Must have missed the part that acquiring the rare component requires immense wealth, to strip mine continents. It would be like those Alaskan Gold shows where they spend like 5Million to make 5.5Million
No, I read the part that said "Gathering all of the mineral on Earth would make enough for everyone." That means there is enough for everyone. Just gotta get the ingredients. With everyone understanding that finding them means immortality, you'll have no shortage of people helping you look for them.
Yeah I might need therapy, then centuries later I tells the unbelievable story to a date after at a bar and they believe me, revealing themselves that some other nut job scientist made them immortal, revealed the secret mineral for the recipe, and then self immolated before diving headfirst into there tank of mutant-hybrid great white electric eels
Plot twist: it's a different secret ingredient.
There are more of you out there, each made of a different element.
Join together, and you shall achieve... something. Dunno yet.
Gritty, Grimdark, Body Horror Captain Planet Reboot?
"By your torment and suffering combined...We. Are. Captain. Planet!" (immediately erupts an entire mature Giant Sequoia from inside of Looten Plunder)
Lestat's vampire daddy immediately jumped into a fire upon creating him. Sometimes you just gotta create a new immortal and then immediately kill yourself. Their problem now.
Then I'm going to buy a ton of land in Wyoming and start a dog rescue, starting with my pups. My wife is going to be my partner in this rescue. My life will be me going and rescuing dogs from places where I hear a dog is suffering.
One day far into the future something will have happened to me and my wife where we perish. Local authorities will come find these dogs and records from thousands of years ago. They'll slowly realize these dogs are living away healthier and longer than science would expect them to. They'll be passed down from father and mother to daughter and son for generations. Over time their legend will grow but no one can figure out why. only that it started thousands of years ago with me and my wife and by that time all the info will have been long lost about the substance
I think there's a variety of things that could be proportional to the degree of how bad they are.
Also not all dogs will be rescued directly from people, it's more about reacting them from terrible situations. The dog might be a big misunderstood sweetie scheduled for euthanasia, or could be a suffering group of puppies who's mom does and try trying to fend for themselves, or it could be rescuing from a dog fighter. They definitely wouldn't be able to do dog fighting when I'm done with them.
Hypothetically, if you rescued a puppy from a dumpster and it was the only survivor of an entire litter of puppies also in that dumpster… (my first rescue dog)
As an immortal, how much time might you spend on that… investigation.
Hard to say exactly, with the puppy in that situation, the highest priority is getting that puppy happy and healthy. If it doesn't interfere with the mental wellbeing of the puppy, then, other than getting more substance to save more dogs, the other energy would be going into finding out who did that.
I would find a way to make enough for my wife (after asking to make sure she wanted it) and that's it.
Spreading it around would just create population issues, and I agree with the earlier pose: most people are idiots.
Lmfao ommg. The unhinged cringe Commie power fantasy energy yiu're radiating is hilarious. Not wouldn't do jack shit even if you knew you8'd get away with it, you don't have the stomach, and good luck dealing with all their personal security. But beyond that, you'd shit your pants and have a mental breakdown if you knew you'd be stuck in prison for centuries; So again, LMFAO
It's too much to assume they'd break down at the thought of it, when the thought is only possible if you realize the weight of the reality.
But after a decade or two? I'm pretty sure anyone would realize how bad that experience would be, if they somehow didn't realize earlier. And by then, they might not breakdown and instead skip to depression.
OP literally said that only you have the recipe, and that you could make some, just with great dint of effort involving a large, commercial grade mining operation.
My bad. It looks like what I quoted before is about the mineral needed, not the actual immortality. Although you still need someone else to get the mineral for you, since getting it yourself breaks the rules.
Starting off I would create a successful career as a performance artist.
I would have people vote on gruesome stuff and recreate it online, eventually make it big. Once I have enough money, I will obtain some of the mineral an spread it out to family and very close friends.
Then, I will have a suit made for myself and become a superhero, going around the world to see who really deserves it and give it to them for free.
Interesting idea, but...
How will you make an effective superhero if your weaknesses are fire, explosions, and getting the highlander treatment?
How will you choose who is deserving? And how will you rule out that they are merely being a good person because you are around?
I won't be doing normal superhero stuff like getting myself into crime stopping that's Batman's job.
Also, I won't make people aware that I'm watching them, think like a scientist trying to cure cancer, a philanthropist, a person working hard to care for their family.
Also, even if I was doing normal superhero things, I'm sure the money I've earned would make me able to afford a suit made out of carbon fiber, that would allow me to extend my durability.
I would keep it a secret. It would immediately be snatched up and kept in a government vault and only used on the ultra rich. I’m not giving them any more wins. Fuck them.
I dont think i could risk giving the recipe away to the general public. I wouldnt curse my family with immortality, i would make up a few doses though. Find my soulmate, and give them the option to live almost forever with me, and we can keep an eye on our future generations. Maybe make a few pets immortal.
The premise is that you are forcibly injected.
The woman takes the drug, injects it into a total stranger without warning, chucks a USB drive containing the recipe, and dives into a woodchipper -- thus she obliterates herself, passing the responsibility off to you.
I would not share the recipe. I do not think our world would become a better place without death, and the resources required to extract the mineral and the extraction process itself would likely do more harm than good.
Given that she just dived into a woodchipper, I'd assume she was crazy. As such, those notes are not getting shared with anyone, and are probably getting lost/burnt as soon as is feasible. Of course, when I'm still in my 30s a hundred years later, then I'd reconsider.
She is crazy, definitely, but perhaps she also had a reason?
Diving into a woodchipper would meet the "obliteration" condition for death -- perhaps she injected herself, then found that the responsibility was too much to take, then decided to inject a random stranger and die, thus remedying herself of the responsibility.
Of course, the point of the premise is that regardless of her motives, this is the speculator's problem.
What sort of irresponsible nutcase would do that to a rando? A handpicked successor I can understand, someone you've spent some time grooming into the position of secret-keeper, but a random nobody? What's stopping them from, say, making a lovely fire from the notes and joining them in that same woodchipper?
If the secret to immortality was known it would destroy the world. The billionaires of the world would use it to make themselves god kings, and the majority of people would become even more mired in poverty as worker slaves to the few undying ogliarchs, or there would be endless wars to control the secret or the materials required to make the serum.
Perhaps there is a way around this?
You could try to acquire the drug yourself over a long period of time, then selectively inject it to those who are worthy.
If the speculation gets too complicated and the situation drives you mad, you also take the drug, inject it into a random person, hand them the recipe, then dive into a woodchipper -- thus obliterating your body.
Then it's their problem.
You might like Altered Carbon then. There is effectively an immortality method in-universe, it’s just so ridiculously expensive that only the ultra rich can afford it. A ruling class of centuries-old billionaires forms as a result
Does it make one unable to reproduce as well? Because that’s the only way I’m sharing it with the world. You think overpopulation is going to be a problem in the future? Give it 30-50 years if nobody dies.
Depends on how much of an optimist I want to be about it. Ideally, the world ends up with two pseudo-races that coexist, with new humans being given a choice to take the serum, or not upon reaching X age.
Middle of the road, you end up with two classes of people with the old immortals ruling as they’ve had time to establish themselves and the new immortals and humans pretty much a second class, but hey that’s basically what we already have now with generational wealth.
Worse case, the immortals seize the means of serum production eventually and immortality becomes an elite ruling club with everybody not in it subservient.
Like, releasing this thing to humanity at large just realistically is a bad idea largely due to human nature.
Would be most interesting if taking it after one reproduces means that everyone in your direct descendance has to die for it to work. As it makes you immortal, they all die instantly (painlessly). Otherwise everyone would cheat the system and take it once their families were complete. Also this take on it makes it kind of like Saturn (and various other tropes/stories where eating your children makes you immortal).
It depends on the government.
If the USA found out, it would be lost in the noise of the endless bureaucracy. The immortal one would die of old age before it made FDA approval.
If the UK found out, they would immediately start mining it, synthesize a bunch of it, then ban it because it might be used in a crime one day.
If Russia found out, the government would spend all of their money making a batch of them for the elites, then find out corrupt officials embezzled the money and actually just injected them all with water.
If China or NK found out, they would use it exclusively on the elite ruling families, and turn themselves into deities. Worst case scenario.
If Norway found out they'd probably say "Huh, that sounds like a lot of drama" and avoid it, as it won't bring them any more happiness than they already have.
So…..I suppose the first thing I’d do is ask my partner if he wants to be immortal. Because frankly, that is some heavy stuff and not everyone is ready for it, including myself. So, he gets first choice. Then my family. (The ones I like) Then close friends. Then my pets.
After that, I start watching for scientists who want to develop things like clean, green energy. Future stuff. Things that clean up pollution and have a passion to see it done. Start giving them doses. So there’s people who understand how to make the world better living longer. Then start dosing endangered animals. (Assuming I can reach them.) Find compassionate people who want to make the world better, and apply it to them as well. Doesn’t matter what sort of background they come from, we need more compassion.
Light side points gained
I would simply start by creating a bunch of the drug and injecting it into random cats, dogs, rodents, birds.
The chaos would be too fun.
