Would We Want to Live Forever?

What if we could live forever? Neil deGrasse Tyson takes us through life and death: if we could live forever what would life really mean? We explore why fresh flowers have meaning and why dogs make every day count. Learn about the Cretaceous-Tertiary Event, The Permian-Triassic Extinction, The Holocene Epoc, and how Earth is one killing machine.
Get the NEW StarTalk book, 'To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery' on Amazon: amzn.to/3PL0NFn
Support us on Patreon: / startalkradio
FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to StarTalk:
Twitter: / startalkradio
Facebook: / startalk
Instagram: / startalk
About StarTalk:
Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up!
#StarTalk #neildegrassetyson
00:00 - Introduction: Life & Death
00:14 - What If We Could Live Forever?
2:26 - Flowers & Dogs
5:10 - Prehistoric Extinctions & Earth as a Killing Machine
6:47 - The Holocene Epoc

[@StarTalk]

Who else is thinking about their childhood dog now? 😢

[@englewoodmusic]

I'm thinking about ALL my fur babies I've lost.

[@johnathanmartin1504]

I rarely disagree with Neil, but this is one of those times that I greatly disagree with him. Someone saying they would not want to live forever because they would be "bored" or unmotivated seems extremely selfish to me. If you run out of things to do (something I think is preposterous) you can still teach at the very least. You can also still create. Death has never motivated me other than desperately wanting to stop it, it has taken far too much from me and I will see it defeated. Death makes everything worthless. As to the flowers "not being real" that's also ridiculous. If someone could have flowers that smelled like flowers and were for all intents and purposes flowers with the exception that they don't wilt and decay, I don't think anyone is going to be boycotting all flowers because they want rotting flowers. The whole thing reeks of romanticist nonsense. Neil deGrasse Tyson should know better.

[@ROBERT-ml7ml]

​@@johnathanmartin1504 yeah, good luck trying to stop death 😂

[@ROBERT-ml7ml]

LIVE LIFE!

[@johnathanmartin1504]

@@ROBERT-ml7ml I'm a molecular biologist, I'm also not the only one working on this. It's become a massive industry and defeating old age is now inevitable unless humanity gets wiped out somehow. That you think it's ridiculous to try only shows me how uninformed you are about current technological breakthroughs. We will get there before the end of this century.

[@sethschexneider]

My dad died yesterday and I needed this video. Thanks Neil.

[@k8tina]

So sorry for your loss 💔

[@brizzle3903]

I’m sorry for your loss ❤️ May he rest in peace

[@rahulchaudhary6740]

Condolences brother

[@matthews8799]

Why did you need this video?

[@HackerPULSE90]

@@matthews8799 for comfort surely

[@PatrickGoodspeed]

Life seems all too short to me. It feels like I'm just starting my life and I'm almost 60. I don't know if I'd want to live forever but I would like the choice of being able to live as long as I choose to. I feel probably we would evolve over time and become more developed than we could imagine in our short lives.

[@tracimcmurray5244]

At age 51, I agree. 😊

[@douggolden255]

On the other hand, a lot of us seem to get dumber as we age. If you live forever, do you live as your pristine self or do you live most of it like a 75 year old equivalent?

[@erwinzer0]

​@@douggolden255that's simply aging-related, if we solve aging, our mental plasticity would perform as well as healthy adult

[@jeffreyanderson6740]

No one actually knows what really happens but i believe we exist forever. As for live forever? Sure you could say exist forever means live forever ♾️ but even if we die and nothing we'll never know there was actually going to be nothing, because the idea of something afterwards is so wildly entertained and even if there is truly nothing then none of us will be anything once we've died so we'll not know anyway anything even that there was actually nothing.

[@emreeren13]

Exactly my thoughts my friend. And yes, of course we'd develop. Imagine living 200 years ago at old age and how we do today. It's insane. But yes, how someone said before, we would probably be able to chose an age and stay forever like this, in this hypothetical positive future. I mean genetic engineering is currently going that way. Now imagine all the technologies we could have that we don't know of (and at current state, we can't even predict technology in 10 years). That's just crazy to think about.

[@Th3GreenMachine]

My dog died this week, I think I needed this

[@timc333]

It's all about the timing , I found out this week that an estranged old high school friend who I had many fine adventures with many years ago had died last March . I've been in a weird space the past few days , for some reason been seeing alot of stuff trying to explain death to me . I'm not sure it is death that I need explained to me , but rather life .

[@kimsland999]

Getting older you see many pets die, and friends, family and Mom & Dad (mine now gone of course). I remember my dog Ruff, he died (well he ran away to die) an extreme loving dog, he died ... about 45 years ago now. Even now I'm saddened by this, along with my loving cat. Pets help children to accept death as part of life. But its never an easy time. I bought a puppy for my son and a cat for my daughter (so was the claimed stewards). Both pets now gone. Again extremely sad. My daughter still has her cat's ashes, she wants to be buried with them (one day). I hear you when your loving pet dies. And yes people (once as kids) who I have heard are now gone. It still hurts (a lot) we just learn to live with it. I'm sorry to hear your dog your friend has also gone. I feel your pain.

[@k8tina]

Sorry for your loss 💔 Our furrychildren are such a beautiful part of our lives.

