Category Archives: Immortality

We hate to break it to you but it looks like all those superfood salads youve been putting yourself through have been a bit of a waste. Actually eating your fruits and vegetables? That is so 2016. The hottest new way to get your vitamins is via an Intravenous Vitamin Infusion.

Dont worry if you arent exactly sure what that involves yet as The Elixir Clinic, a leading clinic specialising in Intravenous Vitamin Infusions, has only just opened a Dubai branch in order to match its Harrods outlet. A space where clients can indulge in a range of aesthetic and holistic treatments, The Elixir Clinic is set to become the ultimate health and wellbeing destination for the same set of people youve seen shilling Bootea on Instagram.

Described as an effective, natural and safe way to sustain long-term wellbeing, the patented VitaDrip is perhaps the most unique treatment The Elixir Clinic has on offer. The range of VitaDrips available at the clinic include drips that specialise in: Adrenal Fatigue, Anti-ageing, Antioxidant, Diet and Detox, Fitness, Hairgrowth, Immunity, Jet Lag, and Mood support. If an IV drip that adjusts your mood still doesnt sound Orwellian enough then you can always try out the VIP Elixir. Exclusive to Harrods, this Harrods VIP Exclusive infusion features a custom blend of essential vitamins and minerals along with a combination of anti-ageing, anti-stress, antioxidant and beauty properties to help combat the very passing of time itself.

Other than intravenous vitamin infusions, The Elixir Clinic also offers clients the option to pamper themselves with Intra-Muscular Injections or an Oligoscan. Gathering accurate and precise information on aspects such as anti-oxidants, heavy metal accumulation and mineral deficiencies, the Oligoscan can probably pinpoint the exact number of minutes that last doughnut you ate took off your life-span.

If you do fancy having a go at living forever, the Elixir Clinic have a local branch on the 33rd floor of the Al Habtoor Business Towers. Theyre open 9:00AM to 7:00PM Saturday Thursday (not that time will exactly matter once you obtain immortality).

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Fancy a vitamin infusion? - EsquireMe

TEHRAN -- Immortality by Mehdi Fard-Qaderi won the award for best feature movie at the 15th Ischia Film Festival on the Italian island on Saturday, the organizers announced.

The film was competing in the official section of the festival, which began on June 24.

A jury composed of Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Zanussi, Portuguese screenwriter Miguel Barros and German producer Dagmar Jacobsen picked Immortality for the courageous use of a single location in a single shot.

Beyond his mastery, we recognize that it is a well-written and recited movie whose purpose is to provide a unique fresco in modern Iran. What a success, the jury said in a statement.

Immortality, which is a one-shot feature film, tells the story of some strangers who have to spend a rainy night together on a train.

Photo: Director Mehdi Fard-Qaderi holds an award for his movie Immortality at the 15th Ischia Film Festival in Italy on July 1, 2017.

RM/YAW

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Immortality crowned best at Italian film festival - Tehran Times - Tehran Times

Konkani writer Vincy Quadros, has won the Sahitya Akademis Bal Sahitya Puraskar for his book on Jaduche Petul. NT BUZZ speaks to the writer about his journey into the literary world

Janice Savina Rodrigues|NT BUZZ

Writers and artists are a breed of the human race that has the privilege of attaining a sense of immortality through their work. Aiming to achieve such an end is Vincy Quardos. A Konkani writer, Vincy has had a long affiliation with writing, spanning over decades. He began writing at an age when other children would rather have been frolicking around in playgrounds, even before he could enter his teens. I began my writing career at the age of 12, when I wrote a tiatr called Chintunk Naslem, says the proud winner of this years Sahitya Akademis Bal Sahitya Puraskar.

Having won the award for his childrens fantasy book Jaduche Petul, Vincys tryst with writing continued unabated through his teens. As a young teenager, I started writing for magazines, and All India Radios programme under Prasar Bharatis youth-centric radio station, Yuvavani. I wrote stories, essays, skits and poetry for the programmes. Additionally at that time Novem Goem was a weekly then came other Konkani magazines, now I write for Jivit, Gulab and Dor Mhoineachi Rotti, says Vincy.

