Deck 2: Why Do Our Bodies Grow Old

Question 1

Recent research is investigating the role of inflammation in a variety of aging related diseases.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Although cultural stereotypes suggest that women are more biologically fragile than men, the Gompertz law indicates that women and men are equally likely to die.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

According to Hayflick, when does aging begin?

A) at conception
B) at birth
C) following the reproductive period
D) when the animal becomes independent of its parents
E) none of these

Answer 3

C

Question 4

According to Fries and Crapo, average life expectancy has increased while life span has remained the same.

Question 5

According to de Grey, the therapies being developed by the SENS (Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence) project to prevent and cure aging will be available for mice in ______ years and for humans in ______ years.

A) 50, 75
B) 50, 50
C) 25, 25
D) 25, 20
E) 10, 20

Question 6

Hayflick likens aging to the ticking on of a cheap watch that eventually results in its failure

Question 7

The time-dependent biological process that involves functional loss and susceptibility to disease and death is called ______.

A) the Gompertz law
B) normal aging
C) successful aging
D) the wear-and-tear theory of aging
E) the Hayflick limit

Question 8

The maximum human life span is approximately ______.

A) 77 years
B) 82 years
C) 100 years
D) 120 years
E) 150 years

Question 9

Like other biomedical goals, discovering the processes that cause aging or determine our life span would have a strictly positive value.

Question 10

According to Hayflick, scientists have made significant progress during the last century in uncovering the fundamental cause of aging.

Question 11

The Hayflick Limit refers to which of the following processes?

A) HeLa cells continue to divide and grow.
B) Normal human cells grown in tissue culture go through a limited number of cell divisions.
C) Aging is regulated by glandular cells, perhaps of the hypothalamus, thymus, or pituitary gland.
D) Waste products and other harmful substances build up in the cells.
E) None of these.

Question 12

Many biologists believe that aging may be explained by a single cause.

Question 13

According to the cellular theory of aging, which of the following processes occur?

A) Free radical damage eventually gives rise to the symptoms we know as aging.
B) Cross-linking compounds in the collagen begin to accumulate and eventually impair cellular function.
C) The body's immune system begins to weaken and can no longer distinguish between bodily tissues and foreign tissues.
D) The capacity for cell division weakens over time.
E) None of these.

Question 14

Research in the area of cryobiology has found that raising and maintaining a higher body temperature can increase the life span in fruit flies and some vertebrates.

Question 15

The maximum life span for a species is unalterable.

Question 16

According to Fries and Crapo, all of the following are true except ______.

A) The number of extremely old persons will increase.
B) The percentage of a typical life spent in dependency will decrease.
C) The period of adult vigor will be prolonged.
D) The need for intensive medical care will decrease.
E) The cost of medical care will decrease.

Question 17

Which of the following are considered to be "wear-and-tear" theories of aging?

A) somatic mutation theory of aging
B) error accumulation theory of aging
C) accumulative waste theory of aging
D) all of these
E) a and b

Question 18

Explanations for the improvement in functioning of current cohorts of older persons include ______.

A) increases in the educational levels of newer cohorts of elders
B) decreases in the frequency of obesity
C) improvements in medical interventions
D) all of these
E) both a and c

Question 19

"Compression of morbidity" refers to which of the following processes?

A) the acceleration of the inverse relationship of morbidity and mortality
B) when illness is pushed further into old age
C) an increase in the maximum life span
D) whenever the natural life span is exceeded
E) none of these

Question 20

Over the 20th century, both life expectancy and life span increased.

Question 21

In your opinion, how much emphasis should be placed on promoting health versus curing diseases in old age? Explain.

Question 22

"Disability free" or "active" life expectancy is the number of years an individual can expect to live beyond age 65 without significant functional impairment due to disability or chronic illness.

Question 23

de Grey considers biophysical aging to be a disease that should be cured.

Question 24

International research on health trends in later life provides consistent results across countries.

Question 25

According to de Grey, even though it may be possible for people to live to be 1,000 years of age, none of the added life span will be lived in frailty, debility, or dependence.

Question 26

The various therapies that will be able to repair all the types of molecular and cellular damage that occur over time will have to be implemented before that damage is evident.

Question 27

Premature deaths resulting from violence will comprise a smaller proportion of total premature deaths, according to Hayflick.

Question 28

Olshansky concedes that the science of aging has significantly advanced in recent decades such that gerontology is close to discovering the key to physical immortality.

Question 29

Olshansky argues that research on aging should focus on improved physical health and mental functioning and not on the search for a cure to aging.

Question 30

According to Fries and Crapo, if all disease and trauma were eliminated, death would still occur.

Question 31

Olshansky finds that throughout much of human history, many individuals have believed that physical immortality was soon within reach.

Question 32

What hope do we have for compressing morbidity or extending longevity according to Hayflick? Would these discoveries necessarily have positive consequences? Explain.

Question 33

The concepts of morbidity and disability can be used interchangeably-they mean the same thing when considering the compression of morbidity hypothesis.

Question 34

What if medical technology succeeds in significantly prolonging the human life span? What are the implications for health care economics?

Question 35

Olshansky agrees with de Grey ("We will be able to live to 1,000") that with sufficient resources devoted to research, we can find a cure for aging.

Question 36

A challenge in determining the need for care in the older population is that population surveys on health in later life measure health status in multiple ways.

Question 37

de Grey argues that the first person to live to 1,000 years of age has not yet been born.

Question 38

According to the various biological theories of aging, is the maximum human life span really finite and fixed? Explain.

Question 39

According to Mor, the compression of morbidity hypothesis is now generally accepted as valid.

Question 40

Even if the compression of morbidity continues, there will still be an increase in health care resources needed because the size of the older population is increasing.

Question 41

Describe what is meant by the "rectangular curve." How does the rectangular curve assist us in our understanding of human aging and future changes in life expectancy?

Question 42

Parker and Thorslund suggest that trends in compression of morbidity are more complex than initially thought-the general trend seems to be that older sectors of the population report more diseases and health problems, at the same time that their functional ability is maintained for longer periods. How do the authors explain this trend? Do you think this trend will continue into the 21st century?

Question 43

Do you agree or disagree with de Grey that developing therapies that would dramatically increase life expectancy is tantamount to "playing God"?

Question 44

Compare and contrast de Grey's "We Will Be Able to Live to 1,000" and Olshansky's views on the likelihood of preventing and curing aging. What evidence does Olshansky use to refute de Grey's argument?

Question 45

Mor suggests that the compression of morbidity may turn out to be a cohort effect and not a lasting improvement in the functioning of older adults. What does Mor base his argument on? Do you agree or disagree with his thinking?

Question 46

There is increasing evidence of social inequalities in longevity and the potential for experiencing a healthy old age. Discuss the factors that are important to consider in the compression-of-morbidity discussion.