[@kirillsleptsov1680]

May it rest in peace

[@donkey3187]

It doesnt really work with dogs dude. lool

[@brian1204]

I don’t know about “forever”, but at least until I’m ready!

[@theshadow532]

Then You're never be ready

[@evieswegsda1089]

Same with me, I Would Want to Live as Long as I Want (at Least Until I'm Ready to Go), but I'm Not Sure About "Forever"

[@IamKnucks]

I don't know if I would like to live forever, but I love my life right now. I have the best wife, a wonderful daughter and a stable financial situation. I don't want this ride to end anytime soon.

[@emreeren13]

Yea then why not live 200 years and decide again?

[@farhanfouadacca]

Totally agreed but that’s not how nature works. A person in good situation would die sooner and a person in exact reversed scenario will live well past 90.

[@bretttaylor3787]

You are lucky. Most our success (not including the incalculable odds of being born) depends on which country you were born in. And then what gifts you were given, and your physical and mental health. I’m genuinely happy for you and I wish more people were in your position.

[@emreeren13]

@@bretttaylor3787 Hypothetically, you could have all that in distant future, thank's to technology (in case we survive that long). So then, why not live forever?

[@learnpianofastonline]

I am 59 years old, and I’ve never experienced a deep, loving meaning for relationship. But I am in very good health, and I am just now starting to figure out how to get good with women, so I’d like to live to be at at least 300! That would give me enough time to learn game and figure out how to get rich .

[@marekjureczko9551]

what people want is not immortality, but a life of good health at the peak of their physical abilities until death.

[@atlanciaza]

Not me, I want immortality, at any and all cost, even if that means I will not be healthy, and have no physical ability. Even just the idea of giving up my consciousness is unfathomable for me. I want to see the last stars in the universe burn out, I want to see the last black holes in the universe finally evaporate.

[@jimigustafs3757]

​@@atlanciaza I completely agree with you. I would also do nearly whatever it takes to get immortal. There is so much life has to offer for us that there is no way we can do all the things we want in this short amount of time we have on earth. I study biology and specifically genetics and hope to discover something that does give us more time on this planet. I do not understand people who do not fear death, and to me life has more meaning if you live forever than if you do not, because you will not remember anything you did on this planet after you die so why bother doing anything meaningful at all. After 1000 years there would certainly be nobody who cared what I had done or who I were, but if I would live forever I would always be concious of what I have done (and my friends and family too if they too lived forever) and what I want to do in the future and have no limitations on how long the things i would like to do would take, so of course I would also have higher expectations on what I would like to accomplish and given the infinite time I would also be able to do it and remember it forever. (Sorry for bad english , I am from Finland)

[@bryandungee1029]

@@atlanciaza… why would you wanna be living if you can’t be yourself or enjoy anything other than waking up???

[@GK-ku3zv]

@@atlanciaza I can do that in the after life because I will be built to handle it as designed by the universe. This is just a pit stop on the way to better.

[@Yuri-nc9vl]

​@@atlanciazaI suppose you are healthy now, make this comment again then you'll not be healthy anynmore!

[@ruymanbr]

More of this reading with Neil!!! I could hear him all day long :)

[@gsthMD7099]

I agree!

[@grayfoxart2268]

Nope, don't want to hear from a guy who doesn't even know the differences between a man and a woman. Let alone lecture about death

[@iloveslotvideos1188]

@@grayfoxart2268 ? But why are you here then? 😂

[@CaptainVideo75]

​But yet you're here. So either you are full of it or just a troll. Might want to rethink your comments before posting. You sound dumb. ​@@grayfoxart2268

[@Xretsam]

i will happily become stardust once again. no need to live forever... i do...

[@RedcoatViking_Official]

I'm with you on this one! Gonna get my stardust all up in your stardust 😆😆

[@emreeren13]

But you will. Forever. As stardust, you will always be part of everything. As once before you, everything of you was in a star. And the cycle goes on and on. Therefore, since the beginning of time... we were here... and we will always be here. Doesn't matter which forms and shapes we take. In the end you could say: Everything was stardust at one point of it's existence.

[@k8tina]

My father, before he passed away in 2015, basically said the same exact thing.

[@brian1204]

“You” will not become stardust. Your component atoms may at some point in a billion years or so, but who you consider to be you, your distinct sense of self, will (most likely) disappear when your body dies.

[@anonymous-zn2iv]

@@k8tina So in a way we never die. Like energy cannot be destroyed but changes form.

[@silviavalentine3812]

Before I even watch this I want to say this: I only am here for one goal and I only have so many days before I get too old to accomplish it. If given the chance to extend my life while keeping my intelligence and memories intact, I would gladly take it. Just so I can have more time.

[@ThaRiddler25]

And watch all your loved ones die one by one while you’re forced to live a new life over and over?

[@silviavalentine3812]

@@ThaRiddler25 you're defining a life being with loved ones. That's cute but in no do I abide by those normie ideals. Not since I've been cursed by solipsism

[@ThaRiddler25]

@@silviavalentine3812 so what’s the goal?

[@Anonymous-md2qp]

I didn’t choose to be born. The monotony of paying taxes, mortgages, sitting in traffic, cooking, cleaning etc gets old really quickly. There is absolutely no way I would want this to continue forever.

