Escape Velocity
Escape Velocity: Why the Prospect of Extreme Human Life Extension Matters Now
The biogerontologist David Sinclair and the bioethicist Leon Kass recently locked horns in a radio debate on human life extension that was remarkable for one thing: on the key issue, Kass was right and Sinclair wrong. Sinclair suggested, as have other experts, including his mentor Lenny Guarente and the National Institute on Aging advisory council member Elizabeth Blackburn, that Kass and other bioconservatives are creating a false alarm about life extension, because only a modest (say,30%) increase in human life span is achievable by biomedical intervention,whereas Kass’s apprehensions concern extreme or indefinite life extension.