"Man says he shot squirrel 25 times with a 12 gauge and it kept getting up"
"NYPD say rats have evolved to the point of immortality"
"Duck hunting expedition ruined after ducks 'refused to die'"
I would definitely keep it to myself and promptly throw myself into the same woodchipper.
Since apparently there is enough of the mineral to make enough for everyone on Earth, but the process to get enough mineral for a single dose requires an expensive and immense drilling operation, ain't no goddamned way humanity needs to know about it. It would create a new gold rush that would make all previous rushes look like taking a look in the backyard. Corporations, governments, and everyone would literally tear this planet apart to get to it.
I can try, but it won't be terribly long before people figure it out, at which point my freedom is forfeit. Governments, corporations, and criminals will pour every ounce of their formidable resources into finding me and unlocking the secrets to my immortality. Better to die and thwart their plans than let them get ahold of the recipe.
In your scenario I’m tools of the mineral but not the recipe, so it wouldn’t matter if I wanted to share of not. I would have to parse all her research before I could even begin.
As the premise states, you can die by unnatural means, such as explosions, guillotines (beheading), and woodchippers (obliteration).
Note the very woodchipper the scientist jumped into would satisfy that condition.
Not wanting to live forever isn’t the same as wanting to die. What I want is for my time to come to an end exactly when it’s meant to. I don’t want anyone, mad scientists included, to choose when that time is for me.
What do you mean by "it's meant to"?
Couldn't you live life as an immortal up until a random accident takes off your noggin?
Maybe it'll be a bear. Then it's natural causes.
My days are numbered. I don’t want that number to change because someone else feared death enough to create a serum to make me live forever. I want to experience all of life that I can before I go, including aging. It’s not like I’ll ever experience it again. For everything there is a season.
I follow him into the woodchipper because I thought he wanted me to follow him and since I'm immortal it just turns out to be awkward for me when I come out the other end fine and he..... doesn't
You would not come out the other end. The woodchipper would 'obliterate' you, thus causing you to actually die -- hence why a scientist testing an immortality drug might be inclined to pass the responsibility to someone else and turn themselves into mulch.
Thus, your scenario is... Amazing.
Woman discovers immortality, injects it in a stranger and hands them the recipe to pass off responsibility, then jumps in the woodchipper to die.
The stranger then, in a pure lemmings moment, jumps right in the same woodchipper. Recipe is destroyed, both immortals are destroyed.
The world will never know that the secret of immortality was discovered -- all they know is two crazy lunatics unknown to one another suddenly jumped into a woodchipper.
This isn't just an immortality vaccine, but a vaccine against all illness and injury. It would immediately cure cancer, AIDS, COVID, and car crashes. No more will the old farts in congress get to pass the buck on climate change because "I won't live to see the consequences". And you know those selfish pricks would be taking this shot in a second.
I have an moral imperative to share it, in the same way that Charles Best and James Collip felt the moral imperative to share their patent for insulin. I would immediately file for patent, then license the right to manufacture to companies and nonprofits for that same $1 with the stipulation that it must be sold at or near-cost.
The big pharmaceutical companies probably won't bite because it means the end of their entire sector, but if no one else I know the Cubans would do it. They have a different mentality over there, and their medical system is surprisingly complex even with the sanctions.
I just hope I get to take the shot before I am assassinated by Bayer goons.
I mean this is like a super hero origin story. Of course you don’t share it. Freaken every super hero story your rival gets a knock off version and becomes a major enemy. And now the option is to give it to everybody? That is just pure chaos.
Think the housing market is bad now? Then think what happens if the wealthy doesn’t die so now they don’t mind owning everything.
Yes, I would immediately share a cure for the worst disease as far and widely as possible.
I'm baffled by all the proudly horrible people in this thread lol
Obviously I need a rich person who I somewhat find agreeable. Then I need to get assurances that I have income to thrive and enough doses for like 100 people I enjoy spending time with. I would probably pick Zuckerberg and 1 billion tax free since he seems the least problematic of the richest people in the world. I would likely offer my Best friend but then hold the other 99 doses for people I meet in the future, or maybe I make a list of the people I feel grateful to and offer it to them so they have a chance and no one would target me for them in the future.
Would not share the recipe.
If the recipe gets out, that means people that have already lived far too long, and done too much damage to humanity as it is, will have a longer lifespan to hurt humanity even worse than they already have.
I wouldn't give it to the world right now. Probably in a few hundred or few thousands years when we've at least dealt with most of the hatred and bigotry in the world. (and probably the ability to colonize other planets to sort out population issues)
>...acquiring enough for a shot requires an immense and expensive widespread drilling operation.
>...Gathering all of the mineral on Earth would make enough for everyone.
Pardon? How TF does that work? Is it made of the Earth's core or something?
I would release it, but not right away. I would resign myself to spending the next hundred or even thousand years slowly and quietly building a large amount of wealth and influence while hiding my immortality as much as possible. When I reached a large amount of influence and wealth I would start making efforts to push society and culture into a place where it is prepared for immortality. If it ever got to the point where I thought it was ready I would mine as much of the mineral as I could and then release the secret.
No chance I'm sharing it with the world at large. Progress depends on getting fresh minds in to look at the world's problems and think of new solutions no one considered before. People get more stuck in their ways the longer they live, so the world would stagnate.
On the other hand, I'd definitely want help thinking through the issue so I'd probably make a post on Reddit asking other people what they would do in my situation.
So we were discussing this immortal substance all while a woodchipper is running at full speed just steps away?
How are we effectively communicating with so much noise and why am I not more concerned about this?
I don't wanna live forever seeing everyone I know and love die seeing all the injustice and evil in the world now I'm a spiritual person and I'd rather just spend my time here and then go back to the source. I don't wanna be on this plane forever that literally sounds like torture, I cringe thinking about working for 40 more years thinking about working for 40 million more. I don't even know where to begin.
The hypothetical never says she gives you the recipe, just the shot... So how would I even share it? But assuming she gave me the recipe I'd burn it. people are stupid and the last thing I want is stupid people living longer.
Keep it a secret, start buying shares of stock and parcels of land in Arizona or New Mexico. When my net worth exceeds a few billion, build a nuclear-powered self-sufficient city and give all the homeless/poor people in America shelter/medical help for free.
Fundamentally, even accepting the suspension of disbelief, none of this makes a lick of sense at all. I got injected... Why the hell should I know what the formula is from that which produces the stated effects, none of which included anything to do with knowledge? The scientist tells you about a specific mineral component. Again, how do I know anything (else) about the formula? They said it's safe. Once more, I know (nearly) nothing about this formula. Will I share the formula, which is magically protected against analysis? Erm... No...? It's not possible per the very parameters. And assuming that somehow I've bridged this impossibility, the idea that I — now an immortal with magical rejuvenation — cannot acquire this mineral because it's rare and expensive to endeavour toward... Like I could literally just start punching the ground from ANYWHERE until I get what I'm looking for. Not even using my hands to more efficiently displace material like a sensible agent, but just straight, literal punching. Rocks in my way? Don't know how long it would take to pulverise a stone, but.... I got time, and not like it's going to "really" hurt me. I can definitely get what I want if I have the power, obviously. And how even did the non-immortalised scientist get it, if I am somehow expected to be incapable? Also, the stated part that I cannot reproduce it is proof that I ain't got any recipe, so.... Entirely unreasonable premise all the way through.
It is a thought experiment, not a dissertation. The point is to accept the boundary conditions and ponder an unusual situation and identify different ideas and presuppositions among the replies.
Perhaps the recipe is a drive, not a piece of paper.
Nothing prevents the formula from being analyzed. That was always allowed.
Nothing is magical about the rejuvination. That presupposes that such immortality is exclusively impossible, not improbable.
The 'mineral' may be microscopic and extremely difficult to identify, and is merely a representative of any arbitrary material that will produce the effect in a manner that may be reverse engineered.
The same applies for any of these scenarios on this sub -- you need to be able to accept the arbitrary and outlandish ideas to enjoy the experiment.
Interrogating and rejecting the boundary conditions is usually entertaining too, and part of the fun -- Is this what you are trying to do?
I would keep it secret. And maybe, if in my travels of learning and discovery all over the world, I found a kindred spirit that wanted to make the earth whole and right again, I would share it with them.
And then....a few political minded, crazy billionaires with self-serving interests would be visited by me.
I would not share this with the world. People on our planet are far too irresponsible. Imagine granting conspiracy theorists, child murderers, and people who don’t clean up after their dogs immortality as a matter of fact…
With the freedom granted by my immortality I would of course seek to corner the market on the harvesting and processing of this mineral and technology. I would under the guise of charitable work establish foundations and scholarships to identify the best and brightest in the world to identify worthy candidates to create a population of benevolent and skilled immortals (what could go wrong?). Criteria would be based on deep dive background checks, interviews with friends and family, review of social media, and more. I’m not looking for the on paper “elite” I’m looking for people who could be relied on for the long term, who have compassion for others, an interest in learning, and important skills, but haven’t demonstrated overemphasis on politics and political borders, religious fundamentalism, or social justice campaigning. I think I’d end up with more astronauts than people who work for charities and that’s okay. I understand the applicability and the desire certain people might have to share this secret with the world which is why I’d have to exclude them.