[@gabrielford3473]

Life can and should be a lot more than the aforementioned activities. But if that was how i saw my life, I wouldn't be excited for more, either.

[@allawa]

so true man so true

[@kingbr47]

i dont think we would worry about this stuff if we lived forever though. I would say most of them are the undesired result of having a finite life.

[@thewb8329]

The bitter makes the sweet sweeter.

[@WindowLicker_-9]

You do know that living forever, you can easily make billions and then be 100% carefree? Just put 6 months salary in the USX 500 for 100 years

[@vegvegv]

I get the points surrounding not wanting to live forever, but I think that intrinsic human desire to keep living and wanting to live forever is probably the one I side with more.

[@jayrathod2995]

That'd be monotonous, unless you have something really interesting you put up to learn throughout, then you master it and get bored, cycle repeats till you eventually grow bored of learning anything at all as it's always the same pattern

[@vegvegv]

@@jayrathod2995 I mean that may be true for you, but I don't think there's enough time to do all that I really want to do in a normal lifetime. Living forever or at least many times more than we can now is a necessity.

[@johnathanmartin1504]

@@jayrathod2995 Unless you are speaking from personal experience, you have no way of knowing if anyone else would get bored. I myself love learning and don't see myself ever growing tired of it. If there is magically some limit to what can be learned (a concept I find ridiculous. New discoveries lead to new fields of study and you can never know everything.), then you can start to teach. When there is nothing left to teach (another concept I find ridiculous) you can tend to the universe like a garden.

[@jayrathod2995]

@@johnathanmartin1504 it is what infinity makes boredom, when you finish doing everything which might take let's say you live 100,000 years being practical you'll have finished doing everything you find joy in

[@johnathanmartin1504]

@@jayrathod2995 Then it's time to bring joy to others.

[@thedant0r85]

Without even starting to listen: Yes. i would like to life forever, or rather: Would like to choose the place and time to truly die for myself. When i feel it, when i have seen it all, when i have reached my limit and cannot continue to grow without passing what i know in the the next generation because i feel i lack a certain point of view to do so. I decide the successor and my passing. That would be the best of both worlds for me.

[@thedant0r85]

After listen to this video: I still want to live forever. Yes. you could do things tomorrow instead of today. But the world moves and the flow of things will take you along. The ground under your feet does not live forever and your own curiosity of what you might miss out will take you to places yet even unseen for the ones that live forever, because the world is forever ever changing :D

[@reportedstolen3603]

How would you ever know you seen it all? It’s unknowable.. so you’ll meet your end the same as everyone else. I don’t think people can comprehend “forever”

[@rudy_4ier]

not necessarily forever, but I'd want to live indefinitely

[@KaeL111]

@@thedant0r85 Thank you for writing this for me, so I didn't have to ;) Cheers, brother wannabe-immortal! ;)

[@AldrianCG]

You would, but the sun won’t. What'cha gonna do brother?!! What'cha gonna do when the sun run wild scorching his way on to you?

[@donlakakwaaijazz5220]

I am 66 years old, and strangely, I no longer fear death, my mother is 94 years old, and my grandmother died at 105; what I have also learned from them is that their mind has prepared them to go anytime, and they start talking about being tired. I am just wondering if those that lived generations back when life was short, did they have the same feelings as older people today

[@wildthings980]

Life wasn't short. Infant death was common which lowered the average life span. My grandfather who lived in the 1600s died at 105 yr old.

[@evieswegsda1089]

Life can be too short for some people, an average life expectancy of at least 85 years would probably be a good start, to make it feel less as if life is too short

[@timc333]

When we are young we think that we can live forever or we want to live forever , so very much that we can do . As we got older and lose loved ones and friends we realize the total horror it would be to have to live on forever never having even one loved one or friend who will understand and relate , I find life lonely enough already as it is , I would not want to live forever , truth being said I wish nature would hurry up , I'm tired , all alone , and lost too many that I loved already , a life time of loosing is not good . Yes for as much as we suffer there is such a beauty to life and the wonderful adventure it brings so this is why every possible day is so important and why survival is paramount . There is a reason for every life even if that life seems a waste , there was a reason for it we may never know , there is a reason why babies that are supposed to die , somehow lived on yet didn't appear to do a thing , silently working every day to help keep everything evened out . The saddest part is the life forgotten . I remember and think about every dog I got to share my life with , every day , I can remember every person who came and went , I lived 55 years and am already exhausted I could not conceive the horror of eternity .

[@evieswegsda1089]

You have a point there

[@timc333]

@@evieswegsda1089 That's not something that I hear very often , my hair covers it pretty good most of the time .

[@evieswegsda1089]

@@timc333 Technically I was meaning that you have a good point about younger people wishing they could live forever, but that wish fades as we get older, and also what you explained about the life cycle there, and that you know technically why everyone dies, cause god and nature made us mortally equal to make it fair on us

[@user-te8ww7nt6s]

How shall I send you the white feather. Better be express post, you might not last long enough for regular post.

[@leeoflincoln7062]

Well done mate. This reflects my own view of our existence. I do not worry about death. It will come, I cannot prevent this. I simply rejoice in my existence. I am so privileged to be existent at this time.

