>>A Blog About the Science and Technology of Living Forever

HARRY ROSEN IS 103. He lives alone in a studio apartment on West 57th Street in Manhattan. His hearing has declined and he a bit far-sighted but his mind is as sharp as most men half his age. Still, he doesn’t remember the last evening he didn’t go out for dinner at one of the city’s top-rated restaurants. It’s been too many years. People say Harry doesn’t look a day over 90, and indeed when people ask him his age, he tells them he is 90. He’s never had a major operation and as far as he knows there is nothing wrong with him. And yes, every single afternoon Harry dresses up in one of his fine business suits, grabs his satchel, and heads out to hail a cab to one of his favorite dining establishments. He eats alone but the waiters always know who he is and patrons at nearby tables almost always strike up a conversation with him. Twice a week Harry goes to David Burke’s Townhouse on East 61st Street where a server greets him, escorts him to his usual corner table, brings him a glass of chardonnay and his usual appetizer of raw salmon and tuna. Harry was recently profiled in The New York Times.  The article makes for fascinating reading, the writer refers to Harry as the city’s “oldest foodie,” but there are no direct refers to any of his longevity secrets. Yet, reading through the lines, I’ve come up with a list of Harry Rosen’s 10 longevity secrets, which follows: Harry always orders fish. For a non-Eskimo he has unusually high levels of omega-3 fats in his diet. His omega-3/omega-6 ratio must be highly favorable to reducing any risk of heart disease or dementia. Harry’s daily routine never varies–this keeps his life stress free....

If you are planning on living forever you may want to consider relocating to a new locale.  Where?  Well, Dan Buetter, author of “Blue Zones: 9 lessons for living longer from the people who’ve lived the longest”, has done the work for us.  He has travelled the world tracking the 5 best places to live to increase your  life expectancy. The following places were outlined as the top five places to keep you alive and kicking: #5 Okinawa, Japan For women specifically, Okinawa Japan is one of the most fruitful places to live. In 2013, Misa Okawa was named The Guinness World Record Book holder for being the oldest woman alive at the age of 115.  Misa is among one of the 50,000 centurians from Japan, making Japan one of the best places to be if you want live forever.  And, Okinawa just so happens to be a leader when it comes to longevity. WHY? A diet rich in vegetables and fish leads researchers to believe that the cause of longevity in Okinawa, and Japan at large, is attributed to their healthy diet.  The Japanese culture on average consumer 25% less calories than their North America friends.  Naomi Moriyama, co-author of “Japanese Women Don’t Get Old or Fat: Secrets of My Mother’s Tokyo Kitchen”, says that the Japanese diet, “concentrates the magnificent energy of food into a compact and pleasurable size.” The Okinawans are also known to lead a low stress lifestyle.  They are not run by clocks and alarm systems and have no concept of rush hour. Most Okinawans take time to meditate daily. And, lastly genetics plays a role.  The Japanese people are less genetically predisposed to a variety of harmful diseases. And when they do get sick they use natural medicinal...

Kansas City, Mo. — The National World War I Museum in Kansas City is planning a wreath-laying ceremony to mark the death of the last known veteran of the Great War. The remembrance for Florence Green will take place today on a glass bridge that overlooks a field of 9,000 silk poppies. They represent the 9 million combatants who died in the fighting. Green was 110 when she died Saturday in eastern England. She was serving with the Women’s Royal Air Force as a waitress when the guns fell silent in November 1918. The museum also had a ceremony to mark the February 2011 death of Frank Buckles,  the last known American World War I veteran. Museum head Brian Alexander says it’s more important than ever to keep the memory of the veterans alive....

America’s population of centenarians – already the largest in the world – has roughly doubled in the past 20 years to around 72,000 and is projected to at least double again by 2020, perhaps even increase seven-fold, according to the Census Bureau. The Census Bureau estimates there were 71,991 centenarians as of Dec. 1, up from 37,306 two decades earlier. While predicting longevity and population growth is difficult, the census’ low-end estimate for 2050 is 265,000 centenarians; its highest projection puts the number at 4.2 million. “They have been the fastest-growing segment of our population in terms of age,” said Thomas Perls, director of the New England Centenarian Study at Boston University. The rising number of centenarians is not just a byproduct of the nation’s growing population – they make up a bigger chunk of it. In 1990, about 15 in every 100,000 Americans had reached 100; in 2010, it was more than 23 per 100,000, according to census figures. Perls said the rise in 100-year-olds is attributed largely to better medical care and the dramatic drop in childhood-mortality rates since the early 1900s. Centenarians also have good genes on their side, he said, and have made common-sense health decisions, such as not smoking and keeping their weight down. “It’s very clearly a combination of genes and environment,” Perls said. The Social Security Administration says just under 1 percent of people born in 1910 survived to their 100th birthday. Some have speculated that as many as half of girls born today could live to 100. Those who work with people 100 and above say the oldest Americans are living much healthier lives. A good number still live independently and remain active, their minds still sharp and their bodies basically sound. They have generally managed...