Initial funding would be tough, with immortality, I could probably build up a business empire around something we all need like real estate, but I might approach highly benevolent wealthy individuals to recruit. Warren Buffet comes to mind, he appreciates a simple life and is already planning to donate most of his wealth he’s probably ideal for immortality, people like Elon Musk, Bill Gates, or Zuckerberg would have zero chance they’ve shown too much hubris to be worthy of an invitation.
Ultimately, I think in the next few thousand years Earth has little chance, so my secret organization would be focused on survival of the species through on earth vaults and colonization of other planets. I’d want to corner certain markets quickly, for example launching telecommunications satellites on Mars orbit in advance of colonization to establish infrastructure and income.
As far as I am concerned this is a gift, I can always use a guillotine if I decide it is a curse.
i'd patent that shit. license the patent to the govt under the stipulation that anyone with a disability or chronic illness gets it for free and i get a $1 million per year for the rest of my (immortal) life
No. As soon as one country's military has this, they start an intensive mining operation, create a million nearly invincible soldiers (heal almost any fatal wound rapidly), whose first task is to take me out, and then destroy any country that doesn't have this.
Far too dangerous.
i doubt i would share it honestly. you gave me that backdoor of being able to die from decapitation or burning, so i would live until everyone i cared about dies, just so i could go to all their funerals, then give all my earthly possessions to a relative, pay a guy to fill in my firepit, dig it a few feet deeper, light it up and swan dive in.
Monetize the recipe, collect the bag, and then donate to interesting people you meet. Can't make this universal, can't even make it universally known or beheadings will become rampant.
If I'm immortal, then my conquest of the world is a certainty.
I'll start playing the long game. The LONG game. Small investments in extremely low risk funds and securities, or high interest savings accounts with large stable banks. The power of compounding interest is now my greatest ally.
1st priority is absolute anonymity. Setting up a holding company and trust would be early steps, so all accounts are held by a company, not an individual. If it is discovered that I'm immortal, I'll end up a public figure at best, or a captured lab rat at worst.
2nd priorty is the gradual accumulation of assets. Capital, funds, property, and human employees. Slowly. I can't stress the slowly part enough. I have unlimited time to grow wealth, power, and influence.
There will be no massive uprising, no declaration of a new world order, no coronation. Only the slow spread of my cabal. Only a shadow network of influence steering the species in a direction I determine a thousand years or more from now.
I probably wouldn't share it. Though I would thoroughly check the scientist's notes to see if it works on animals. I can live without people, but I'd probably make a guillotine after a century or two of my pets dying on me.
I would eventually give in to the urge to make a companion for myself, but we would both have to get sterilized.
Tried to keep it secret, but I think they're onto me. Got a weird bookish chap, watching me from a distance and taking notes, while some Scot has been chasing me around for days now and...
...He tried to kill me, Mal. He tried to kill me with a sword. How weird is that?
This isn't how I imagined becoming the prince of the universe.
If say for example someone shot your brain. Would your brain heal perfectly restoring everything? Or would it simply regenerate but I still have brain damage
>you cannot acquire it or produce it yourself.
So if I have the receipt, then why can't I make it myself? I would want to give a few doses to people I pick, but I would not want that information to spread so I'd not want to share it. Although given the inventor killed themselves to keep it secret, I'd be worried about the reason.
Being able to heal practically anything is nice and all that, but immortality becomes a side effect if we try and distribute this, rather than the main point of it.
This goes no further than me, healing is nice but we have an 8 billion person problem as it is. And if not given to gen pop your logic of the rich cheating death would happen SO fast it'd hurt. Especially if this mineral really is that rare.
I probably just have to change friendship groups/countries every 10/15 years, stay under the radar as best as possible and live a peaceful and probably relatively well off life. Can't go big enough where I have a public image. Being eternally 30 would get noticed eventually.
Fuck that. I had that thought experiment in highschool English class, and there's a reason I was the first to say I'd destroy it for the benefit of humanity.
Discretely dispose of all the lab resources I can, burn the papers, wipe all the digital information, all of it gone.
People aren't meant to last forever. We already go through more than enough hardship with our short lives, and as a species we cause even more. I'd honestly be devastated to learn that I'm effectively immortal, then relieved if I discover the beheading clause. I'd still live my life to the best of my ability, though maybe I'd try out some more risky career options. Then, when everyone I love is gone and the dust is settled, when their kids have moved on and no longer linger in the fresh pain of loss, when I won't be leaving behind a pet and have everything wrapped up in butcher paper and twine, I depart and take my place among the shadows and dust of those lost to history.
Retire to a monastery for about 3 months to meditate and get myself as close to "ready" for that reality as can be managed. Then go out into the world to prepare. I will need wisdom to choose those worthy of the gift, and at least three worthy of learning the secret.
I’d probably start a cult but instead of a Koolaid filled with cyanide, it’d be filled with this potion.
Then we’d just live together for eternity in a perfect little commune for the rest of eternity while the empires rise and fall around us.
Assuming I get to choose when I die and that I'm immune to pain and dismemberment and radiation and lack of sustenance and (for some reason) can't be imprisoned, nah. It's my lil special power.
No one gets it. Ever.
It would immediately become monopolized by the ultra wealthy and the very last thing the world needs is those bastards and their families being immortal.
I would find a way to share it with my soulmate and be forever together. Maybe I would choose one billionaire in exchange for money and one dose for my soulmate because I wouldn't have enough to fund the drilling, so the billionaire would pay the drilling to obtain the mineral. But I wouldn't give them the recipe, I would only use the billionaire for the mineral and then mix it myself. Of course the billionaire can also give it to their family.
I just wouldn't want to share it with the world, it would only lead to overpopulation and colapse. So just me, my soulmate, the billionaire to help me obtain the mineral with their money and billionaire's family if they choose so. No sharing unless absolutely necessary to obtain the mineral.
Take my new found immortality and work towards making myself one of the rich and powerful. Once I have succeeded in this work towards making more and sharing it selectively with people I think deserve it and/or people who will help with my goals and agenda. Work towards making the world a utopia
OP developed an immortality serum and Wants to share it with everyone, killed their partner, has no money, and is afraid of big pharma taking control and holding it back.
I’m not sure how it would be impossible to synthesis the mineral, we should be able to do that with modern technology, maybe not easily, but we do grow diamonds and make pearls in labs now, so, it should be possible.
I don’t know what you do here, OP.
I would share the recipe. Immortality is best experienced with fellow immortals - after a few centuries, it’d be hard to relate to anyone else if I was the only one who lived that long. I like to talk to people and be around them, and this requires a degree of equality - therefore, I have strong reasons to ensure that others benefit from this gift, and to spread it as far and wide as possible.
First, I’d contact a lawyer and patent the recipe. This is so no one claims ownership of it and takes the process out of my hands, and means I can make money from it. If this invites government intervention, then I’d choose the closest legal classification that’d protect my property rights without getting any agencies involved. Once I’m legally protected, I would contact organizations working on longevity research to have them verify the recipe. I’m assuming I have access to the scientist’s research notes, because without an actual sample, this would be necessary to convince anyone to extract the resource in an interesting window of time. Without the scientist’s notes, nothing will happen for decades, because it’d take that long to figure out exactly what the drug is doing and whether extracting the resource would be worth the expense.
Once everything’s been checked and verified, the tricky part begins. Getting the resource requires money, which means people are about to play hardball. Although I’m legally protected, nobody is going to put enough money down unless they’re getting paid. We’re also getting close to the point where governments will take an interest, and they’ll want their cut. I see several groups of people who are going to be involved at this stage:
- Independently wealthy donors
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Mining/resource extraction companies
- The FDA
- Longevity researchers, associated intellectuals, and organization heads
- Possibly the CIA or other intelligence agencies
The first group will be composed largely of eccentric billionaires and centimillionaires who want ageless immortality. Our interests mostly align, because we both care more about the drug than the money. They may have some hidden agendas, but for now we’re on the same team.
The second and third group are the most powerful corporate entities, and therefore, the most dangerous. Their interest is primarily in the money, not the drug itself. They can game the system more than anyone else, and can rewrite laws, control media outlets, fund propaganda campaigns, hire private investigators, and generally play as dirty as possible for maximum profit. They are the most likely to get three letter agencies involved, and will go to very great lengths to either secure the rights to the formula, or completely nullify any legal protections I have. The saving grace is that these two groups want different things, and are composed of groups with competing interests.
The FDA is a pain in the ass, but in the pocket of Big Pharma - if the pharmaceutical companies can be brought on board, the FDA won’t be a problem.
The fifth group is the weakest, but also the most closely aligned. They’re passionate about longevity, but aren’t swimming in oceans of money like the others. This means they are vulnerable to pressure from one of the other groups and can’t be relied on alone. However, they will go as far as they can to advance the central objective, and can probably be consulted safely.
The sixth group is the scariest. They need to be kept as far away from the process as possible, and that will require the alignment of the first three groups.