Vincy is also occupied in his day job which he says he balances with his writing career while burning the midnight oil. I handle the accounts for the Pepsi plant in Goa, and to balance it out I write only post work hours sometimes going into the wee hours of the morning about one or two a.m., he adds.

The childrens fantasy book Jaduche Petul was initially released in 2011 and this has been the fourth year that the book was nominated to the final round of the awards. I am very excited and feel honoured to win the award, it was a very emotional moment when I got to know that I had won national recognition for my work, he says.

The book is a story about a boy who is very poor but has a twist of fate. His life is changed when while on his walks about town and the woods he finds a treasure box, which happens to have a fairy inside it. She grants him a wish and turns him into a king, thereafter he finds a kingdom where there was no heir to take over after the king had died. He rules that kingdom with high morals. Even though he is young he knows how to rule over his subjects, and how to maintain the relationships with the neighbouring kingdoms, what should be the extent of fighting and how to keep aside your selfishness and be cordial towards the other people. He is just a child and yet he displays the maturity of an adult and wise man. This boy comes across another person who turns out to be a writer who then puts all the thoughts and morals of the king into writing as a book and the name of that book is Jaduche Petul. The story is further supported by pictorial representations of each situation, Vincy says.

Childrens literature is picking up across the globe, and Goa is not far behind. Ask Vincy how he perceives the scene for childrens writing, he replies very positively. In Goa, childrens writing is picking up now with the institutions like Konkani Bhasha Mandal and others doing very good work in the area. They have brought to the market a series of books, with coloured pictures and my intention is also to go along with their thinking and get children further interested in books, he says.

Vincy also stresses that just reading is not enough and that children should also learn what goes behind making of the books. When I was the vice president of the Goa Konkani Academi, I had started a Bal Sahitya Sammellan a conference for school children where they would be thought about books and their making. The conference was getting good response, but it was discontinued. Now with the help of like-minded institutions I want to revive it, he says.

About the keeping alive of the Konkani language, Vincy is of the opinion that the more people write, the better it is for the language. A person will die but his writing wont. Take the example of Shakespeare, he lived 500 years back but he continues to live through his poetry and plays. A language is kept alive by writing and a man is kept alive by his writing. Immortality through work is a writers forte, says Vincy.

Ask him how awards benefit a language, he responds: Simplicity is one of the qualities of being a human, the person who takes note and respects another persons efforts becomes a better human being. To have the knowledge of works in literature and to serve literature in all simplicity will be followed by awards and recognitions.

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Achieving immortality through literature - The Navhind Times

For the first time since 2009 the All Blacks lost a game on home soil as they fell to the Lions at a wet Wellington Westpac Stadium.

It was a thrilling, rollercoaster game, one which saw a first half red card for Sonny Bill Williams and the Lions come back from 18-9 down with just over 20 minutes to play.

The series coming down to a decider in Auckland was clearly too much for Sky Sports interviewer Graham Simmons.

As he spoke to the excellent Sean O'Brien after the game, Simmons wanted to know if the Carlow man fully understood the magnitude of next weekend's third Test.

Immortality beckons, you know that, don't you. Immortality is beckoning.

Immortality, Sean. Just think about what could be achieved on the farm as the Carlow Duncan MacLeod.

Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

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Graham Simmons Takes Lions Hype To Barely Palatable Level During Sean O'Brien Interview - Balls.ie

Lions reaction: Sean O'Brien wants 'immortality' as Ferris says momentum could prove key to beating All Blacks

BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

Leinster's Sean O'Brien says the Lions are in New Zealand to gain immortality.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/rugby/lions/lions-reaction-sean-obrien-wants-immortality-as-ferris-says-momentum-could-prove-key-to-beating-all-blacks-35884246.html

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Leinster's Sean O'Brien says the Lions are in New Zealand to gain immortality.

As he was reminded by his Sky Sports interviewer, that is what awaits Warren Gatland's men should they overcome the All Blacks again next Saturday in Auckland.

"Well that's what we're here for," said O'Brien, with a determined stare.

O'Brien was one of the key men for the Lions as they came back from nine points behind to snatch the closest of victories in Wellington.

"It feels very good right now," he said. "The crowd are unbelievable here. We made life very hard for ourselves but we worked incredibly hard and really fronted up. We had a cool head, we knew our plan, we knew what we had to do. That's the pleasing thing, we stuck to the plan bar the discipline and it worked for us."

