Since the beginning of history, humans have attempted to prolong their existence on this Earth. Chinese Emperors fervently sought the Elixir of Life and several are believed to have died from consuming potions concocted by their alchemists, which actually comprised such substances as Arsenic and Mercury. Amrita (“immortality juice”) is described in the Hindu scriptures. In Europe alchemists have sought the “Philosopher’s Stone”, whose powers include restoring lost youth, since Ancient Greek times.

It is only with the advent of modern science that these life-extension goals begin to seem achievable and many researchers and corporations today are working on prolonging human lifespans to well over 100 years. The key to this research is understanding how exponentially increasing a person's age also requires slowing (or stopping) the ageing process. In this talk, John Troyer will explore the current research in radical life extension as well as the politics and bioethics of having a body that might never 'die'.

A new approach to death is only possible if we come to understand our increasingly technologically mediated mortality and its impact on the law and social interaction. The future of human mortality is much less about whether or not death can be ‘cured.’ The real question is whether that scenario is desirable.