Recently, a TV station in Georgia (that’s the country, not the state) claimed to have discovered a 130-year-old woman living in a small town about 200 miles from the capital of Tiblisi. Due to decades of turmoil in the region, verifying the birth records of Antisa Khvichava (the woman in question) have proved difficult, but, if true, Khvichava would be 16 years older than the current oldest living woman on record, Kama Chinen of Japan, who was born on May 10, 1895. Here’s a short video clip about it:
And earlier this week, the oldest woman in the United States, Mary Ray, passed away at the age of 114 years, 294 days.
Obviously, advances in technology over the past several decades have allowed most of us to live longer, healthier lives than our forebears ever dreamed, but news of those living well into their second century is still incredibly impressive, and with good reason. One can’t help but wonder, “How does someone live that long?”
The answer to that question isn’t so simple (here’s a hint: it has to do with genes), but scientists have been working to answer it for some time, and in recent years, major breakthroughs in biotechnology have allowed them to examine the molecular causes of the aging process and gain insight into the wild and wacky world of aging. Thanks to their work, we may all soon be able to live well into our 100s.
To learn more about these fascinating discoveries, check out The Youth Pill by David Stipp, the inaugural book of Penguin’s brand-new science imprint, Current, which is due to be released this summer.
No comments yet.