An emotional former Lion Stephen Ferris, speaking from the Sky Sports studio, reckons the tourists will have one key advantage going into next weekend's decider.

"Momentum is huge," he said. "It's everything in sport. It doesn't matter if it's tennis, rugby, whatever. It's all about momentum. You could hear a pin drop in the All Blacks' changing room; the Lions boys will be walking around, probably having a beer, high-fiving each other, talking about the positives out of the game. It's a big week but momentum is crucial."

Belfast Telegraph Digital

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Lions reaction: Sean O'Brien wants 'immortality' as Ferris says momentum could prove key to beating All Blacks - Belfast Telegraph

I found the Harry Potter fandom in 2000. Giddy with the thrill of internet access at home, I googled my way from the official Warner Brothers website which was promoting the imminent first movie to the unofficial world of fan-made websites and Yahoo groups. Of course I joined HP4GU (Harry Potter for Grown-Ups), a busy hub of fan theories, but I also joined a Yahoo group dedicated only to the manners and motivations of Lucius Malfoy, because the fandom was already large enough to support niche interests. Nascent but already obsessive, the Harry Potter fandom was on the brink of an unprecedented revolution. It was about to move from mailing lists to LiveJournal and, from there, grow like one of Hagrids hatchlings into the beast we see today.

There are many reasons why the Harry Potter fandom became one of the most far-reaching and recognisable the world has ever seen: partly because of the immense international success of the books and films themselves, partly because of the way personal internet use grew as Harry did. But a great deal of it was because, at the turn of the millennium, every Harry Potter fan was about to wait three long years between the publication of the fourth book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and the fifth, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and a lot of fans filled that void with fan-made content. Goblet of Fire ends with a nail biting cliffhanger: Voldemort is back, Cedric is dead, Dumbledore has told the still-enigmatic Snape to go off and do something mysterious. With so many beloved characters in limbo, the Harry Potter fandom exploded, filling that void with fanfiction, fan art, and fan theories about what would happen next.

Millions of words of fanfiction were produced, shared on mailing lists, LiveJournal, and, later, dedicated archives like Fiction Alley, Sugar Quill, and the ubiquitous fanfiction.net. Often these fics were about relationships that didnt happen on the page. There are thousands of stories about Hermione and Dracos potential star-crossed romance, and even more about Sirius Black and Remus Lupins tragic puppy love. For Remus and Sirius, fandom did what it often does and stepped up to expand on the queer relationships that languished in subtext. For me, fandom became all-consuming. I wrote fic and essays. I was even part of huge online roleplaying communities, one set in the Hogwarts of the 1970s, one set in a future where Voldemort had won. By the time Order of the Phoenix finally arrived, the fandom had a momentum that wouldnt stop.

It grew colossal. It had eras. Harry Potter fandom at its height was so huge, so multi-faceted and balkanised that there were parts of it that had no idea what it happening in other parts. I was so busy in my part of the fandom, writing stories about Remus Lupin and Sirius Black and the other characters of the Marauders era, I was never aware of the massive ship wars being fought over whether Hermione ought to date Ron or Harry. I only discovered some of those factions when I went to one of the earliest Potter fan conventions, Phoenix Rising, in New Orleans in 2007, as part of a panel about fanfiction and conventional publishing with fandom academic Henry Jenkins.

As the rest of the Harry Potter series was published we, the thrilled fandom, never wanted our tale to end. In the Mirror of Erised all we would have seen was more and more Harry Potter books, endless stories. But an end came, as we knew it must. Harry Potter is a story about mortality, about the complexity of death. It teaches us that death is something we must learn to accept. No matter how hard.

And you know who didnt agree with that? Voldemort, thats who. And, like Voldemort, the Harry Potter series came back from the dead, faster than you could say, Hang on, what is Peter Pettigrew doing in the graveyard?

The final book might have been published, but that didnt mean the story was done. In interviews, J.K. Rowling began to reveal more about the world of Harry and his friends. She responded to critique of the lack of queer characters by saying Dumbledore was gay, which frustrated fans given that Sirius Black and Remus Lupin and the line where Remus "embraced Black like a brother" are, like, RIGHT. THERE. And one of the plots of book seven was Rita Skeeters scurrilous tell-all book about Dumbledore, which said nothing about Dumbledores romantic life. Did Skeeter really miss a scoop that big?

