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The Immortalists

2014, Science  -   8 Comments
Ratings: 5.66/10 from 38 users.

Is there such a thing as a cure for aging? A pair of medical researchers are betting there is, and they've dedicated their lives to finding it. The Immortalists follows their efforts as they work to unlock the secret to never-ending life.

Dr. Bill Andrews believes the key lies in cellular manipulation. He's isolated the telomeres, the tips of chromosomes that continue to shorten and degrade with the passage of time. His goal lies in finding the right chemical recipe that will allow these telomeres to maintain their length throughout a person's life span. If he can find success in this pursuit, he's certain that his discovery will effectively stop or even reverse the process of aging. In his lab, he's tested 300,000 chemical combinations thus far. Tests in mice have shown great promise, and Andrews feels confident that a prescription medication for humans may be brought to market within the next 15 years.

Aubrey de Grey is an affable gerontologist with a scraggly beard, a passion for beer, and a brilliant mind filled with outlandish notions regarding immortality. He's pinpointed seven biological processes that he believes contribute to aging and all the diseases and dysfunctions that come with it. In his view, science can prolong life indefinitely by halting cellular loss, introducing powerful new enzymes, and restoring essential DNA proteins. His theories may be considered controversial in many circles, but the medical research community has not been able to disprove any of them in spite of their repeated attempts to do so.

For both of these bold and accomplished visionaries, the act of getting older should not be accepted as a natural and inevitable reality of life. Even so, they are aware of the obstacles they face. The world is filled with money-hungry charlatans who build schemes based on similar claims of immortality. In addition, if such a goal were to be reached, the societal impact could potentially prove catastrophic.

Yet they remain undaunted and sincere in their ongoing quest to alter the longevity of the human race. The Immortalists thrills with a love of big thinking, and the dreamers who share a commitment to achieving the impossible.

Directed by: Jason Sussberg, David Alvarado

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8 Comments / User Reviews

  1. Whiteyward

    We already have eternal life but our society poisons us so we know nothing about our invation, we all have been invited to a great celebration a celebration of Life on going.

  2. oQ

    two (and a few more) very interesting dudes!

  3. oQ

    I managed to watch it on a different website, the link provided here does not work. The presentation brought me back to the thoughts i had when i read Biocentrism by Lanza. Robert Lanza propose there is an other way to look at immortality, quote: "Death is simply a break in our linear stream of consciousness".

    1. Achems Razor

      Hi oQ, sounds interesting, will look it up.

  4. DustUp

    Having read the description only, it seems to me that their research is or will be funded by the likes of Rockefeller, Soros, or Gates. They want such longevity for themselves but not for you. They believe you need to die and the sooner the better. So, they will inform such researchers that letting such longevity loose on the planet would drastically increase the population they claim is ruining everything; they will be paid to keep the research to themselves and those the elite weasels desire or exterminate them like many other scientists in the past decade that have turned up dead.

    When you do your homework and learn that haarp and geoEngineering/chemtrails are the tools used to cause drought along the West Coast and floods to the east of them. When you learn Tesla and others solved the energy situation long ago. That Rothschild and Rockefellers' big oil have kept themselves living large by keeping us on 100 year old technology, the internal combustion engine powered automobile, with only minor refinements in those 100 years. The anticipation of an anti-aging formula that never arrives is a distinct reality.

    To those, including friends of mine to chicken to do any homework that would involve disrupting their rose colored glasses world view, get over yourself. Their are greedy power hungry evil people in this world who don't mind starting wars and keeping you 100 years behind to enrich themselves. To put it another way, would you give up an income stream of billions of dollars because someone in their garage invented a solution? If you thought you thought you were above the mere peons, would you want them to live as long as you? Not to mention the advantageous knowledge and experience you would have over them.

  5. Theo Lantzakis

    ditto to john's comment. It seems a bit stupid!?

  6. Jax

    Plz upload a version that is not requiring payment!!!

  7. john

    Why is the documentary the Immortalists not available in this country?