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According to the German philosopher Martin Heidegger,death has two defining characteristics. 0bT[05 .
First, it can't be outsourced - nobody can die your death for you. The second raises more m}\QGtJ6
questions. Heidegger says death can happen at any point, so it's randon. But with advances in ai-rF^ehC
genetics, knowing the date of our decease is becoming a real possibility. And is that good? RjVmHhX
Imagine going about your business with your expiry date stamped invisibly on the back of your [uLs M<C
hand. You'd probably be spooked by this constant reminder of your mortality. You'd find it
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impossible to live. You'd pass your days in envy of those your age who are destined to live longer. }m~MN4 l
Alternatively, you could treat the date-stamp as an end date from which to work back. It would 3 yy5 l!fv
make retirement planning and the gubbins of wills and probate smoother. It would allow you to 7C vBE;i
take an active part in organising your own funeral. You could even plan your diet: death tomorrow ;i'[c`
means an awful lot of jam today. And your loved ones would have the benefit of a steady coming-to- "
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terms with your passing away. B4wRwrVI>
But Heidegger's point is, even if geneticists, extrapolating from your current condition(s), gave : GO"bsjL
you a reliable date of death, they'd fail to account for chance. Just as teenagers can crash their f'H|K+bO
cars, so pensioners as dit as a fiddle can still fall down the stairs. So what's the lesson? Imagine j49Uj}:j
you're programmed to die tomorrow, and live today as if it were your last. n|LpM .
Robert Rowland Smith Z6A-i@