Then came the revelation that Ron and Hermione may not have been happy together after all, causing the reignition of one of the biggest Harry Potter shipping wars, long after that epilogue had closed the issue.

And then the Potter franchise revealed its first Horcrux Pottermore and it was clear that the Harry Potter story really was going to reach for immortality as if it had never read Deathly Hallows.

New Harry Potter canon became more expansive, causing more clashes with fandom. When Pottermore revealed details of the North American wizarding school Ilvermorny, not only were fans dismayed at the way the descriptions of the houses origins made disrespectful use of Native American myths, but American fans who had long considered themselves Slytherins, say, or Ravenclaws, didnt want to be sorted into a US house that didnt have the same resonance for them as one of the big four from the books, when part of the point of claiming yourself a member of a particular Hogwarts house was part of a richer imagining of yourself as part of the beloved story.

These revelations, now the books are done, seem like afterthoughts and small in scope compared to the theories that Harry Potter fans have already come up with. There are essays and videos postulating that that Snape is a vampire, that Draco is a werewolf, and that Voldemorts pet and soul-holder Nagini is the same snake that Harry frees from London Zoo in the first Harry Potter book. J.K. Rowling has claimed that none of these theories are true, but does that really matter? Now the books are done, Harry Potter belongs to the fans. And, look, there really is a lot of evidence that Draco got bitten by Fenrir Greyback.

What I am saying here is, do we really need Pottermore when fanfiction.net alone houses over 700,000 waxings on the past and future of every Harry Potter character imaginable? Can you really expect the reveal that Dumbledore is gay to have that much impact on a fandom that has already convincingly argued that Dumbledore is both a time-travelled Ron Weasley and death itself?

In 2015, when the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was announced with a plot shrouded in secrecy and a marketing campaign saying that this was the eighth part of the series, fans were initially excited by the idea of a substantial new slice of Harry Potter.

In the run-up to the first night, hopes were high, the secrets of the plot were well-kept, and the show was positively reviewed by theatre critics. Tumblr had already buzzed with approval at the news that a black actor, Noma Dumezweni, had been cast as Hermione. (Fan theories placing both Hermione and Harry as people of colour had long been popular in fandom, drawing on the books explicit plots about the Death Eaters' efforts to preserve wizarding racial purity.) But when the book of the script was released to great fanfare and huge sales, the Harry Potter fandom was almost universally scathing.

The plot of Cursed Child was described by the fandom as being like bad fanfiction, with many even comparing it to My Immortal notoriously the worst fanfiction story ever written (and a personal favourite of mine). Its not to hard to see why fans drew these conclusions: My Immortals plot also revolves around time-turners, young Voldemort, and a mysteriously beautiful girl. A ridiculous line from the show worthy of Ebony Darkness Dementia Raven Way herself Youre ruining Voldemort Day! became a running joke on Tumblr.

Cursed Child also leans hard on one of fandoms earliest obsessions, the fractious relationship between Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy, focusing on the intense friendship between Harrys son Albus and Dracos son Scorpius. Fans saw this relationship as toying with the way Harry and Draco were shipped back in the day, making it feel like queer-baiting.

The jumping-off point for Cursed Child is the death of Cedric Diggory, which happens at the end of Goblet of Fire. This is the very same point from which the fandom leapt when we were left on that cliff for a three-year hiatus, meaning a lot of the material in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child the Marauders Era, the grown-up golden trio is inevitably well-covered by the fandom. Its our territory. The Cursed Child plot about a world where Voldemort had won was something Id explored as part of that roleplaying group 15 years earlier.

Theres a quote that goes around on Tumblr that is often attributed to Henry Jenkins, who I sat with on that Phoenix Rising panel a decade ago, although there seems to be some confusion about whether he said it. Its almost as if the quote itself is a piece of Henry Jenkins fanfiction. It runs: Fan fiction is a way of the culture repairing the damage done in a system where contemporary myths are owned by corporations instead of by the folk. The popularity of this idea on Tumblr suggests that fandom doesnt always see canon as a benevolent source of inspiration. Sometimes its something we need to rescue our characters from. More canon can just mean more stories we need to repair. Or, worse, canon returning to mess up the fixes weve made to a story we found lacking.

