The Phoenices Volume 1 - Expired

Chapter 14 - Jeremy

I sat huddled on the pile of blankets and sweatshirts that were provided by the well prepared group of students. We were on our own separate laptops, researching is anyone had lived past their date and what they did to do so. Reilly seemed to be under the impression that there were a total of three overdue humans in all of history, but it fact there was four, and we knew everything about every one of them. We learned about the history of the dating system, how it evolved with humans, starting as simply a tally mark countdown, each day the host would lose a tally until the day they die, then a numerical countdown, starting with a numbers in the thousands, ending on 0. Eventually, it evolved into an actual date marking, changing for nothing unless the person died early or late. I was actually quite intrigued by this concept, the countdown from day one, the first breath after birth. I know my mom had me at 11:58 PM, meaning I was cheated out of a whole day by not being born earlier in the day. Imagine parents birthing their child, only having a few days with them, not knowing if they were meant to die yet or not.

"Hey guys I found something," Elizabeth rose to her knees, leaning into the middle of the circle to show us all the website she was reading, pointing to the part she wanted us to see.

"The crucial question is how much more survival time can be gained through medical technology," wrote Jay Olshansky of the University of Illinois at Chicago. "With fixed life-history traits, it would seem that we are running up against a formidable barrier."

Other researchers not involved with the paper said the analysis relied on the best available data, but that it underestimates the potential of scientific discovery. Murphy said she agreed that there were natural limits to lifespans, but that unnatural limits could exist as well. "It's not like we've tested every drug," Marissa read aloud, her eyes widening as she went, "Does this mean what I think it means guys," she quietly whispered, her eyes searching the room.

"Yeah, I think it does," Elizabeth whispered, her lips pressed together tightly.

Reilly was hunched over her laptop, completely ignoring everyone when she joined the conversation, "Do you think if we got our tattoos removed that we would still die?" We all looked over at her, out faces showing the shock at the bluntness of her question. She seemed completely comfortable with the idea that she was going to die in less than a month.

"Um I mean I don't know if anyone has ever tried it," Marissa answered her, her voice uneasy and questioning, "I suppose we could try it though." She glanced at me shrugging her shoulders as if saying 'It couldn't hurt'.

"I'll find a good tattoo removal place nearby, see if they'll take them off." Aidan volunteered, opening his laptop once again, his search history of death and terror being replaced by that of tattoo shops nearby and laser corrective beauty treatment facilities.

Elizabeth began reading the article she was looking at out loud once again, "We don't know yet what the impact will be of new pharmaceuticals, new technologies," said David Sinclair, an aging researcher at Harvard Medical School. "The past doesn't predict the future when it comes to technology." Sinclair — who helped start the longevity company CohBar, among other companies — said that discovering the body's natural repair pathways and rejuvenating them to work like they did when they were younger could change not only how long people live, but how well they live. "The goal of this research is not to keep people in the nursing home for longer," he said. "It's to keep them out of nursing homes for longer." Vijg said he doubts that scientists will discover some sort of master regulator that can affect all the age-related processes and diseases that he says constrain our lifespan. But, he said: "Maybe what I now think is impossible may be possible.'"

I snapped my head up to look at her, "Can you get this man's phone number?"

"Yeah probably give me a minute," she furiously clicked away at her keys, and I glanced back at my computer. Aidan exited the bathroom to talk with the owner of the tattoo removal place, gently closing the door behind him. Almost immediately, aggravated talking could be heard from the other side of the door. The remaining students looked at each other, and we all leaned towards the door and shut up.