The New York City screening will be followed by a live panel discussion. The panel discussion will be simulcast to venues screening the film nationwide and will stream live online.
Panelists include:
Dr. Robert Butler, Gerontologist, Psychiatrist & Pulitzer-Prize Winner; President and CEO of the International Longevity Center
Dr. Aubrey de Grey, Biomedical Gerontologist; Chief Science Officer, SENS Foundation
Dr. Leonard P. Guarente, Novartis Professor of Biology, MIT; Director, Paul F. Glenn Lab for Science of Aging
Moderated by Robert Kane Pappas, director of TO AGE OR NOT TO AGE
The scientists featured in TO AGE OR NOT TO AGE have found the means to postpone and possibly mitigate diseases tied to aging, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative diseases, and diabetes. Genes that control aging, among them SIRT2/SIRT1 genes, when altered, may, as a side effect, increase our lifespans.
“This [breakthrough] ranks with the discovery of DNA. People would age more slowly, stay younger longer, and remain free of disease for a longer time. . . Long-lived animals are resistant to cancer, to Huntington’s disease, to Alzheimer’s disease.”
—Dr. Cynthia Kenyon
While To Age or Not to Age profiles the science of aging, it also addresses some of the moral, religious, practical and economic implications of increased, lifespan. Who will have access to the medicine? Who will benefit from the breakthroughs? Will the price of these compounds make this a drug for the elites?
There already exists a potentially catastrophic problem with overpopulation. What happens if we live even longer? What does that mean for societal structures, family, marriage, social security? If we can postpone aging, should we? Or are we arrogantly challenging the laws of nature? Where does evolution fit in?
“A lot of people think we’re biologically programmed to die, but the truth is that we’re biologically programmed for survival. There is no mechanism inside us that turns on to kill us when a certain period of time has elapsed.
—Dr. Thomas Kirkwood
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When will this panel discussion be online and how do I access it ?
The panel follows the screening, which starts at 6:30 PM ET, Thursday, Feb. 11. The panel will stream live at: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/to-age-or-not-to-age.
I’m in NYC – can I attend in person?
We have tickets set aside if you are interested in attending. Please call or e-mail our publicist, listed on the contact page. Thanks!