[@speedo1105]

true, bottom line is you have little or no control over death, you will die and billions of plants and animals have gone the same route.

[@lstruggy]

Everyday I wake up I’m so thankful that I’m alive 🤲🏽

[@evieswegsda1089]

Same with Me, I've always been grateful for everyday that I'm still here, and the days in the future that I'll still be here

[@user-te8ww7nt6s]

That's called a cop out. It's like saying my car ran out of gas so I must walk for the rest of time. PUT MORE GAS IN THE TANK. GET A NEW CAR. It's your responsibility.

[@mholm4962]

Thats deeeeep. Makes you re-think and care about things that we already have.... i would't want to live forever. To see everything end, all the sadness. I rather have a happy short life filled with love.

[@AlpaOmega-nb5jm]

Come on bud when you die you don't even know that you were alive no one wants to die it's are sinful nature why we die

[@mholm4962]

​@@AlpaOmega-nb5jm nothing last forever.. Taste of food, love, life, friends, achivements, accomplishments, explorations, feelings and everything els will slowly fade away beacuse you have experienced it allready. You will compare one thing with another. When you have achived everything you can achive it will only be a downhill from that moment... Make your life worth living while you are alive beacuse nothing lasts forever. You will even eventually get bored of ailens and god himself, what will you do then? what if earth itself will be uninhabitable, do you want float around in the universe forever freezing? eventually even universe itself will extinguish.

[@Yuri-nc9vl]

​@@mholm4962and life is missery for most of us anyway....

[@Fatty-Biscuits]

Is it weird that I hear Neil’s voice speaking in my head when I read his books? Also, love the editing on this video, it made the reading excerpt even more interactive.

[@lunarminx]

I have been living chronic pain that is disabling, that's not living to me as the pain sucks most joy away. I could not imagine living forever in pain. Its been this way since 2008 and I am so done, that I would love not to wake up tomorrow. Please don't take this as a suicide threat, its not, ive been under care since 2014 for it. I cant say when was the last time I was truly happy. Long past the nickname of sunshine!

[@VoceolhouafotoOlhadenovo.]

Ask the doctor to fix your pain, i'm talking about Dr. Neil de Grasse Marsh.

[@VoceolhouafotoOlhadenovo.]

And when he fixes your pain, you can also try asking him what is the meaning of life.

[@markdowning6773]

V​@@VoceolhouafotoOlhadenovo. Hi a British priest asked the daily lama that same question and he replied ' THE PURPOSE OF LIFE IS TO BE HAPPY ' . The priest went away and thought this seemed a very selfish thing for a holy man to say but upon reflection of the answer he concluded that he was right, because when you're happy you are at your best , your most giving and your most loving.

[@evieswegsda1089]

That Would Prove That Probably Nobody Would Want to Live Forever

[@wonderingraven]

When I was young I always wanted to live forever to travel the stars and learn more.

[@donkey3187]

When I was young, I believed ion Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.

[@danielschaeffer1294]

As Dorothy said, there’s no place like home.

[@evieswegsda1089]

I agree, when I was younger I was wishing to live forever, but my mom explained about what life would be like if I lived forever, and that eventually I would probably become lonely, then eventually I became unsure about whether I wanted to live forever or not

[@gt-gu7rb]

People really don't think this though. Live forever? Ok then by extension you need all of your loved ones to live forever, and all of thier friends and loved ones. If one person lives forever, then we would all have to live forever. The universe has existed for 13 billion plus years without me. I think it will be just fine when Im gone. A timeless existence is meaningless.

[@gabrielford3473]

Why do I need all of my loved ones to continue on? I mean, if the option existed for me, I imagine/hope it would for all. But I don't depend upon those I love for a good life. In fact, the majority of my life has been spent away from those I love ( and continues to) and I am very happy with it all. You meet new people along the way, if you choose to.

[@salam14111]

some1 can say life make no sens because we have to die . its meaningless nihilistic . why even try ? so short .

[@anonymous-zn2iv]

Then why are we trying to achieve immortality. I think as long as there is new knowledge and new experiences to be had life is worth living.

[@TOTUTIII13]

I lost my uncle this week Nothing makes me feel better than this video Thank you 🙏

[@k8tina]

Sorry for the loss of your beloved uncle 💔

[@massmanpro]

Living forever would suck. I would rather die under circumstances that I'm most comfortable with. I will be at peace with knowing my time has come. People forget that death is just as natural as life.

[@Palidine4M0O]

Living forever is a nightmare idealistic thought, trying to live longer is an attempt to reach an ideal. One of the two is the perfect being the enemy of the good, the other is incrementally reasonable.

[@brizzle3903]

@@Palidine4M0Oexactly being immortal in the physical plane would be a true nightmare

[@steve00alt70]

But when will you want to die? That will be never.

[@evieswegsda1089]

I would want to live at least until i'm ready to go, probably not live forever

[@kamranchaudhry5747]

Wish I had heard this before speaking at the memorial of my cousin who died on Feb 6, 2024, due to TB, Heart enlargement, thalassemia and post delivery. I miss her but didnt want her to live with aal this burden and pain. Thanks for the support Neil.