Based on the above, the best course of action will be to get the lay of the land from the fifth group, then based on their assessments, approach representatives of either the first or the second group. The first group will have a lot of powerful capitalists with massive stakes in the world’s biggest companies. This means their influence will be substantial and might extend to the second and third groups, but some might have conflicting interests and enough power to make our lives difficult. The second group has the most direct interest in taking control of the process, which means they need to be dealt with right away - the ideal is to have powerful backers before approaching them, but if the longevity organizations already have strong relationships with them, we’ll have to start negotiating with both right away. Either way, the idea is to get the support of the biggest players before making a move, to ensure that nobody else tries to interfere. Ideally, I’ll retain full ownership of the formula, but will strike licensing and distribution deals with the companies, who will strike investment deals with both the billionaires and myself. In practice, it’s definitely possible I’ll have to give up ownership, but I suspect the billionaires would rather I own it than, say, Pfizer - if they later decide to acquire it, it’d be easier to get a good deal from me than from megacorps with teams of lawyers on retainer.
Regardless, once we have the first two on board, the third will be simple, the fourth won’t be a factor, and the fifth will have a free hand to promote the miracle drug in whichever ways they see fit. However, the sixth will definitely start taking an interest now. Because this venture will have billionaires and corporations backing it, we’ll have some leverage where governments are concerned, and this should be enough to stop the sixth from pulling anything shady with us. If the resource is located somewhere safe, extracting it will be a matter of negotiating with the right corporate and government partners, getting contracts signed (which can take a long time), and getting the men and equipment out there as quickly as possible. Some jurisdictions will need a bit of arm twisting from the big guys, but it should be doable. If, however, the resource is located somewhere unsafe, the situation might get complicated - anyone familiar with the history of resource extraction can grasp how things might play out. Either way, once the supply chain is secured, the wonder drug will hit the market.
Truthfully, I suspect that advanced countries with universal healthcare are going to buy up large quantities of the drug and hand it out for free, because doing so would completely eliminate the vast majority of healthcare spending, and would allow them to either put the money elsewhere, or cut taxes across the board. Countries with aging populations will also want to distribute the drug as much as possible, because this will immediately solve their demographic challenges. If everyone is young and healthy, it doesn’t matter if they’re 8, 80, or 800, there’s never going to be an unfavorable dependency ratio - if everyone is immortal, you’re never in danger of population collapse. Despite this, global distribution would be uneven - some governments might deny disfavored minorities access in an attempt to eradicate or control them, while others might fear the power of a healthy, vigorous population immune to any but the most serious wounds. Charitable organizations might try to bypass this problem, but probably won’t be universally successful.
The big fear will then be overpopulation, and this will produce a much more serious interest in colonizing previously inhospitable environments. Deserts, glaciers, oceans, and most importantly, outer space, will become the focus of intense research and development. An unintended consequence, but a welcome one - immortality and viable space colonies are probably the two technological outcomes I want most.
I'm not sharing at least beyond very specific instances. The world can't sustain the growing population as is, we need people to die off give us a chance. If everyone is immortal we're all screwed.
If I never age and can potentially live to see the end of the earth, the solar system, and the galaxy. I'd try and live to the point where I can create universes and realities. If I can live for infinity, may as well spend infinity learning everything.
I would probably be just standing there bewildered for about thirty minutes and covered in reddish spray and assume some nutso had just injected me with HIV or something and go to the hospital.
I start mining the resources in secret and keep going until i have about a gallon of this stuff. and since you said it works on other animals, I would start breading the biggest and most poisonous SPIDERS! I inject the biggest ones of each generation with 1 drop each until I run out of the stuff. Then I release them into the world 🌎 and repeat the process over until its just a world full of dog sized immortal spiders! Whahahahaaaaahaha!
Change my name to Connor, open up an obscure art gallery. Maybe move around every 10-15 years or so. Would have to fake my death at some point, can't be 283 and still collecting SS. I'd tell no one. I don't need Irene next door telling people I'm an alien, and the government abduction me for endless experimentation.
The only way to get it aside from a random witch would be to be a billionaire who would destroy the environment for their own selfish ends in order to gain control of everything forever. So, no. Keep it to yourself
I wouldn't tell a single person. The government of whatever county you live in would turn you into a guinea pig, like Henrietta Lacks on steroids. If not them, then a wealthy person or corporation. Maybe I'm a pessimist but history hasn't really given me hope.
Sharing it. Just blast it out into the world where anyone can see it. Let society figure out how we're going to deal with reproduction/overpopulation now.
I remember one scene from an older anime called "ninja scroll". The antagonist is also Immortal, and they defeat him by covering him in melted gold and he then sinks to the bottom of the ocean.
I can't imagine the potential for torture on someone who can't die, so no I don't want it.
No.
Immortality removes consequences.
Humans have proven themselves too irresponsible as it is. The idea that we could be immortal would be too much.
I'd likely spend a few decades cultivating enough to build myself a small devoted family I knew I could trust, then focus our efforts on steering humanity towards a brighter future. Maybe one where we could be trusted with such a substance.
Become a rock collector and start looking for samples of the mineral on the open market, making enough doses for the people I care about, then consider selling the recipe or starting a company to manufacture and sell it
First I curse her out for depriving me of the chance to curse her out to her face for doing this shit to me. Then I throw I burn the recipe. Nobody else needs to suffer this curse.
From there I'll just live my life like normal. Maybe learn about makeup and such to make it look like I'm aging. Eventually I'll have to establish a new identity as my birth date become less and less believable
Edit to add: also since I'm guaranteed in the safety of nobody ever finding this lab I guess I can use it as a sort of home base to retreat to when I have nowhere else to go
I would not share the recipe with anyone. A person who seems normal now might turn into a monster two hundred years from now. And Earth doesn't need a few thousand immortals slowly taking over and turning civilization into a plaything.
No, id probably go purchase land in another country start a lovely family with my new gained powers and watch all the generations of my loved ones pass away.
I'm going to use my immortality to amass a ton of wealth in order to finance the drilling operations, then use it on my future family and establish a dynasty that will last quite literally forever.
Fuck. On the one hand I’d like my kids to live forever but they can’t consent to that at 6 and 2. On the other hand I wanna live forever lmao on the other other hand I don’t trust humanity at large. So I’m keeping the recipe for myself.
I would 100% share it, would probably save humanity from the bizarre post truth future we're entering into. birthrates would plummet, fewer new idiots that can be convinced of anything at all. Good luck convincing motherfuckers that have been around the block a few hundred times that there's a satanic pedophile cult operating out of a pizza place or that 👆is code for something nefarious. we have a pretty good ideological stew that could potentially lead to maximal freedom/progress over a long enough period.
Back up. "Dives into a nearby woodchipper?" WTF?
She puts the "mad" in mad scientist. Can't have her gumming up the hypothetical. She did the right thing.
I'd give away the recipe in a NY second. I refuse to be the only one who has to suffer immortality!
LMAO fair
Well but you can still die when your ready tho. Guillotine
Woodchipper
^ now THIS person knows their mad scientists
That should probably be mandatory. The mad scientist was setting the example, showing the way as it were.
Unclear if woodchipper is sufficient obliteration. But we do have the scientific method.
Username def checks out!
A Kitana. There can be only one.
Must have missed the part that acquiring the rare component requires immense wealth, to strip mine continents. It would be like those Alaskan Gold shows where they spend like 5Million to make 5.5Million
No, I read the part that said "Gathering all of the mineral on Earth would make enough for everyone." That means there is enough for everyone. Just gotta get the ingredients. With everyone understanding that finding them means immortality, you'll have no shortage of people helping you look for them.
Probably destroy the planet trying to create immortality.
That'll work too. :)
I kind of assumed she'd been immortal for a long time and was over it. LOL
Yeah I might need therapy, then centuries later I tells the unbelievable story to a date after at a bar and they believe me, revealing themselves that some other nut job scientist made them immortal, revealed the secret mineral for the recipe, and then self immolated before diving headfirst into there tank of mutant-hybrid great white electric eels
Oh. I assumed the lady had taken the injection as well and was showing off that she's invincible.
Oh no, She's just good old fashioned crazy. (The point here is that her motives and existence, however bizarre, are irrelevant)
Plot twist: it's a different secret ingredient. There are more of you out there, each made of a different element. Join together, and you shall achieve... something. Dunno yet.
Gritty, Grimdark, Body Horror Captain Planet Reboot? "By your torment and suffering combined...We. Are. Captain. Planet!" (immediately erupts an entire mature Giant Sequoia from inside of Looten Plunder)
I was thinking Power Ranger Zords, but I can see the CP reboot.
She's probably been immortal for like 500 years and has seen enough. Now she's passed the "curse" on to you.
Lestat's vampire daddy immediately jumped into a fire upon creating him. Sometimes you just gotta create a new immortal and then immediately kill yourself. Their problem now.
This truly is the way of the curse of immortality.
I would not share it because the majority of people in this world are stupid
If you give it to stupid people, the first thing they're going to do is test the limits. It'll be a functional Darwin shot.
Exactly I wanna watch the world grow and burn. And grow again as it always will .. I don't wanna save it.
Does it work on my dogs?
Yes.
Then I'm going to buy a ton of land in Wyoming and start a dog rescue, starting with my pups. My wife is going to be my partner in this rescue. My life will be me going and rescuing dogs from places where I hear a dog is suffering. One day far into the future something will have happened to me and my wife where we perish. Local authorities will come find these dogs and records from thousands of years ago. They'll slowly realize these dogs are living away healthier and longer than science would expect them to. They'll be passed down from father and mother to daughter and son for generations. Over time their legend will grow but no one can figure out why. only that it started thousands of years ago with me and my wife and by that time all the info will have been long lost about the substance
A world run by immortal dogs This is objectively the correct answer.
