6 replies to this topic

[Droplet]

It is now Easter, the celebration of new life and rebirth so why not contribute towards your own rejuvenation and a new life free of the misery of the scourge of old age and involuntary death?

Here's the deal....some of you may be aware that I sometimes help out on the outreach section. Last month, I reached 211 individual e-mail accounts and if that record can be smashed by April 30th 2012, I'll give $30 to either a fundraiser that is running at the time (if any) or towards the cause in general.

Outreach is a wonderful way to contribute, potentially without spending a penny (if you use e-mail). I know that there are well over 200 members on this board so if everyone just wrote one letter, e-mail or made one phone call, my record could be beaten effortlessly. It can be anyone whether they are famour or not. I'll also accept attempts at writing regarding the cause to publications such as magazines and newspapers.

So come on everyone, let's spring clean to find those addresses and help to clear away aging once and for all!

[Florin]

The best outreach strategy that I can think of is to try to convince organizations and researchers that currently research ways to merely delay the development and progression of age-related diseases to shift their research focus toward approaches that have the potential to cure those diseases (i.e., damage repair approaches like SENS). There's no shortage of funding for research for the diseases of aging; the problem seems to be in how that money is being spent. So, if the mainstream is really serious about curing age-related disease, they should start shifting their funding priorities toward the most likely approaches to accomplish this goal. This has already happened in the areas of stem cell research, tissue engineering, and beta-amyloid vaccines, but not much else.

Here's an example of part of an email that I sent to the American Heart Association, the largest non-profit funder of cardiovascular disease (or any other age-related disease) research in world, to start a dialogue:

Is the American Heart Association funding any biomedical research that has the potential to cure instead of simply delay the development and progression of age-related, cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis and heart failure?

Frankly, I don't expect a reply, but if we make enough noise, some might start paying attention.

[Droplet]

Very interesting and valid point. However I also think we should try to get people society look up to to champion this cause. Not only are the general population more likely to take notice if a celeb says something, it would also make our cause seem more mainstream. That and famous people would bring so much attention to the cause and that much-needed "noise."

Edited by Droplet, 16 April 2012 - 04:48 PM.

[Florin]

I don't think life extension will ever become mainstream. Just look at where drexlerian nanotech and cryonics are today. Sure, they have a little more visibility, but they're still far from being mainstream even though they've been around for literally decades. We've had a decade to reach the mainstream, but we're still not even a blimp on their radar. The fact is that the mainstream thinks in disease-specific terms and has a bunch of scientific and ethical objections to life extension. It doesn't matter that those objections are bogus; it's simply too difficult to change people's minds about certain beliefs. So, we need to try and play by their rules. This means trying to convince them that damage repair has the potential to cure whatever age-related disease that they care about.

The celeb Edward James Olmos publicly approves of SENS, but this hasn't changed anything. In fact, donations to the SENS Foundation from non-wealthy people actually decreased in 2011 compared with 2010.

[Droplet]

You are right what you say about the lack of mainstream coverage for this cause. It's a shame little more was ever said about Simon Cowell's cryonics decision, as to hear people talk Britains Got Talent is really big and so is he.

It's a shame we can't get a celeb to support it and who would mention it a lot/help with either donations or publicity. I reckon that would work wonders...unless Edward James Olmos already does mention it a lot I don't know.

[The Immortalist]

We need a viral video to spread the word around the internet. Why does that Kony 2012 crap get millions of views when it's not even important?

[Droplet]

We need a viral video to spread the word around the internet.

That would be a brilliant idea if anyone knows what sort of thing would go viral easily.