agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration, and policy discussions in legislatures including the United States Congress and European Parliament.
Literary and artistic treatments span myth, epic, and speculative fiction: ancient epics from Gilgamesh and texts like the Epic of Gilgamesh contrast with classical works by Homer and Virgil; medieval and Renaissance dramatists such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe explored mortality; Romantic, Victorian, and modern authors—Mary Shelley, Oscar Wilde, Bram Stoker, H. G. Wells, Aldous Huxley, J. R. R. Tolkien, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick, Ursula K. Le Guin, Margaret Atwood, Neal Stephenson, Michael Crichton, and George R. R. Martin—depict quests for extended life. Film and television productions by studios like Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, BBC, Netflix, and directors such as Stanley Kubrick, James Cameron, Ridley Scott, and Christopher Nolan visualize themes, while composers and visual artists from institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Tate Modern engage with mortality in exhibitions. Graphic novels and games from publishers like Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Dark Horse Comics, and developers such as BioWare and Bethesda Softworks incorporate immortality motifs.
Ethical debates arise among bioethicists at Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, Harvard Medical School, and University of Oxford concerning distributive justice, intergenerational equity, and consent; legal scholars at Yale Law School, Harvard Law School, and institutions prompting legislation in bodies like the United States Congress and European Parliament consider rights, inheritance, and status. Societal implications engage demographers at United Nations, economists at International Monetary Fund and World Bank, urban planners in municipalities such as New York City and Tokyo, and public health agencies including the World Health Organization. Political debates involve parties and movements across nations—illustrated by policy platforms in countries like China, India, United States, United Kingdom—and NGOs such as Human Rights Watch and Red Cross highlight humanitarian dimensions. Biosecurity and dual-use concerns are addressed by think tanks like RAND Corporation, Brookings Institution, and Chatham House.
Category:Longevity