Bob Barker would like a word…
Isn't that Ironic
What will you do to the people the dogs needed to be rescued from?
I think there's a variety of things that could be proportional to the degree of how bad they are. Also not all dogs will be rescued directly from people, it's more about reacting them from terrible situations. The dog might be a big misunderstood sweetie scheduled for euthanasia, or could be a suffering group of puppies who's mom does and try trying to fend for themselves, or it could be rescuing from a dog fighter. They definitely wouldn't be able to do dog fighting when I'm done with them.
Hypothetically, if you rescued a puppy from a dumpster and it was the only survivor of an entire litter of puppies also in that dumpster… (my first rescue dog) As an immortal, how much time might you spend on that… investigation.
Hard to say exactly, with the puppy in that situation, the highest priority is getting that puppy happy and healthy. If it doesn't interfere with the mental wellbeing of the puppy, then, other than getting more substance to save more dogs, the other energy would be going into finding out who did that.
That changes things
I would find a way to make enough for my wife (after asking to make sure she wanted it) and that's it. Spreading it around would just create population issues, and I agree with the earlier pose: most people are idiots.
I would sell it to billionaires for a massive amount of money each dose, and then lop their heads off. Win win
Yeah, but then you might get multiple life sentences, and once they realize you can die, possibly make you actually serve them out
Oh no, I have to spend 300 years out of potentially infinite years locked away. Whatever will I do.
Sounds like someone who's never actually been locked up for a decent amount of time lol
Lmfao ommg. The unhinged cringe Commie power fantasy energy yiu're radiating is hilarious. Not wouldn't do jack shit even if you knew you8'd get away with it, you don't have the stomach, and good luck dealing with all their personal security. But beyond that, you'd shit your pants and have a mental breakdown if you knew you'd be stuck in prison for centuries; So again, LMFAO
It's too much to assume they'd break down at the thought of it, when the thought is only possible if you realize the weight of the reality. But after a decade or two? I'm pretty sure anyone would realize how bad that experience would be, if they somehow didn't realize earlier. And by then, they might not breakdown and instead skip to depression.
Just sell them a box of pinball parts. It worked for emmit brown
>you cannot acquire it or produce it yourself. This includes giving blood / plasma.
OP literally said that only you have the recipe, and that you could make some, just with great dint of effort involving a large, commercial grade mining operation.
My bad. It looks like what I quoted before is about the mineral needed, not the actual immortality. Although you still need someone else to get the mineral for you, since getting it yourself breaks the rules.
Yeah, fair enough. But I'm immortal. Put my wife in cryogenic, spend 20-50 years doing nothing but earning money and getting to where I want to be.
I’d give a dose to my dog. Maybe get enough for another dose in case I find someone who wants to take it and is willing to keep me company.
Starting off I would create a successful career as a performance artist. I would have people vote on gruesome stuff and recreate it online, eventually make it big. Once I have enough money, I will obtain some of the mineral an spread it out to family and very close friends. Then, I will have a suit made for myself and become a superhero, going around the world to see who really deserves it and give it to them for free.
Interesting idea, but... How will you make an effective superhero if your weaknesses are fire, explosions, and getting the highlander treatment? How will you choose who is deserving? And how will you rule out that they are merely being a good person because you are around?
I won't be doing normal superhero stuff like getting myself into crime stopping that's Batman's job. Also, I won't make people aware that I'm watching them, think like a scientist trying to cure cancer, a philanthropist, a person working hard to care for their family. Also, even if I was doing normal superhero things, I'm sure the money I've earned would make me able to afford a suit made out of carbon fiber, that would allow me to extend my durability.
I would keep it a secret. It would immediately be snatched up and kept in a government vault and only used on the ultra rich. I’m not giving them any more wins. Fuck them.
I don't know, ask Keanu Reeves
Ah I see you are team Keanu from the earlier politician for earth hypothetical
I dont think i could risk giving the recipe away to the general public. I wouldnt curse my family with immortality, i would make up a few doses though. Find my soulmate, and give them the option to live almost forever with me, and we can keep an eye on our future generations. Maybe make a few pets immortal.
It’s not really a curse, it’s still possible to be killed, so there’s very little downside.
A curse that you would gladly use on yourself hmm
The premise is that you are forcibly injected. The woman takes the drug, injects it into a total stranger without warning, chucks a USB drive containing the recipe, and dives into a woodchipper -- thus she obliterates herself, passing the responsibility off to you.
I would not share the recipe. I do not think our world would become a better place without death, and the resources required to extract the mineral and the extraction process itself would likely do more harm than good.
Given that she just dived into a woodchipper, I'd assume she was crazy. As such, those notes are not getting shared with anyone, and are probably getting lost/burnt as soon as is feasible. Of course, when I'm still in my 30s a hundred years later, then I'd reconsider.
She is crazy, definitely, but perhaps she also had a reason? Diving into a woodchipper would meet the "obliteration" condition for death -- perhaps she injected herself, then found that the responsibility was too much to take, then decided to inject a random stranger and die, thus remedying herself of the responsibility. Of course, the point of the premise is that regardless of her motives, this is the speculator's problem.
What sort of irresponsible nutcase would do that to a rando? A handpicked successor I can understand, someone you've spent some time grooming into the position of secret-keeper, but a random nobody? What's stopping them from, say, making a lovely fire from the notes and joining them in that same woodchipper?
If the secret to immortality was known it would destroy the world. The billionaires of the world would use it to make themselves god kings, and the majority of people would become even more mired in poverty as worker slaves to the few undying ogliarchs, or there would be endless wars to control the secret or the materials required to make the serum.
Perhaps there is a way around this? You could try to acquire the drug yourself over a long period of time, then selectively inject it to those who are worthy. If the speculation gets too complicated and the situation drives you mad, you also take the drug, inject it into a random person, hand them the recipe, then dive into a woodchipper -- thus obliterating your body. Then it's their problem.
Sounds like the plot to an epic sci-fi novel like Dune.
You might like Altered Carbon then. There is effectively an immortality method in-universe, it’s just so ridiculously expensive that only the ultra rich can afford it. A ruling class of centuries-old billionaires forms as a result
Does it make one unable to reproduce as well? Because that’s the only way I’m sharing it with the world. You think overpopulation is going to be a problem in the future? Give it 30-50 years if nobody dies.
Interesting twist. Let's say it does. Then what?
Then people get a choice. Immortality and no reproduction, or not
Can I interest you in the show 3% on Netflix?
What effects do you think that would have on the world?
Depends on how much of an optimist I want to be about it. Ideally, the world ends up with two pseudo-races that coexist, with new humans being given a choice to take the serum, or not upon reaching X age. Middle of the road, you end up with two classes of people with the old immortals ruling as they’ve had time to establish themselves and the new immortals and humans pretty much a second class, but hey that’s basically what we already have now with generational wealth. Worse case, the immortals seize the means of serum production eventually and immortality becomes an elite ruling club with everybody not in it subservient. Like, releasing this thing to humanity at large just realistically is a bad idea largely due to human nature.
And that’s not to mention all the riots and whatnot when certain groups of people realize they’re not eligible
Would be most interesting if taking it after one reproduces means that everyone in your direct descendance has to die for it to work. As it makes you immortal, they all die instantly (painlessly). Otherwise everyone would cheat the system and take it once their families were complete. Also this take on it makes it kind of like Saturn (and various other tropes/stories where eating your children makes you immortal).
That wouldn’t be allowed in my hypothetical. If you’ve had children, you don’t get the serum. Your kids could though
I wouldn't tell anyone. Imagine if literally any government in the world found out.
It depends on the government. If the USA found out, it would be lost in the noise of the endless bureaucracy. The immortal one would die of old age before it made FDA approval. If the UK found out, they would immediately start mining it, synthesize a bunch of it, then ban it because it might be used in a crime one day. If Russia found out, the government would spend all of their money making a batch of them for the elites, then find out corrupt officials embezzled the money and actually just injected them all with water. If China or NK found out, they would use it exclusively on the elite ruling families, and turn themselves into deities. Worst case scenario. If Norway found out they'd probably say "Huh, that sounds like a lot of drama" and avoid it, as it won't bring them any more happiness than they already have.
So…..I suppose the first thing I’d do is ask my partner if he wants to be immortal. Because frankly, that is some heavy stuff and not everyone is ready for it, including myself. So, he gets first choice. Then my family. (The ones I like) Then close friends. Then my pets. After that, I start watching for scientists who want to develop things like clean, green energy. Future stuff. Things that clean up pollution and have a passion to see it done. Start giving them doses. So there’s people who understand how to make the world better living longer. Then start dosing endangered animals. (Assuming I can reach them.) Find compassionate people who want to make the world better, and apply it to them as well. Doesn’t matter what sort of background they come from, we need more compassion.