[@sexton824]

I view death as the necessary process to avoid eternal suffering. Imagine being buried alive, or trapped in an underground cave or a collapsed building. Death is the only escape. We are limited in the amount of time we can suffer which I think is a wonderful thing.

[@lemmahmdodana5301]

We don't have t suffer all our life.... scientists won't know how to escape the suffering while you are alive.

[@salkhan7066]

Death is similar to returning to a state of non-existence. Just as we have no memory or awareness of the time before we were born, there will be no consciousness or experience to miss or remember anything. Death is the end of conscious existence, where our consciousness ceases to exist.

[@redcat9436]

You are very wrong about that.

[@Yuri-nc9vl]

​@@redcat9436how he's wrong?

[@solomonsiko9845]

I hear you, but are you saying all things I've experienced will just fades away I believe there must be something else cause when u are not born you never experienced anything compared to when you once lived .

[@salkhan7066]

@@solomonsiko9845 On a very small scale, I liken non-existence to the state of being under general anesthesia-without consciousness or feeling. It appears that death could resemble this state, but instead of a finite duration, it extends indefinitely.

[@86FxBdyCpe]

The passage about our canine loved ones brought tears to my eyes. 😢

[@k8tina]

My furrychildren are a part of my life and family. They are full of such pure love for us. 🐶🐾

[@johnmeissner8715]

Living forever does not imply that one can do anything one wants. Although elegant, the words you read bypasses the work one must maintain to continue living. 😯

[@gabrielford3473]

But it does offer the opportunity to do many things one may want, and that would be a priceless option.

[@emreeren13]

Well we would need an UBI (universal basic income) urgently/ideally in such times, otherwise it would be insane. Who want's to work forever? Only people who love their job's and there aren't many.

[@abstract5249]

That's some real nightmare fuel. Imagine learning you've gained immortality, only to be told to get back to work. At first you think, "it's fine. I have time! I'll eventually make enough money to leave my job and chase my dreams." But as time goes on, you realize the very system of late stage capitalism, itself, has changed. Now it takes into account human's immortality, effectively forcing us to wage away forever...

[@emreeren13]

@@abstract5249 With an UBI this wouldn't happen. At least not forever.

[@abstract5249]

@@emreeren13 Good luck trying to implement UBI in the U.S. The majority of Americans already support it, but it's not happening anytime soon. We have a vocal minority against it while our government is incentivized to remain beholden to our corporate leaders who would rather profit off our labor.

[@Brennbare]

I hate the fact that I have to die. I want to know what is happening in a hundred years or a thousand years. I want to be there when we go extinct. Or when we migrate to another planet. I love gaming. I want to know what gaming is like in 200 years.

[@NolocoLawrence]

I want to read, game, watch things from the past and the future. It's frustrating to imagine a day I don't wake up. Just knowing that I won't be conscious that day. Unable to get my bearings and think of the day ahead. That all my thoughts cease to excist sucks. At the same time. I feel we should die. In regards to the limits of our planet. I do feel that in order to go on in our future. We're going to need to become more robot and just be more the mind of what was once human.

[@pnut3844able]

You want to know what it's like to game 200 years from now? Dude you're doing right now, this is a simulation.

[@J-js4ei]

We are the game.

[@timc333]

Trust me , you really don't want to know , You will be plenty happy when you realize that you got to miss that part , the whole extinction thing is very highly overrated and sadly doesn't happen in one day . Starvation is not fun either , ever have to go hungry , well I was homeless at one point and only survived by stealing day old bread from the back of a grocery store , starvation and going hungry actually really painful . As for migrating to other planets , we still can't make it to even our closest neighbors , and by the time we perfect that technology we will have a bigger problem of all the space junk and satellites already in our orbit and how much more there will be , we will be a planet locked species because of our own trash . Sorry but are you really still sure you want to be eternal , cause it conceivably could happen you know , I simply genetic accident could change things forever >

[@abstract5249]

@@timc333 If we live forever, then gradual processes might feel quicker to us. An extinction event due to climate change might look like a great (and horrifying) cataclysm, much as volcanic eruptions and tsunamis appear to us now.

[@finaldrive6224]

What a lovely passage-and solemn reminder.

[@MelvinWar]

Possibly one of the best and most insightful books I have read in my life.

[@MrGriff305]

Answer to the question.. Yes.. That'd give me a blissful outlook

[@Cloudryder]

That was so beautiful. Thank you, Sir.

[@ericaslavi5779]

Thank you so much for your wisdom and leadership 🙏

[@omrik3252]

Thank you Neil for this great video ❤ always great to watch your videos! Meaningful and informative

[@bigted79]

How have I only just come across this podcast in the last week. Absolutely fantastic!!!!

[@GinaCarmichael-nd2pt]

I find Neil deGrasse Tyson to be so unique exquisite to the senses of every discipline. Profound. I love you. The Greatest of all times.

[@bryanbradley6871]

where there is no death there is no life, where there is no life there is no death. -Bryan Bradley

[@vrycanz]

Surely gonna add this to favorites video and play it every morning and afternoon on my way to work and back to home afterwork.

