Should life be longer?

doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7470.854

BMJ 2004;329:854 (9 October), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7470.854

Filler

Endpiece

Should life be longer?

It would seem important to devote more of the energies of manto improving the quality of life, so that it may be joyous,or noble, or creative. Otherwise, existence is nothing but thebored molecular unwinding of a dismal biological clock. Shouldlife be longer than it is? Yes—if it has charm, grace,purpose, or productivity. But what if it is empty, sullen, frustrated,ignoble? One can weep for the death of Christ or Schubert, butsurely not for the end of Caligula or Hitler.

Louis Lasagna, clinical pharmacologist, 1923-2003

Claus A Pierach, professor of medicine

Minnesota, USA