Suresh Rattan's birth certificate reads «1955». At his age, signs of decline inevitably creep in, but Suresh doesn't feel that old. In fact, he feels twenty years younger. He can even explain why. No wonder: He does research on age and ageing at Aarhus University. Thanks to evolution, we can't imagine ourselves any older than 45. Biologically, we should just give up the ghost once we've raised a few carbon copies of ourselves. But for those of us who want to stick around a little longer, Suresh has devised a formula for eternal life. Let's hope it works.
Оглавление
Suresh Rattan. Age
JUST A NUMBER? MY PERSONAL SECRET
THE RIGHT AGE TO DIE
MADAME CALMENT’S RECORD
FASTER THAN USAIN BOLT
DARWIN KNOWS
THE EMERGENCE OF LIFE. THE NATURE OF WATER
MY FATHER’S GOODNIGHT STORY
POOR HYDRA
THE DYNAMIC PARADOX OF LIFE
THE PROGRESSION OF LIFE. AN OLD BABY?
A CHILD AT MANY AGES
THE FATEFUL HEAT WAVE
WE DIE AS ‘ORIGINALS’
LIFELONG ZEST. NO ENEMY INSIDE
OUR YOUTHFUL MIND
MIYAZAKI VERSUS BOLT
THE FORMULA FOR ETERNAL LIFE. THE IMMORTAL SPANIARD
MY FORMULA FOR ETERNAL LIFE
HOT CHILLI RECOMMENDED
ME AND MY MULTIPLE AGES. I BELIEVE IN DARWIN
EMBRACE YOUR AGE
Отрывок из книги
SURESH RATTAN
Well, surely I did not feel 60 anymore that day than I felt the day before. Actually, let me share my personal secret with you. For the last twenty years I have never felt older than 45. When I was a teenager, I sometimes behaved the other way round, as if I were 45 – a mature, wise, experienced, trustworthy man. At that age I wanted to be treated, respected and accepted as if I were much older.
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There is a very interesting and true story about taking life expectancy at face value. A story with dire consequences. In 1955, Madame Calment had already lived ten years longer than the expected lifespan of French women at that time. Perhaps that is why, around that time, her attorney offered to buy her house through the French viager system.
The viager system of buying and selling property follows a set of simple but somewhat peculiar rules. Basically, the seller agrees to sell the property at about 30% of its current market value. The seller then receives an agreed sum of money every month as an annuity or pension (the rente viagère) for rest of their life, along with retaining the right of usage (droit d’usage) over the property.
