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Asked by The Ge Ni U S to Andrew, Jade, Jessica, Kevin, Lynn on 22 Jun 2015.
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Jess Wade answered on 22 Jun 2015:
In short- yes. We grow old like cows, sheeps, plants and trees- nature doesn’t really need us anymore. Just like plant cells, our purpose in life is to reproduce and recreate, and stay alive for long enough to have children and feed them. Obviously, we’ve adapted to make a whole world out of it- we don’t just have children, but we form relationships with them and are useful to our grandchildren too. We have all of technology working on our side to keep us alive for longer than the old birds or ancient oaks. Eventually though, our biological time runs out- our cells stop renewing themselves and we stop being able to heal so easily. When we fall over we are more likely to break out bones, we can’t run as fast, our spines curve and we can’t hear anymore. It’s super sad, but it’s just what happens with life. As much as you can see why new babies get born- to bring new lives and new personalities and new experiences and questions to the world- we get old and die to make space for them.
It’s our job to make sure whilst we’re alive we live life the best way we can, and enjoy every moment.
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Andrew Fensham-Smith answered on 23 Jun 2015:
I would say – yes, but there are some animals which don’t age. There is a type of jellyfish which can revert back to being younger whenever it wants, and so theoretically live forever. Not sure how applicable it would be to humans though! The DNA in each of our cells has something called ‘telomeres’ at each end. Whenever a cell divides, some of these telomeres are chopped off, and so the cell ages. At some point, there are no more telomeres to chop off and so the cell can’t divide anymore.
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