Do you want to know your death date?

Iw07P2  
According to the German philosopher Martin Heidegger,death has two defining characteristics. cZ8lRVaWW  
First, it can't be outsourced - nobody can die your death for you. The second raises more D8S?xK7[  
questions. Heidegger says death can happen at any point, so it's randon. But with advances in 3K{XT),  
genetics, knowing the date of our decease is becoming a real possibility. And is that good? hMcSB8?  
  Imagine going about your business with your expiry date stamped invisibly on the back of your |aAu4
 
hand. You'd probably be spooked by this constant reminder of your mortality. You'd find it =J@M,mbHg  
impossible to live. You'd pass your days in envy of those your age who are destined to live longer. 1yFVF
  
  Alternatively, you could treat the date-stamp as an end date from which to work back. It would A/bxxB7w  
make retirement planning and the gubbins of wills and probate smoother. It would allow you to gK&MdF*  
take an active part in organising your own funeral. You could even plan your diet: death tomorrow yQP!Vt^  
means an awful lot of jam today. And your loved ones would have the benefit of a steady coming-to- [G.4S5FX.]  
terms with your passing away. Z>897>  
  But Heidegger's point is, even if geneticists, extrapolating from your current condition(s), gave +jpaBr-O#  
you a reliable date of death, they'd fail to account for chance. Just as teenagers can crash their =D&xw2  
cars, so pensioners as dit as a fiddle can still fall down the stairs. So what's the lesson? Imagine 7 !-3jU@m  
you're programmed to die tomorrow, and live today as if it were your last. b*;zdGX.A9  
Robert Rowland Smith #sHA!@ |