Life Expectancy

Tom

An Old Friend
Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of their birth, their current age and other demographic factors including sex.

Worldwide, the average life expectancy at birth was 71.0 years (68.5 years for males and 73.5 years for females) over the period 2010–2013 according to United Nations World Population Prospects 2012 Revision, or 70.7 years (68.2 years for males and 73.2 years for females) for 2009 according to The World Factbook.

100 years ago it was about 50-55 years.

By the group's estimates women would to live to be 89 to 94 on average instead of the government's estimate of 83 to 85 years. For men, the group expects they will live to be 83 to 86 instead of the government's projection of 80 years average life expectancy in 2050.

Living to 100 may be seen as a long life now, but according to a new review, it may be the norm for babies born today.

With the birth of my newest grandchild it got me thinking about what his life may have in store for him. Born in 2016 I fully expect him to still be alive in 2116.
My father was born in 1912 and died in 1984. He would tell me stories of those times when he was young and it just amazed me. I watched his expression when we watched men set foot on the Moon. I recall thinking that it was inevitable such a feat would be accomplished. After he died, I used the NASA website to virtually visit Mars. I flew over the planet and realized that my father never saw what I was seeing. Will my grandson see man stepping on other planets in his lifetime?
I grew up in the 60s & 70s. It was a different time back then. The values have changed a lot in a mere 50 years. Religion has changed, communication has changed, science, foods, products, television and even the NEWS has changed since my early years. In my grandson's world of 2116 will there be anything left of the 60's & 70s values?

Barring any number of catastrophic events, what type of world will he witness. Will he sit back and ponder his old times like I do? Considering the trends and memes that are currently happening will they be still happening or will there be a new set of trends? Will he know a united global society? Is world freedom inevitable?

Will there be a major scientific break-thru that will change his world forever? Nanotechnology, AI Singularity, Medical Advancements, Advanced Transportation and a slew of our now cutting edge sciences developed. Will he collect implants like we collect devices? What foods will he be eating? Consider ocean farming or space farming.

My mind reels at the possibilities for change. I am an optimist. I prefer to imagine Utopia rather than dystopia. I do understand that adversity makes way for change. Will he have to endure catastrophes to reach his utopia? We certainly did.

Will there be a civil war in the States? Will there be a new World War? Perhaps a pandemic or a collapse of global economies? Will the global map have similar boundaries as today in 2116? Which 3rd world countries will advance? Which 1st world countries will collapse? Will robots be our workforce?

Consider the automation we have today compared to what we had in the 70s. Will farms be automated? Perhaps he will not just cook his meals in his kitchen but grow his protein in a batch chamber at home? Will communities worldwide have their own gardens and greenhouses? Will there still be schools and universities or will learning be a virtual experience downloaded directly to his brain via global wireless internet and implants?

Have you ever watched a silent film? Will he watch movies inside his brain experiencing full sensory saturation? With all the virtual stimulation what will happen to his body? Compared to us, will he be frail and weak? Without as much sunshine will his pigment start turning pale and grey? As his brain encompasses more and more information will his head be larger?

Right now we are starting to develop automated delivery systems. As those systems advance people will travel less. Will roads be obsolete in favor of high speed delivery systems and drone deliveries? Will jobs be done virtually from home to automated manufacturing and cultivation?

100 years is actually not a long time. But if you look at the advancements we have now compared to 1916 you will see that things are pretty advanced for a 100 year span. Now consider that the last 100 years comprises 4 or 5 generations. The next 100 year span might include 8 or 9 or more generations. All of those people will be intelligent inventing human beings. Advancements will skyrocket. As those advancements occur, intelligence will also skyrocket.

So, what do you think about this subject? Do you see doom & gloom or utopia. I see a bit of both...
 
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