[@derekschneider8922]

Our modern hygiene, like clean teeth to understanding diet, and sleep, extends our lifetime expectancy compared to those before us. It’s a great point, as a new generation, we don’t see it as we benefited more than previous generations. I like the perspective of dog years, and how we measure our time, and see how much longer we live both naturally, and with modern medicine. Bravo, more please!

[@carlstawicki1915]

I would want to live forever with these conditions: 1. I have perfect health and don't physically age. 2. I'm set up financially. 3. I still have the option to take my own life when I'm ready. There's no point in living after the sun expires. 😉

[@bobblowhard8823]

You would get bored and tired of living long before the sun expires.

[@evieswegsda1089]

That is good points you both have there

[@An_Economist_Plays]

Not alone, no. When there are no shortages of resources or even time itself, then it is love that becomes the currency of immortality.

[@inthehouse1960]

I loved this. thank you. it made me feel peaceful.

[@JesusRodriguez-fo2br]

The idea of dying is the very reason to live. Life and living would be pointless if we lived forever. I'm grateful for the years I have, at 29, I hope to grow old and age well.

[@marzelingram4390]

We all do, but there is no guarantee. There is only one way to live forever, and that's through Jesus our Lord, Savior, and Creator. It's our choice.

[@sonnyc.9259]

simply beautiful

[@YoungGandalf2325]

If you think that living forever would be bad, then is living a shorter life better? There is a happy medium somewhere. It's up to each individual to find out what that is for themselves and make the most of that time. Would you rather have flowers that live forever, or flowers that die 5 seconds after they're picked? Probably something in-between.

[@EdwardHowton]

Big "Oh, you don't like a month of feasting? So you prefer starving to death?" energy in your non sequitur there, buddy. Edit: False dichotomy. That's what I meant. I got confused by how _completely out of nowhere_ the false dichotomy came from and I got non sequitur stuck in my head. Because it's both.

[@Vynzent]

Yeah this line of reasoning was a mess. Why would anyone not want flowers that last forever? Dafuq? That's why fake ones were invented. That's got nothing to do with this.

[@PuggetronicsPioneer]

"Would you rather have flowers that live forever, or flowers that die 5 seconds after they're picked? Probably something in-between." The absurdity of saying something in-between five seconds and forever lol. I do agree with your point about individuals finding a happy medium though. I think if given the choice I'd like to live until I was well and truly ready for the big sleep.

[@emreeren13]

Yea imagine in a hypothetic utopic future, where you have roses in a vase on the table and you realize one day that they died. And you think something like: "Ohh... another 500 years passed. I didn't even realize. Time goes faster the older you get, huh oldtimer? I exactly remember how I picked them up back in 34'625 as if it was yesterday."

[@evieswegsda1089]

It would be less of a stress if immortality existed or if the average lifespan was longer, but if nobody died then the world would become overcrowded and there eventually wouldn't be enough food for everyone, and also it would probably be a bit boring if everyone died at the same age, or if everyone was the same

[@lathenhertel8564]

I wouldn't mind living a couple hundred years just to see the advancements humanity makes. But I don't believe anything is meant to last forever. I would rather feel privileged to get to experience existence for a short time than experience the years slowly dragging by with no true purpose.

[@nikhatriazrasool]

I feel "Living forever" is not the actual desire but Living forever as a youthful joyful being is a real "Want" 😊

[@rebokfleetfoot]

he does have a great story telling voice :)

[@TheBeanMan-ks3gi]

6:13 understatement of the year

[@MrKennethjj]

definitely am compelled to joy because my dogs have a 'ready to go get whatever' kind of encouraging energy.

[@happygrandma2732]

Life is precious. As an 80+ senior, I thank God every day for my blessings. However, having lost loved ones, friends, pets, however, is the down side of living to an old age. I don't have to or want to live forever. I lived through the best years in our country's history and am pained by the direction it is going now. Thanks to Neil deGrasse Tyson for his not only brilliant, but heartening words.

[@iTuber012]

Yes up until the universe dies... I wouldn't want to just be floating in nothingness for eternity

[@yuukimoon906]

My new favorite quote from Neil is: "Dogs aren't flowers."

[@TheNaiveMonk]

Thank you for sharing ❤

[@ahmadkoopal3120]

There is beauty in the truth that was expressed. I've seen a poem in the Persian language by Omar Khayyam that has expressed the same sentiments (I'm sorry I can't translate it to English and maintain its elegance and beauty like Algebra.) You are like the old Persian Scientists who expressed their thoughts in poetry. That's another reason why you are loved by many.

[@jjcooney9758]

I would, I don’t mind work, I find it rewarding, the idea of traversing deep space is so appealing. To be that generation, there is no bigger reward. To infinity…

[@Vynzent]

You've been watching too many movies.

[@weredragon1447]

First, just because we wouldn't age doesn't mean we wouldn't die. Age and disease aren't the only things humans die from. Second, maybe this would motivate us to live in the moment and enjoying life right now, instead of racing around always thinking about our limited future and everything we need to "get done" before it's too late. Third, my daughter gave me silk flowers for mother's Day a few years ago. I value them to this day. It's not the object that I love it's the person who gave them to me. Also, every year I work hard in my garden to grow my own flowers. I get so much enjoyment seeing them grow and blume. But I don't value them less than the silk ones because they don't last as long. Like most things in life it all depends on your perspective. 😊

[@BenjySparky]

Neil, you rock! More of this, please. Peace

[@Jsjsjsxjjdw]

Very profound. Love the analogy of the Forever flowers!