Fandom, though, is the last place anyone should feel that their ideas of how a story should be told arent welcome. When its the creator with all the extra weight that brings and when their ideas feel like a retread of things fans were doing decades ago, fan disappointment is inevitable. Especially when, by coming back from the dead, the Harry Potter canon is undermining the key message of the books about the acceptance of endings.

Perhaps the solution lies in what Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them has chosen to do. There are fan concerns about the Fantastic Beasts movies around the casting of Johnny Depp and the first film's lack of characters of colour but these issues seem resolvable, unlike the horrorstruck reaction to Cursed Child. And by telling a story (the rise of Grindelwald) that was detailed far later in the book series, its found a place where there is much less fandom content to compete with. Back in 2000, we had barely even heard of Grindelwald.

Interestingly, Fantastic Beasts is already developing a fandom of its own, with fans spotting slash-y potential in the charged relationship between Colin Farrells Percival Graves and Ezra Millers tormented Credence Barebone. Tumblr has also noted that thanks to that comment by Rowling about Dumbledores sexuality, we should be seeing a young, hot, gay Dumbledore in the Fantastic Beasts movies. Given fandoms frequent preoccupation with male/male relationships, this seems like something that could generate a lot of excitement.

With fandom coming along to fill in the gaps left by Fantastic Beasts, the natural order is being restored. Fantastic Beasts feels like a new story, not a reanimated noseless monster. Once again, fans are playing with the creators toys, and not the other way around. Like Fawkes the Phoenix, the Harry Potter fandom rises again to spread its wings. So while we're waiting for the second movie can I interest you in a controversial fan theory that Fawkes is Dumbledores own Horcrux?

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The Best Thing Harry Potter Ever Did Was Give Birth To Fandom - BuzzFeed News

You may not have known this, or you may have suspected it, but Keanu Reeves is immortal.

At least, thats what the internet says, since multiple men have been found throughout history that bear a striking resemblance to the Matrix actor.

Jimmy Fallon addressed the rumors on The Tonight Show Friday, pulling up old portraits submitted to keanuisimmortal.comand asking Reeves if he saw a resemblance.

Also Read: 'John Wick: Chapter 2' Review: Keanu Reeves Kills Again in Action-Packed Sequel

The first figure Fallon brings out is the artistParmigianino, who painted theself-portraitin1504-1540.

YouTube

Reeves, at first, dodged whether he thought the portrait looked like him, instead focusing on what the subject was doing with his hands (his two middle fingers held together and separated from the outside ones). But Reeves shouldnt talk, since hes done that with his hands as well!

Getty Images

In all seriousness, Reeves does acknowledge the physical resemblance between him and his historical doppelgangers.

Also Read: 5 Reasons 'John Wick: Chapter 2' Was a Rare Bigger Sequel at the Box Office

We have a likeness in the eyes, he says of the artist self-portrait. And the nose and the mustache and the beard and the cheekbones and the forehead.

Another subject Fallon proposes is the actor Paul Mounet.

Getty Images

I was thinking about it and I go, You do look exactly the same since I first met you and I met you years ago, Fallon explained, showing a photo of the two of them at the MTV Movie Awards in 2000.

As Fallon noted, Reeves looked exactly the same while Fallon doesnt

Also Read: Classic '80s Keanu Reeves Photo Takes on a New Life (Photos)

So Reeves doesnt outright state whether or not he is an immortal vampire, but he did say he had heard of the rumor before and that he does see the resemblance. Good enough!

In the interview, Reeves also talked about coming to Hollywood for the first time, where his manager asked him to change his name. Reeves said he thought long and hard (near the ocean nonetheless) about it and came up with Chuck Spadina.

Another option? Templeton Page Taylor.

Watch the full clip above.

Reeves plays Constantines titular exorcist bent on saving Earth from hell -- even though his soul is already damned to be interred there -- in the 2005 comic book adaptation which also starred Shia LaBeouf as a sidekick cab driver.

