Neither clam nor fly gave a thought to that mortal math. Humans fall somewhere between those two extremes. Globally, the average life span is Grant was in the White House and died when Bill Clinton lived there. Life expectancy in the U.
In , it was just over 47 years. Advances in genetics and in our understanding of dementia are helping to extend our factory warranties still further.
None of that, however, changes the way we contemplate the end of life—often with anxiety and asceticism, practicing a sort of existential bartering. We can narrow our experiences and give up indulgences in exchange for a more guardedly lived life that might run a little longer.
But what if we could take off some of that bubble wrap? What about living longer and actually having some fun? There may be something to be said then for aging less timidly—as a sort of happy contrarian, arguing when you feel like arguing, playing when you feel like playing.
Maybe you want to pass up the quiet of the country for the churn of a city. Maybe you want to drink a little, eat a rich meal, have some sex.
People who live a long time can work hard and play hard. Marie Ashdown, 90, has lived in New York City for nearly 60 years, in an apartment on the east side of Manhattan. New York has beaten down younger people than her, but Ashdown, executive director of the Musicians Emergency Fund, loves city life. As a classical-music connoisseur, Ashdown organizes two concerts a year at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Like many New Yorkers several decades her junior, she often orders takeout rather than bother with cooking.
Every year, the Milken Institute Center for the Future of Aging CFA ranks the best metropolitan places for successful aging, and most years, major cities sweep the top 10 spots. In cities, the cure can be just outside your door. But there are answers: The study looked at , people in nearly countries and found that while both family and friends are associated with happiness and better health, as people aged, the health link remained only for people with strong friendships. If the primacy of family has been oversold as a key to long life, so has the importance of avoiding conflict or emotional upset.
In a study published by the American Aging Association, researchers analyzed data from the Georgia Centenarian Study, a survey of people who were at least or nearly years old, as well as family members and other proxies who provided information about them.
Finally, as long as seniors are enjoying themselves with some indulgent food and drink, they may as well round out the good-times trifecta with a little sex. TypeFace added it Sep 12, I started training with Mitch about 2 years ago because I wanted to improve my general fitness and flexibility toward maintaining and possibly improving my level of surfing. Sterilization of individuals with hereditary diseases, the influence of health care on the balance of payments, and the funding of social security systems are among the issues that will become more pressing in the future. No trivia or quizzes yet. Description Your body is constantly being attacked by very harmful substances known as free radicals. Michelle rated it it was amazing Aug 31,
The investigators were looking at how the subjects scored on various personality traits, including conscientiousness, extraversion, hostility and neuroticism. As a group, the centenarians tested lower on neuroticism and higher on competence and extraversion. Their proxies ranked them a bit higher on neuroticism, as well as on hostility.
At the same time that crankiness, judiciously deployed, can be adaptive, its polar opposite—cheerfulness and optimism—may be less so. Worried people are likelier to be vigilant people, alert to a troubling physical symptom or a loss of some faculty that overly optimistic people might dismiss. Dita Chandrani rated it really liked it Nov 26, Sandra Broering rated it it was amazing Mar 28, Nancy Johnson rated it it was amazing Aug 03, Michelle rated it it was amazing Aug 31, Victor Granados rated it it was amazing Oct 08, Danielle Decker rated it did not like it May 31, Rico McCahon rated it did not like it May 17, Tim Hampton rated it it was amazing Dec 02, Oz marked it as to-read Dec 19, TypeFace added it Sep 12, Scrap Bonnie Wilson marked it as to-read Nov 14, Linsey Paik marked it as to-read Apr 14, Nigell marked it as to-read May 01, Farhan Mousa added it May 04, Denise Jackson marked it as to-read Mar 02, Ricky E marked it as to-read May 17, Tara Denison marked it as to-read Aug 27, See Tho marked it as to-read May 19, Marvin marked it as to-read Jul 17, KA Fung added it Mar 12, Jac marked it as to-read Apr 12, Chris Davis marked it as to-read Apr 18, Jennifer Huerta added it Jul 18, EPPS marked it as to-read Oct 27, Tt marked it as to-read May 16, Simon Cai marked it as to-read Sep 24, Elle marked it as to-read Nov 11, Matthew marked it as to-read Jan 19, Clement marked it as to-read Jul 02, Mitchell Rodriguez marked it as to-read Sep 19, Meixing Chen marked it as to-read Sep 20, Jimmy Koon added it Sep 27,