评论
打印
People are living longer
人们现在越活越久
and societies are getting grayer.
社会也逐渐变得老龄化
You hear about it all the time.
你可能总是听到别人这么说
You read about it in your newspapers.
你也从报纸上如是读到
You hear about it on your television sets.
从电视上看到
Sometimes I'm concerned
有时候我很担心
that we hear about it so much
我们听过长寿太多次
that we've come to accept longer lives
以至于人们带着自满
with a kind of a complacency,
甚至安逸的情绪开始接受
even ease.
长寿的事实
But make no mistake,
但是请别搞错
longer lives can
长寿能够 --
and, I believe, will
而且我相信，它肯定会 --
improve quality of life
改善所有年龄的人们的
at all ages.
生活品质
Now to put this in perspective,
现在让我们先拉个远景
let me just zoom out for a minute.
从宏观的角度来看
More years were added
人们的
to average life expectancy
平均寿命
in the 20th century
在整个20世纪增加的年数
than all years added
要比
across all prior millennia
上千年来
of human evolution combined.
人类进化过程中所增加的总和还要多
In the blink of an eye,
就在眨眼之间
we nearly doubled the length of time
我们已经将我们的寿命
that we're living.
延长了一倍
So if you ever feel like you don't have this aging thing quite pegged,
所以，如果你觉得你对变老这件事并不关心
don't kick yourself.
不要自责
It's brand new.
这个话题太新了
And because fertility rates fell
因为在同一时期内
across that very same period
生育率下降了
that life expectancy was going up,
平均寿命增加了
that pyramid
那个用来表示
that has always represented the distribution of age in the population,
人口年龄分布的金字塔形
with many young ones at the bottom
底部的年轻人口总是很多
winnowed to a tiny peak of older people
延伸到老龄人口的尖顶
who make it and survive to old age
那些是成功存活到高龄的人
is being reshaped
（人口金字塔）形状发生了改变
into a rectangle.
变成了长方形
And now, if you're the kind of person
如果你是那种
who can get chills from population statistics,
对人口统计感到恐惧的人
these are the ones that should do it.
这些变化应该会让你感到难受
Because what that means
因为这变化表明
is that for the first time in the history of the species,
在人类种族历史上头一回
the majority of babies born
大多数
in the Developed World
在发达国家出生的婴儿
are having the opportunity
有机会
to grow old.
活到老年
How did this happen?
这是怎么发生的？
Well we're no genetically hardier than our ancestors were
我们并不是在基因上
10,000 years ago.
比一万年前的祖先强壮
This increase in life expectancy
平均寿命的增加
is the remarkable product of culture --
全要归功于文化 --
the crucible
一个包含了
that holds science and technology
科学和技术
and wide-scale changes in behavior
以及广泛的（社会）行为改变的熔炉
that improve health and well-being.
导致人们的健康和福利的增进
Through cultural changes,
通过文化的改变
our ancestors
我们的祖先
largely eliminated early death
大幅度地消除了早亡
so that people can now live out their full lives.
所以现在的人可以走完完整的一生
Now there are problems associated with aging --
老龄化催生了很多问题
diseases, poverty, loss of social status.
疾病、贫困、社会地位的丧失
It's hardly time to rest on our laurels.
这可不是坐享荣誉的时候
But the more we learn about aging,
不过当我们研究的越多
the clearer it becomes
老龄化就变得越清晰
that a sweeping downward course
把它说成是一条单纯的下坡路
is grossly inaccurate.
是非常不准确的
Aging brings some rather remarkable improvements --
衰老也带来一些非同凡响的进步
increased knowledge, expertise --
知识的增加，专业的精深
and emotional aspects of life improve.
人生的情绪层面也有所提升
That's right,
这句话很对
older people are happy.
老年人是快乐的
They're happier than middle-aged people,
他们比中年人更快乐
and younger people certainly.
更理所当然地比年轻人更快乐