A burned out football player becomes an FBI agent who learns how to surf so he can infiltrate a gang of bank robbers dressed like ex-Presidents and head up by Patrick Swayze. No, seriously, that's "Point Break" (1991).

Keanu stars with Sandra Bullock in "Speed," a movie that mostly takes place on a bus that will explode if it slows down below 55 mph. Bullock taking L.A. public transportation? Yeah, right. (1994)

Keanu and Sandra reunited for The Lake House, a film that saw the Speed co-stars falling in love through the mail and through time: Bullock writes to Reeves in 2006 while he is living in 2004. And they dont even use stamps.

A computer hacker discovers humanity is enslaved by a sentient program in The Matrix (1999). Reeves soon unplugs himself, masters kung fu and learns to fly.

Ted (Reeves) plays a failing high school student who gets sent a time traveling phone booth from the future so that he and his buddy Bill (Alex Winter) can kidnap famous historic persons for their final class project. Turns out hes destined to become the messiah in Bill & Teds Excellent Adventure (1989), too.

Johnny is a "mnemonic courier" from 2021 with a data storage device implanted in his brain, allowing him to discreetly carry information too sensitive to transfer across the Net, the virtual-reality equivalent of the Internet. Also, Ice Cube leads a rebellion that includes telekinetic dolphins (1995).

Reeves playing a top-notch trial attorney in 1997's "The Devil's Advocate." If that's not wacky enough on it's own, he's also the son of the Devil (Al Pacino).

After discovering a dead stripper in his motel room, played by Cameron Diaz, Keanu assumes hes the murderer in Feeling Minnesota" (1996). Dont worry, shes not dead and they live happily ever after in Vegas.

One of the most high-profile bombs in Hollywood history, "47 Ronin" saw Keanu playing Kai, a half-English, half-Japanese character created for the 2013 movie and not included in any previous 47 Ronin films.

Reeves plays a scientist trying to solve the energy crisis in "Chain Reaction" (1996) by splitting up the water molecule, or something. Soon hes neck-deep in a government conspiracy and being framed for murder and treason.

After gambling away six grand, Keanu repays his debts in Hardball by coaching an inner-city little league team for an outrageous sum of $500 a week. But the real payoff comes when he teaches the kids the importance of camaraderie, which leads to a successful season that no one saw possible (2001).

In John Wick (2014), Reeves latest offering, he plays a retired hitman who has no choice but to re-enter the seedy underworld after bad guys, wait for it murder his beloved puppy. Womp, womp.

The oft-jeered actor has appeared in several films with far-fetched plots, including John Wick which opens Oct. 24

Reeves plays Constantines titular exorcist bent on saving Earth from hell -- even though his soul is already damned to be interred there -- in the 2005 comic book adaptation which also starred Shia LaBeouf as a sidekick cab driver.

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Keanu Reeves Addresses Those Immortality Rumors (Video) - TheWrap

"The only thing wrong with immortality is that it tends to go on forever."

Herb Caen

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Sometimes the discovery becomes massive and everybody in the world finds out at once and I end up on a pedestal. Sometimes they make me their leader, sometimes they call me an abomination, sometimes I get arrested and studied, usually it's all of this at once. I've been everywhere. I've done everything, spoken every language, built a pyramid, survived re-entry. History goes in cycles. If you watch it for long enough you can see the tipping points coming and be there when they happen. I invented fire, the wheel, the electric motor, antibiotics, you name it, every era, every country. Fought in X number of wars. Once, I actually ruled the whole world.

I've walked on the Moon barefoot.

Western Animation

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Complete Immortality - TV Tropes

Lions v All Blacks: Furlong ready to take next step in bid for immortality

BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

The rise and rise of Tadhg Furlong continues. Campile, Co Wexford's first Lion may only be a full international less than two years, but of all of Ireland's contingent, he slept easiest this week. Perhaps only Conor Murray was more sure of his place.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/rugby/lions/lions-v-all-blacks-furlong-ready-to-take-next-step-in-bid-for-immortality-35856766.html

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/incoming/article35856705.ece/cf9c1/AUTOCROP/h342/inpho_01227638.jpg

The rise and rise of Tadhg Furlong continues. Campile, Co Wexford's first Lion may only be a full international less than two years, but of all of Ireland's contingent, he slept easiest this week. Perhaps only Conor Murray was more sure of his place.