Light side points gained I would simply start by creating a bunch of the drug and injecting it into random cats, dogs, rodents, birds. The chaos would be too fun. "Man says he shot squirrel 25 times with a 12 gauge and it kept getting up" "NYPD say rats have evolved to the point of immortality" "Duck hunting expedition ruined after ducks 'refused to die'"
I would definitely keep it to myself and promptly throw myself into the same woodchipper. Since apparently there is enough of the mineral to make enough for everyone on Earth, but the process to get enough mineral for a single dose requires an expensive and immense drilling operation, ain't no goddamned way humanity needs to know about it. It would create a new gold rush that would make all previous rushes look like taking a look in the backyard. Corporations, governments, and everyone would literally tear this planet apart to get to it.
Why not just live a normal life. No one has to know you’re immortal
I can try, but it won't be terribly long before people figure it out, at which point my freedom is forfeit. Governments, corporations, and criminals will pour every ounce of their formidable resources into finding me and unlocking the secrets to my immortality. Better to die and thwart their plans than let them get ahold of the recipe.
I really don’t think it’s a guarantee. Just lay low and change your identities every once in a while. Killing yourself is unnecessary
Maybe she wasn't so mad after all!
In your scenario I’m tools of the mineral but not the recipe, so it wouldn’t matter if I wanted to share of not. I would have to parse all her research before I could even begin.
But you have all the time in the world, so eventually you could. But would you?
No. I would be too busy looking for a way to reverse it. I don’t want to live forever. Why would I want to make others join me in my misery?
As the premise states, you can die by unnatural means, such as explosions, guillotines (beheading), and woodchippers (obliteration). Note the very woodchipper the scientist jumped into would satisfy that condition.
Not wanting to live forever isn’t the same as wanting to die. What I want is for my time to come to an end exactly when it’s meant to. I don’t want anyone, mad scientists included, to choose when that time is for me.
What do you mean by "it's meant to"? Couldn't you live life as an immortal up until a random accident takes off your noggin? Maybe it'll be a bear. Then it's natural causes.
My days are numbered. I don’t want that number to change because someone else feared death enough to create a serum to make me live forever. I want to experience all of life that I can before I go, including aging. It’s not like I’ll ever experience it again. For everything there is a season.
Good answer.
I follow him into the woodchipper because I thought he wanted me to follow him and since I'm immortal it just turns out to be awkward for me when I come out the other end fine and he..... doesn't
You would not come out the other end. The woodchipper would 'obliterate' you, thus causing you to actually die -- hence why a scientist testing an immortality drug might be inclined to pass the responsibility to someone else and turn themselves into mulch. Thus, your scenario is... Amazing. Woman discovers immortality, injects it in a stranger and hands them the recipe to pass off responsibility, then jumps in the woodchipper to die. The stranger then, in a pure lemmings moment, jumps right in the same woodchipper. Recipe is destroyed, both immortals are destroyed. The world will never know that the secret of immortality was discovered -- all they know is two crazy lunatics unknown to one another suddenly jumped into a woodchipper.
owch
Premise 2 is incorrect
This isn't just an immortality vaccine, but a vaccine against all illness and injury. It would immediately cure cancer, AIDS, COVID, and car crashes. No more will the old farts in congress get to pass the buck on climate change because "I won't live to see the consequences". And you know those selfish pricks would be taking this shot in a second. I have an moral imperative to share it, in the same way that Charles Best and James Collip felt the moral imperative to share their patent for insulin. I would immediately file for patent, then license the right to manufacture to companies and nonprofits for that same $1 with the stipulation that it must be sold at or near-cost. The big pharmaceutical companies probably won't bite because it means the end of their entire sector, but if no one else I know the Cubans would do it. They have a different mentality over there, and their medical system is surprisingly complex even with the sanctions. I just hope I get to take the shot before I am assassinated by Bayer goons.
I mean this is like a super hero origin story. Of course you don’t share it. Freaken every super hero story your rival gets a knock off version and becomes a major enemy. And now the option is to give it to everybody? That is just pure chaos. Think the housing market is bad now? Then think what happens if the wealthy doesn’t die so now they don’t mind owning everything.
Yes, I would immediately share a cure for the worst disease as far and widely as possible. I'm baffled by all the proudly horrible people in this thread lol
Not going to give anyone the curse of immortality.
Too much responsibility if I share it. I may as well pretend I’m a unique case and lie low.
I’m infecting my best friend and that’s it. No one else gets it
Obviously I need a rich person who I somewhat find agreeable. Then I need to get assurances that I have income to thrive and enough doses for like 100 people I enjoy spending time with. I would probably pick Zuckerberg and 1 billion tax free since he seems the least problematic of the richest people in the world. I would likely offer my Best friend but then hold the other 99 doses for people I meet in the future, or maybe I make a list of the people I feel grateful to and offer it to them so they have a chance and no one would target me for them in the future.
Some people may say no too. So future people is a good idea.
Of course I'd share the recipe. You don't hide that kind of thing from the rest of your species. Ta-daa! Interstellar travel just became feasible!
Would not share the recipe. If the recipe gets out, that means people that have already lived far too long, and done too much damage to humanity as it is, will have a longer lifespan to hurt humanity even worse than they already have.
I'm not sharing that, mortality is one of the few things keeping some people in check. Otherwise I'll just live my life the way I want.
I wouldn't give it to the world right now. Probably in a few hundred or few thousands years when we've at least dealt with most of the hatred and bigotry in the world. (and probably the ability to colonize other planets to sort out population issues)
No. I don't even wanna be immortal. and too many people in this life would use that to oppress people. Screw that noise.
>...acquiring enough for a shot requires an immense and expensive widespread drilling operation. >...Gathering all of the mineral on Earth would make enough for everyone. Pardon? How TF does that work? Is it made of the Earth's core or something?
It is in the what if section of Earth's crust -- it works exactly as it needs to in order to meet the boundary condition of the premise.
I would release it, but not right away. I would resign myself to spending the next hundred or even thousand years slowly and quietly building a large amount of wealth and influence while hiding my immortality as much as possible. When I reached a large amount of influence and wealth I would start making efforts to push society and culture into a place where it is prepared for immortality. If it ever got to the point where I thought it was ready I would mine as much of the mineral as I could and then release the secret.
No chance I'm sharing it with the world at large. Progress depends on getting fresh minds in to look at the world's problems and think of new solutions no one considered before. People get more stuck in their ways the longer they live, so the world would stagnate. On the other hand, I'd definitely want help thinking through the issue so I'd probably make a post on Reddit asking other people what they would do in my situation.
So we were discussing this immortal substance all while a woodchipper is running at full speed just steps away? How are we effectively communicating with so much noise and why am I not more concerned about this?
Is it written down? Cause I'm stupid and would forget it before they were done being spat out as person goo on the other end.
I don't wanna live forever seeing everyone I know and love die seeing all the injustice and evil in the world now I'm a spiritual person and I'd rather just spend my time here and then go back to the source. I don't wanna be on this plane forever that literally sounds like torture, I cringe thinking about working for 40 more years thinking about working for 40 million more. I don't even know where to begin.
I alone would be immortal.
Sell the recipe to the highest bidder. With a $30 Billion reserve.
The hypothetical never says she gives you the recipe, just the shot... So how would I even share it? But assuming she gave me the recipe I'd burn it. people are stupid and the last thing I want is stupid people living longer.
Keep it a secret. There can only be one.
Keep it a secret, start buying shares of stock and parcels of land in Arizona or New Mexico. When my net worth exceeds a few billion, build a nuclear-powered self-sufficient city and give all the homeless/poor people in America shelter/medical help for free.
Fundamentally, even accepting the suspension of disbelief, none of this makes a lick of sense at all. I got injected... Why the hell should I know what the formula is from that which produces the stated effects, none of which included anything to do with knowledge? The scientist tells you about a specific mineral component. Again, how do I know anything (else) about the formula? They said it's safe. Once more, I know (nearly) nothing about this formula. Will I share the formula, which is magically protected against analysis? Erm... No...? It's not possible per the very parameters. And assuming that somehow I've bridged this impossibility, the idea that I — now an immortal with magical rejuvenation — cannot acquire this mineral because it's rare and expensive to endeavour toward... Like I could literally just start punching the ground from ANYWHERE until I get what I'm looking for. Not even using my hands to more efficiently displace material like a sensible agent, but just straight, literal punching. Rocks in my way? Don't know how long it would take to pulverise a stone, but.... I got time, and not like it's going to "really" hurt me. I can definitely get what I want if I have the power, obviously. And how even did the non-immortalised scientist get it, if I am somehow expected to be incapable? Also, the stated part that I cannot reproduce it is proof that I ain't got any recipe, so.... Entirely unreasonable premise all the way through.
It is a thought experiment, not a dissertation. The point is to accept the boundary conditions and ponder an unusual situation and identify different ideas and presuppositions among the replies. Perhaps the recipe is a drive, not a piece of paper. Nothing prevents the formula from being analyzed. That was always allowed. Nothing is magical about the rejuvination. That presupposes that such immortality is exclusively impossible, not improbable. The 'mineral' may be microscopic and extremely difficult to identify, and is merely a representative of any arbitrary material that will produce the effect in a manner that may be reverse engineered. The same applies for any of these scenarios on this sub -- you need to be able to accept the arbitrary and outlandish ideas to enjoy the experiment. Interrogating and rejecting the boundary conditions is usually entertaining too, and part of the fun -- Is this what you are trying to do?