[@davidlee8464]

I’ve already died twice (one from a motorcycle accident, one from a serious illness) - my experience tells me there’s nothing to avoid and nothing to fear. I know others will say there’s nothing after death, or that any such phenomenon is just the random firing of neurons. I’m not debating that - just relaying my personal experience.

[@marksnow7569]

You are a spectacularly lucky person!

[@Maderyne]

A 19-year-old looks ahead to what his life will offer him. That same person at his 70th birthday party wonders where all the years went. The movie, Meet Joe Black, illustrates it well when Anthony Hopkins utters that very thought. I would choose a longer lifespan, though not forever. Even immortality would get tiresome I would think.

[@atlanciaza]

Why would you assume immortality would get tiresome, when there is a near infinite universe to explore? Even on a smaller scale there is a near infinite amount of experiences to be had on just this tiny mote of dust suspended in a sun beam.

[@GK-ku3zv]

@@atlanciaza Memories is part of the journey. Why live forever when you will forget way more than you will ever remember. Everything will have to be recorded along the way. I would like to live for a very long time and take a hundred years time out, come back after a long rest period if given a choice.

[@Yuri-nc9vl]

a short life full of joy without pain worth more than immortality

[@noxsamus397]

personally i want to live forever, main reasons are, i want to learn all what there is to learn and i have a dire need to know "how this world will come to its end". small part of me want to see the entire galaxy. sadly this will not come to pass, i'll die someday with the understanding / realization i was just a tiny speck on a sand correl. you spoke of, if you know you live for ever, you don't want to do something because there is always tomorrow, i'd say i'm doing nothing now because i know i'll never complete what i want to accomplish. and i know you might say, BUT you can at least do some of it. true and i once thought the same and did some of it, yet it did not bring me satisfaction because i wanted more, always more and the things i'v done so far seemed meaningless. (getting emotional, going to unpause the vid and listen to the fantastic voice of a fantastic man)

[@matjazwalland903]

Everything you said is true, fear pushes us forward and limits us at the same time! We get tunnel vision and can't see anything around us, we become selfish and full of ourselves.

[@FriedeSeiMitDir]

Beautifully written and read, Neill. I think I just noticed a tiny mistake: At 4:30 you say about the 7:1 dog/human ratio: "A day onto a dog is a week onto humans". Shouldn't it be the other way round? A day onto human is a week onto a dog? 🤔

[@M3galodon]

Wait a second... it works both ways.

[@aeristone5941]

Agreed @FriedeSeiMitDir it's definitely a mistake. Although, I think it was just worded/written very poorly. He likely meant it would be the same feeling (for a dog) of a week passing (as WE know/experience it), and not actually that we are living a week of time for a dog's day of time. If we think about it this way, then we can see how it also makes sense "both ways" like @M3galodon says, which is extra evidence of it simply being poorly written. Although it is a little amusing (imo) to imagine a world where Neil believes humans age 168 hours every time a dog ages 24 hours 😂😂😂.

[@IamKnucks]

I've never accepted the rationale that we only do things today because we might die tomorrow. When I'm painting an illustration I do it because I enjoy it. Not because I'm racing death. When I play a video game it's because I'm in the mood to play. When I take my daughter out for ice cream it's because I love seeing her happy, not because I'm trying to cram as many memories in before I'm gone.

[@gabrielford3473]

Exactly

[@tiredofthebs9]

Everything we do is based on the finite time we have left.

[@shiptj01]

Amen.

[@charlesbrown1365]

I often say I wouldn’t want to live forever . Nothing preventing terrible times for me.

[@johndoyle2347]

Neil deGrasse Tyson, you've ruffled some feathers and perhaps made some enemies for standing up for true things. Good for you sir! You have integrity and I wish more people were like you.

[@Bernard_Ralph_The_Realtor]

Yes I wanna live forever

[@ogungou9]

Personally 'forever' I don't know I don't think so, but 1000 little years, absolutely, yes.

[@MajorCanada]

Yeah. 2000 or 3000 years is fine. Maybe we change our minds. Plenty of time. Hopefully we end poverty, aging, then disease, then we see what's next.

[@ogungou9]

@@MajorCanada: Exactly!

[@evieswegsda1089]

But most people would probably have enough of life way before 200

[@ehiggins7476]

We need more of these videos!

[@khansher88]

That was so awesome. Amazing narration.

[@chocopuddingcup83]

I'd want to live forever, with the caveat that I could decide when I died and when I've had enough.

[@evieswegsda1089]

I feel like I probably wouldn't want to live forever, but I would want to be able to live until i'm ready to go

[@JesusChristDenton_7]

"And someday when the descendants of humanity have spread from star to star, they won't tell the children about the history of Ancient Earth until they're old enough to bear it; and when they learn they'll weep to hear that such a thing as Death had ever once existed!" -A wise Man

[@yamilletrivas8041]

I would want Neil to read to me all day every day. This was fantastic and now I miss my Maggie May and I’m looking at my two dogs with even more loving eyes. 😢

[@fishhy9720]

There are all sorts of people in the world. As someone with a severe anxiety problem, I already feel like I'm just 'passing through' life and not enjoying it. From my perspective, living forever would be wonderful.

