Could humans attain immortality? – Curiosity

Mankind's quest for immortality has taken an interesting path. In the 1500s, Juan Ponce de Leon sought the legendary "Fountain of Youth." Today, optimistic individuals sign up to be cryogenically frozen in the hopes of being restored to life and good health in the future. Others promote everything from extreme calorie deprivation to popping pills of Resveratrol to combat the aging process. The pursuit of immortality has even led to the formation in 2002 of The Immortality Institute (ImmInst.org), an international, non-profit, member-based organization dedicated to "conquering the blight of involuntary death."

The simple fact that the aging process is still largely a mystery -- there are countless theories surrounding how it works -- is just one reason immortality will likely never be realized. This is because aging affects practically every cell, organ and system in the body: The heart becomes less efficient, blood vessels lose elasticity, bones and muscles weaken, digestion slows down, brain cells decrease -- the list goes on and on. Finding an everlasting antidote or replacement for each of these deteriorating functions is highly unlikely. Even if, as futurologist Ian Pearson has proposed, we succeed at downloading our minds into machines so that the failing of the body becomes irrelevant, what's to say that machine will be in it for the long haul?

It's certainly conceivable that experts may one day be able to extend the human lifespan to an extent unimaginable today. After all, scientists have already designed artificial hearts and highly functional artificial limbs, and they are close to releasing an artificial retina that can restore sight to the blind [source: CBS News]. But the possibility of extending life indefinitely, forever and ever amen, is a long shot. The human body simply is not meant to last forever -- just look at what happened to Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep in "Death Becomes Her."

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Could humans attain immortality? - Curiosity