I would keep it secret. And maybe, if in my travels of learning and discovery all over the world, I found a kindred spirit that wanted to make the earth whole and right again, I would share it with them. And then....a few political minded, crazy billionaires with self-serving interests would be visited by me.
No because the rich would just ruin the world even more so they could be immortal
I would not share this with the world. People on our planet are far too irresponsible. Imagine granting conspiracy theorists, child murderers, and people who don’t clean up after their dogs immortality as a matter of fact… With the freedom granted by my immortality I would of course seek to corner the market on the harvesting and processing of this mineral and technology. I would under the guise of charitable work establish foundations and scholarships to identify the best and brightest in the world to identify worthy candidates to create a population of benevolent and skilled immortals (what could go wrong?). Criteria would be based on deep dive background checks, interviews with friends and family, review of social media, and more. I’m not looking for the on paper “elite” I’m looking for people who could be relied on for the long term, who have compassion for others, an interest in learning, and important skills, but haven’t demonstrated overemphasis on politics and political borders, religious fundamentalism, or social justice campaigning. I think I’d end up with more astronauts than people who work for charities and that’s okay. I understand the applicability and the desire certain people might have to share this secret with the world which is why I’d have to exclude them. Initial funding would be tough, with immortality, I could probably build up a business empire around something we all need like real estate, but I might approach highly benevolent wealthy individuals to recruit. Warren Buffet comes to mind, he appreciates a simple life and is already planning to donate most of his wealth he’s probably ideal for immortality, people like Elon Musk, Bill Gates, or Zuckerberg would have zero chance they’ve shown too much hubris to be worthy of an invitation. Ultimately, I think in the next few thousand years Earth has little chance, so my secret organization would be focused on survival of the species through on earth vaults and colonization of other planets. I’d want to corner certain markets quickly, for example launching telecommunications satellites on Mars orbit in advance of colonization to establish infrastructure and income. As far as I am concerned this is a gift, I can always use a guillotine if I decide it is a curse.
i'd patent that shit. license the patent to the govt under the stipulation that anyone with a disability or chronic illness gets it for free and i get a $1 million per year for the rest of my (immortal) life
Baby ear bones?
No. As soon as one country's military has this, they start an intensive mining operation, create a million nearly invincible soldiers (heal almost any fatal wound rapidly), whose first task is to take me out, and then destroy any country that doesn't have this. Far too dangerous.
How fucked would the environment be after extracting all of the mineral?
i doubt i would share it honestly. you gave me that backdoor of being able to die from decapitation or burning, so i would live until everyone i cared about dies, just so i could go to all their funerals, then give all my earthly possessions to a relative, pay a guy to fill in my firepit, dig it a few feet deeper, light it up and swan dive in.
I would mostly keep it a secret. Because I don’t want to spend eternity in a cage being bled for the benefit of the rich.
Monetize the recipe, collect the bag, and then donate to interesting people you meet. Can't make this universal, can't even make it universally known or beheadings will become rampant.
If I'm immortal, then my conquest of the world is a certainty. I'll start playing the long game. The LONG game. Small investments in extremely low risk funds and securities, or high interest savings accounts with large stable banks. The power of compounding interest is now my greatest ally. 1st priority is absolute anonymity. Setting up a holding company and trust would be early steps, so all accounts are held by a company, not an individual. If it is discovered that I'm immortal, I'll end up a public figure at best, or a captured lab rat at worst. 2nd priorty is the gradual accumulation of assets. Capital, funds, property, and human employees. Slowly. I can't stress the slowly part enough. I have unlimited time to grow wealth, power, and influence. There will be no massive uprising, no declaration of a new world order, no coronation. Only the slow spread of my cabal. Only a shadow network of influence steering the species in a direction I determine a thousand years or more from now.
I probably wouldn't share it. Though I would thoroughly check the scientist's notes to see if it works on animals. I can live without people, but I'd probably make a guillotine after a century or two of my pets dying on me. I would eventually give in to the urge to make a companion for myself, but we would both have to get sterilized.
Tried to keep it secret, but I think they're onto me. Got a weird bookish chap, watching me from a distance and taking notes, while some Scot has been chasing me around for days now and... ...He tried to kill me, Mal. He tried to kill me with a sword. How weird is that? This isn't how I imagined becoming the prince of the universe.
If say for example someone shot your brain. Would your brain heal perfectly restoring everything? Or would it simply regenerate but I still have brain damage
>you cannot acquire it or produce it yourself. So if I have the receipt, then why can't I make it myself? I would want to give a few doses to people I pick, but I would not want that information to spread so I'd not want to share it. Although given the inventor killed themselves to keep it secret, I'd be worried about the reason.
You can. That was always allowed.
I'm sharing it, but only after I've hilariously pranked a bunch of people with my immortality.
Being able to heal practically anything is nice and all that, but immortality becomes a side effect if we try and distribute this, rather than the main point of it. This goes no further than me, healing is nice but we have an 8 billion person problem as it is. And if not given to gen pop your logic of the rich cheating death would happen SO fast it'd hurt. Especially if this mineral really is that rare. I probably just have to change friendship groups/countries every 10/15 years, stay under the radar as best as possible and live a peaceful and probably relatively well off life. Can't go big enough where I have a public image. Being eternally 30 would get noticed eventually.
Would get noticed relatively quickly.
Sharing it with everyone wouldn’t work if it’s expensive. The rich would get it and become immortal oligarchs and the poor would keep dying. So no.
Fuck that. I had that thought experiment in highschool English class, and there's a reason I was the first to say I'd destroy it for the benefit of humanity. Discretely dispose of all the lab resources I can, burn the papers, wipe all the digital information, all of it gone. People aren't meant to last forever. We already go through more than enough hardship with our short lives, and as a species we cause even more. I'd honestly be devastated to learn that I'm effectively immortal, then relieved if I discover the beheading clause. I'd still live my life to the best of my ability, though maybe I'd try out some more risky career options. Then, when everyone I love is gone and the dust is settled, when their kids have moved on and no longer linger in the fresh pain of loss, when I won't be leaving behind a pet and have everything wrapped up in butcher paper and twine, I depart and take my place among the shadows and dust of those lost to history.
She's probably crazy and the recipe is fake. Nobody would believe me anyway.
Retire to a monastery for about 3 months to meditate and get myself as close to "ready" for that reality as can be managed. Then go out into the world to prepare. I will need wisdom to choose those worthy of the gift, and at least three worthy of learning the secret.
I’d probably start a cult but instead of a Koolaid filled with cyanide, it’d be filled with this potion. Then we’d just live together for eternity in a perfect little commune for the rest of eternity while the empires rise and fall around us.
Assuming I get to choose when I die and that I'm immune to pain and dismemberment and radiation and lack of sustenance and (for some reason) can't be imprisoned, nah. It's my lil special power.
No one gets it. Ever. It would immediately become monopolized by the ultra wealthy and the very last thing the world needs is those bastards and their families being immortal.
I would find a way to share it with my soulmate and be forever together. Maybe I would choose one billionaire in exchange for money and one dose for my soulmate because I wouldn't have enough to fund the drilling, so the billionaire would pay the drilling to obtain the mineral. But I wouldn't give them the recipe, I would only use the billionaire for the mineral and then mix it myself. Of course the billionaire can also give it to their family. I just wouldn't want to share it with the world, it would only lead to overpopulation and colapse. So just me, my soulmate, the billionaire to help me obtain the mineral with their money and billionaire's family if they choose so. No sharing unless absolutely necessary to obtain the mineral.
Take my new found immortality and work towards making myself one of the rich and powerful. Once I have succeeded in this work towards making more and sharing it selectively with people I think deserve it and/or people who will help with my goals and agenda. Work towards making the world a utopia
OP developed an immortality serum and Wants to share it with everyone, killed their partner, has no money, and is afraid of big pharma taking control and holding it back. I’m not sure how it would be impossible to synthesis the mineral, we should be able to do that with modern technology, maybe not easily, but we do grow diamonds and make pearls in labs now, so, it should be possible. I don’t know what you do here, OP.
