Someday a grandpa is going to be listening to 2 Chainz and telling his friends that those
damn kids keep leaving notes on his tumblr.
It's going to happen!
But is it a bad thing?
Earth's population is aging, In 1970, the average woman on Earth birthed 4.7 children,
by 2011 it was down to 2 point 5.
We're getting older, fast.
Some humans think it's a terrible thing, while others think it's great!
Why the discrepancy?
A bunch of reasons.
Worries about adequate health care, economic shortfalls, pension burdens, and the concern
with the youths taking over… dang kids…
I feel like I've read a million-and-a-half Gen-X or Baby Boomer penned articles complaining
how Millennials are horrible pampered narcissists, and another million blog features on how the
Olds are unoriginal, corporate, luddites, who don't see the world is changing.
This isn't going to be either of those, because science.
A study was released recently in Plos One exploring the idea of an aging population
from the angles of productivity, environmentalism, wealth, and wellbeing.
Looking at Germany's aging population, the researchers from the Max Planck Institute
and the University of Washington found an aging population can actually be a GOOD thing!
Researchers chose Germany because it's the second oldest population in the world (after
Japan), with a median age of 44.3 years.
They found older populations can cause INCREASED productivity, and are usually more financially
stable, which is good for the economy.
Plus, those Pop-pops and Nana's are able to share that wealth with their children as they
age.
In a country like Germany, where health care is socialized, the researchers project older
people will stay healthier longer, allowing them to contribute to society; this will keep
them in a better Quality of Life too -- allowing more leisure time.
By 2050, the average German man will spend 80-percent of his life in good health (17-percent
longer than today), live longer, and be happier.
Another big one, is the impact on the environment.
An older population will use fewer energy-intensive goods and a decreasing population will mean
lower carbon emissions.
Older people living in cities encourages better urban planning, more walking and ease of access.
It's great for childcare also, because grandma and grandpa can help take care of children
too!
There ARE negatives though, let's not pretend there aren't.
Older folks' bodies are more vulnerable to breakage, they adapt more slowly to major
environmental shifts -- like a natural disaster -- and are generally more likely to fall ill.
All hope is not lost!
Kids from this year's Google Science Fair are coming up with fantastic inventions and
ideas to keep those cotton tops integrated with everyone else.
Some of the projects create prosthetics for improving movement, like the eye-movement-controlled
wheelchair, or speech, like the breath-to-speech monitor invented by a 16-year-old from India.
There's even a health monitor that can help a caregiver track their old friend as they
move in and out of bed, especially helpful for senior communities or families.
In the end, getting older is going to happen to us all, so I'm looking forward to the exoskeletons,
replaceable organs and cool technologies coming out of experiments like these and the promise
of a healthy, aging population.
Just goes to show that clever innovations can come from anywhere - including the U.S.
Air Force!
I wanna take a moment to thank them for supporting DNews.
The U.S. Air Force is always breaking barriers and using science and technology to push the
limits of what's possible.
They were the first to break the sound barrier in 1947, and they're still pushing today.
Are you excited to get old?
Or are you dreading it?
Are you OLD ALREADY?!
Tell us your wisdom!!