[@_olli_9485]

i would...

[@rebokfleetfoot]

if you consider the definition of life, living forever is not life, so it's kind of a silly question

[@robertplant6667]

There's no time for us There's no place for us What is this thing that builds our dreams, yet slips away from us...

[@PoliAstroN]

The answer is, yes, we would like to live forever. At first. In time, who knows. We could reach a point where people who are 200 years old just.. don’t wanna be here anymore.

[@kronosaurelius]

Yes

[@PrometheanVision]

The funny part about this conversation everyone thinks they want to die until one day CRISPR catches up and you can look and feel like you're 24 indefinitely then everyone will change their opinions.

[@gabrielford3473]

maybe

[@JuanCarlosHazanow]

I am convinced that just as everything that belongs to this Universe is returned to it, but there is something in us that is not matter and therefore, that something continues in another instance.

[@markusmafra6910]

That was an interesting thought : Being conscious of our death is what moves us to do the things we do ! If there was no death , there would be no urgency to do anything and no reason to worry about anything at all .

[@seanbumstead1250]

I would definitely want to live forever

[@evieswegsda1089]

But then you would never see passed loved ones again

[@Leonardo-jj5co]

I would not want to live forever, I would have no motivation to get out of bed since I have all the time to do whatever and when I'd be done with everything I'd still have forever to do nothing.

[@MajorCanada]

Short sighted. How about just being able to live healthy as a 30 year old for 100 years? What if you stretch that to 150 years? How about 200 and you decide how you die, if you want to, and where? Think big picture. No one is living forever with a decaying 140 year old body. People are never living forever anyway. Car crashes. Airplane accidents. Spaceship depressurization. All of this is possible and will eventually result in death.

[@johnathanmartin1504]

To someone like me that is an alien mindset. I never have enough time to do what I want to do. I definitely want to live forever.

[@evieswegsda1089]

There's some advantages of both mortal life and immortality

[@Egonzales85]

I read your book when it came out. It’s amazing.

[@HoldOntoYourButts]

What a nice voice. I can listen to more readings from you Mr. Neil

[@targetedplantsguy9481]

I definitely want to live forever or until I choose not to. I want to live long enough to see us inhabit other worlds and speciate.

[@KarlRoyale]

I have to reject this argument completely, not everyone procrastinates indefinitely, knowing there will be a tomorrow does not have to mean I waste today.

[@user-jx8go6hi8i]

Yay, another good book to read and reflect on!😊

[@ooshDAloosh]

chills down my body this whole video>

[@ChrisStephen-sl1kn]

Dear American I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to express my deep disappointment and frustration regarding the delay in receiving my tax refund. As a law-abiding citizen, I fulfilled all my tax obligations promptly and expected a timely refund.

[@user-mw4nm2di7p]

Same here It has been months since I submitted my tax return, and have yet to receive any communication or updates regarding the status of my refund. This delay has caused significant inconvenience and financial strain, as I had planned to use the refund for essential expenses.

[@DellaH.Armstrong-fq8lz]

very true, a huge part of my portfolio growth has come during this bear market. I've been able to scale from $180K to $572K in a short period of time.

[@BlitoEmactao]

How do you do that? I'm interested

[@DellaH.Armstrong-fq8lz]

I operate a wide-range of Investments with help from My Financial Adviser. My advice is to get a professional who will help you, plan and enhance your management skills. For the record, working with Everett Gary Oliver, has been an amazing experience.

[@Macdonald12]

HOW !! I know it's possible, I would appreciate if you show me how to go about

[@Experience-Talk]

SIR Neil your a poet and genius astrophysicist. and combining both is a killer.❤❤

[@UnatickOne]

didn’t know you wrote a book. I am going to purchase it asap !

[@mikeroberts7921]

I am just glad to be part of this glorious miracle of life. Whatever Divine Providence may or may not have in store is out of my hands. That being stated, not existing and being bothered by the myriad complexities of life one encounters daily doesn’t seem so bad to me.

[@FelipeSilva-yo4el]

I love the StarTalks with Niel deGrasse Tyson, I learn sth treasured and helps me to learn English too.

[@dpnorvell]

Anyone who loves life will never be ready to give up living. Loved ones leaving us continues to tear us apart emotionally. While living forever is a concept that involves infinity and is probably beyond our comprehension, continuing to live, or living perpetually, is a natural desire many of us share and perhaps hope to see one day. Perhaps living with no death in sight would allow us to postpone some things more often. Likely science and technology would move at a slower pace. Who cares? Not everything would be put off until tomorrow, though. There are innumerable scenarios that require timely action. The roof has to be fixed before it rains again. The seeds need to be sown in the spring if we expect to harvest in the fall and have enough to eat. The extra room needs to be prepared for the imminent birth of your next child. If someone can procrastinate everything indefinitely, their life has likely become too soft.

[@jeffsiegwart]

Very impressive poetry! Thank you.

[@ramonmuniz8439]

Knowing that death is inevitable, is a good incentive to make the most out your daily life, and tell the people how much you love them and appreciate them every day.