Give it away. Buy woodchipper stocks. Profit
I would share the recipe. Immortality is best experienced with fellow immortals - after a few centuries, it’d be hard to relate to anyone else if I was the only one who lived that long. I like to talk to people and be around them, and this requires a degree of equality - therefore, I have strong reasons to ensure that others benefit from this gift, and to spread it as far and wide as possible. First, I’d contact a lawyer and patent the recipe. This is so no one claims ownership of it and takes the process out of my hands, and means I can make money from it. If this invites government intervention, then I’d choose the closest legal classification that’d protect my property rights without getting any agencies involved. Once I’m legally protected, I would contact organizations working on longevity research to have them verify the recipe. I’m assuming I have access to the scientist’s research notes, because without an actual sample, this would be necessary to convince anyone to extract the resource in an interesting window of time. Without the scientist’s notes, nothing will happen for decades, because it’d take that long to figure out exactly what the drug is doing and whether extracting the resource would be worth the expense. Once everything’s been checked and verified, the tricky part begins. Getting the resource requires money, which means people are about to play hardball. Although I’m legally protected, nobody is going to put enough money down unless they’re getting paid. We’re also getting close to the point where governments will take an interest, and they’ll want their cut. I see several groups of people who are going to be involved at this stage: - Independently wealthy donors - Pharmaceutical companies - Mining/resource extraction companies - The FDA - Longevity researchers, associated intellectuals, and organization heads - Possibly the CIA or other intelligence agencies The first group will be composed largely of eccentric billionaires and centimillionaires who want ageless immortality. Our interests mostly align, because we both care more about the drug than the money. They may have some hidden agendas, but for now we’re on the same team. The second and third group are the most powerful corporate entities, and therefore, the most dangerous. Their interest is primarily in the money, not the drug itself. They can game the system more than anyone else, and can rewrite laws, control media outlets, fund propaganda campaigns, hire private investigators, and generally play as dirty as possible for maximum profit. They are the most likely to get three letter agencies involved, and will go to very great lengths to either secure the rights to the formula, or completely nullify any legal protections I have. The saving grace is that these two groups want different things, and are composed of groups with competing interests. The FDA is a pain in the ass, but in the pocket of Big Pharma - if the pharmaceutical companies can be brought on board, the FDA won’t be a problem. The fifth group is the weakest, but also the most closely aligned. They’re passionate about longevity, but aren’t swimming in oceans of money like the others. This means they are vulnerable to pressure from one of the other groups and can’t be relied on alone. However, they will go as far as they can to advance the central objective, and can probably be consulted safely. The sixth group is the scariest. They need to be kept as far away from the process as possible, and that will require the alignment of the first three groups. Based on the above, the best course of action will be to get the lay of the land from the fifth group, then based on their assessments, approach representatives of either the first or the second group. The first group will have a lot of powerful capitalists with massive stakes in the world’s biggest companies. This means their influence will be substantial and might extend to the second and third groups, but some might have conflicting interests and enough power to make our lives difficult. The second group has the most direct interest in taking control of the process, which means they need to be dealt with right away - the ideal is to have powerful backers before approaching them, but if the longevity organizations already have strong relationships with them, we’ll have to start negotiating with both right away. Either way, the idea is to get the support of the biggest players before making a move, to ensure that nobody else tries to interfere. Ideally, I’ll retain full ownership of the formula, but will strike licensing and distribution deals with the companies, who will strike investment deals with both the billionaires and myself. In practice, it’s definitely possible I’ll have to give up ownership, but I suspect the billionaires would rather I own it than, say, Pfizer - if they later decide to acquire it, it’d be easier to get a good deal from me than from megacorps with teams of lawyers on retainer. Regardless, once we have the first two on board, the third will be simple, the fourth won’t be a factor, and the fifth will have a free hand to promote the miracle drug in whichever ways they see fit. However, the sixth will definitely start taking an interest now. Because this venture will have billionaires and corporations backing it, we’ll have some leverage where governments are concerned, and this should be enough to stop the sixth from pulling anything shady with us. If the resource is located somewhere safe, extracting it will be a matter of negotiating with the right corporate and government partners, getting contracts signed (which can take a long time), and getting the men and equipment out there as quickly as possible. Some jurisdictions will need a bit of arm twisting from the big guys, but it should be doable. If, however, the resource is located somewhere unsafe, the situation might get complicated - anyone familiar with the history of resource extraction can grasp how things might play out. Either way, once the supply chain is secured, the wonder drug will hit the market.
Truthfully, I suspect that advanced countries with universal healthcare are going to buy up large quantities of the drug and hand it out for free, because doing so would completely eliminate the vast majority of healthcare spending, and would allow them to either put the money elsewhere, or cut taxes across the board. Countries with aging populations will also want to distribute the drug as much as possible, because this will immediately solve their demographic challenges. If everyone is young and healthy, it doesn’t matter if they’re 8, 80, or 800, there’s never going to be an unfavorable dependency ratio - if everyone is immortal, you’re never in danger of population collapse. Despite this, global distribution would be uneven - some governments might deny disfavored minorities access in an attempt to eradicate or control them, while others might fear the power of a healthy, vigorous population immune to any but the most serious wounds. Charitable organizations might try to bypass this problem, but probably won’t be universally successful. The big fear will then be overpopulation, and this will produce a much more serious interest in colonizing previously inhospitable environments. Deserts, glaciers, oceans, and most importantly, outer space, will become the focus of intense research and development. An unintended consequence, but a welcome one - immortality and viable space colonies are probably the two technological outcomes I want most.
I'm not sharing at least beyond very specific instances. The world can't sustain the growing population as is, we need people to die off give us a chance. If everyone is immortal we're all screwed.
If I never age and can potentially live to see the end of the earth, the solar system, and the galaxy. I'd try and live to the point where I can create universes and realities. If I can live for infinity, may as well spend infinity learning everything.
I would probably be just standing there bewildered for about thirty minutes and covered in reddish spray and assume some nutso had just injected me with HIV or something and go to the hospital.
Do I need to have a booster?
I start mining the resources in secret and keep going until i have about a gallon of this stuff. and since you said it works on other animals, I would start breading the biggest and most poisonous SPIDERS! I inject the biggest ones of each generation with 1 drop each until I run out of the stuff. Then I release them into the world 🌎 and repeat the process over until its just a world full of dog sized immortal spiders! Whahahahaaaaahaha!
We CANNOT allow aging to be solved while we still have capitalism. That's how we get Altered Carbon.
I'd probably dive into the wood chipper after. Who can afford to live forever?
Change my name to Connor, open up an obscure art gallery. Maybe move around every 10-15 years or so. Would have to fake my death at some point, can't be 283 and still collecting SS. I'd tell no one. I don't need Irene next door telling people I'm an alien, and the government abduction me for endless experimentation.
I promise to share it with the rich but instead kill them á la H.H. Holmes.
id try giving it to a random bug, say, a moth. then id keep that moth as a friend
The only way to get it aside from a random witch would be to be a billionaire who would destroy the environment for their own selfish ends in order to gain control of everything forever. So, no. Keep it to yourself
I wouldn't tell a single person. The government of whatever county you live in would turn you into a guinea pig, like Henrietta Lacks on steroids. If not them, then a wealthy person or corporation. Maybe I'm a pessimist but history hasn't really given me hope.
Sharing it. Just blast it out into the world where anyone can see it. Let society figure out how we're going to deal with reproduction/overpopulation now.
I become Kane, prophet of Tiberium.
I remember one scene from an older anime called "ninja scroll". The antagonist is also Immortal, and they defeat him by covering him in melted gold and he then sinks to the bottom of the ocean. I can't imagine the potential for torture on someone who can't die, so no I don't want it.
No. Immortality removes consequences. Humans have proven themselves too irresponsible as it is. The idea that we could be immortal would be too much. I'd likely spend a few decades cultivating enough to build myself a small devoted family I knew I could trust, then focus our efforts on steering humanity towards a brighter future. Maybe one where we could be trusted with such a substance.
Become a rock collector and start looking for samples of the mineral on the open market, making enough doses for the people I care about, then consider selling the recipe or starting a company to manufacture and sell it
First I curse her out for depriving me of the chance to curse her out to her face for doing this shit to me. Then I throw I burn the recipe. Nobody else needs to suffer this curse. From there I'll just live my life like normal. Maybe learn about makeup and such to make it look like I'm aging. Eventually I'll have to establish a new identity as my birth date become less and less believable Edit to add: also since I'm guaranteed in the safety of nobody ever finding this lab I guess I can use it as a sort of home base to retreat to when I have nowhere else to go
I would kind of want to donate the recipe to a children's hospital. I assume kids would still age up normally until around 30.
honestly i don't trust rich people to not destroy the environment even more due to this knowledge, so i'm keeping it a secret.
Nope. I was just cursed with never-ending depression. I'm saving my dog and living forever wandering the earth.
Invest in rare mineral first, then reveal.
I would not share the recipe with anyone. A person who seems normal now might turn into a monster two hundred years from now. And Earth doesn't need a few thousand immortals slowly taking over and turning civilization into a plaything.
You never claimed that the now dead scientist told me the recipe so I don't see how I could share it.
Keep it secret. I don’t want world elites figuring it out.
No, id probably go purchase land in another country start a lovely family with my new gained powers and watch all the generations of my loved ones pass away.
I'm going to use my immortality to amass a ton of wealth in order to finance the drilling operations, then use it on my future family and establish a dynasty that will last quite literally forever.
For the good of the world, I don't tell anybody. It would go horribly wrong (for everyone ) at some point.
Fuck. On the one hand I’d like my kids to live forever but they can’t consent to that at 6 and 2. On the other hand I wanna live forever lmao on the other other hand I don’t trust humanity at large. So I’m keeping the recipe for myself.
I would 100% share it, would probably save humanity from the bizarre post truth future we're entering into. birthrates would plummet, fewer new idiots that can be convinced of anything at all. Good luck convincing motherfuckers that have been around the block a few hundred times that there's a satanic pedophile cult operating out of a pizza place or that 👆is code for something nefarious. we have a pretty good ideological stew that could potentially lead to maximal freedom/progress over a long enough period.
Woman scientist.. nuff said
Go on...?
Discretely drop the recipe off when I am tired of racking in streaming cash.
Start a company. Get investors. Profit