Not that he'd admit it himself, but the form tighthead in world rugby over the course of the season has a chance for immortality tomorrow, at the age of just 24.

He's played the All Blacks twice now and shown no fear.

In Christchurch two weeks ago, he faced down four of tomorrow's starting tight five and more than held his own. It was tit for tat as you'd expect between two sets of world-class forwards, but Furlong respects players and has little time for reputation.

His rise was encapsulated when Wyatt Crockett, he of 59 All Black caps, collapsed the scrum.

The disdainful look on Furlong's face said it all as he waved a dismissive arm at the 34-year-old as he roared at the fallen Crusader. Battle lines drawn.

"The scrum is going to be tough," Warren Gatland said yesterday. "Four of that tight five did well against the Crusaders and we've got better and better.

"Tadhg is getting better. He's still pretty green but he's got something about him: he's explosive, he's quick for a big man, surprisingly quick.

"He's a good ball-carrier and he had a nice bit of inside play with Johnny (Sexton) and then an offload.

"That's what we're encouraging players to do and he's the modern prop, for me.

"You've got to have more than just set-piece, scrum and lineout.

"You've got to be able to get around the pitch and defend, so I think in the next few years he's definitely going to be one of the world's best in that position.

"I think he'll come away from this tour having established himself as being one of the top props in world rugby."

It's been a whirlwind journey for Furlong, who only made his first start for Ireland against South Africa last summer, but saw off Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira in a mark of what was to come.

Mike Ross was moved aside to make way for the Wexford native, who probably nailed his Lions spot with his performances against the All Blacks in November.

Amid the hubbub, the dream began to become a reality when he sat down with Leinster coach Stuart Lancaster.

"I came out of that South Africa tour with a lot of confidence," he said yesterday. "I thought I went reasonably well in my first Test start against a good scrum.

"In November, then, when you start to pile minutes on minutes, it gives you that bit of confidence that you can start pushing towards or aim for something.

"But I think the real moment of focus for me this year was when Stuart Lancaster came into Leinster. He backed me and I suppose gave me a focus and goal to drive towards."

After November, the All Blacks are fully aware of what Furlong is capable of. His rise continues.

Belfast Telegraph

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Lions v All Blacks: Furlong ready to take next step in bid for immortality - Belfast Telegraph

Old Age.Vinoth Chandar/Flickr

For centuries, humanity has been searching for ways to live longer, resist diseases, and generally have a happier life. Throughout the centuries, people thought that the biggest challenge to discovering the secret to immortality is knowledge. According to one scientist specializing in this field, however, its the lack of funding thats to blame for why humans are still dying of old age.

The scientist in question is Aubrey de Grey, who is arguably one of the most enthusiastic minds tackling the matter of aging in the world, Futurism reports. What de Grey wants to achieve, above all else, is to give humans eternal life. To this end, he co-founded SENS Research Foundation and became editor in chief of the publication, Rejuvenation Research.

Researchers belonging to the Foundation are conducting studies at the Mountain View, Californias SRF Research Center (SRF-RC). There, the scientists try to cure the body of aging at the molecular level as well as develop advanced rejuvenation technology. Although much of their work is still proof of concept, their projects do hold promise.

Unfortunately, there are still many obstacles that the researchers need to overcome, the biggest of which is the lack of funding. As de Grey said, there are always money shortages that slow the rate of progress.

The most difficult aspect [of fighting age-related diseases] is raising the money to actually fund the research, de Grey told Futurism.

Its the age-old quandary that has plagued the scientific community since the dawn of time. No money equals no advancements. Thats why the most successful societies in history are those with a thriving scientific and technological industries.

With regards to the fight against aging, the problem is particularly acute. The best example of how skewed research funding distribution is, a recent report by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) indicates that $5.5 billion went to cancer research compared to the $52 million allocated for researching amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

This kind of discrepancy is exactly what prevents scientists like de Grey from solving the ultimate illness of humans. Its why immortality is still so far out of reach.

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Scientist Say Lack Of Funding Is Biggest Obstacle To Immortality - EconoTimes