Wednesday, August 12, 2026 | Edition 190 | Item #1

In fact, according to a new study from researchers at the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology in Russia, the upper limit of life is only 194 years. This is the output of a mathematical model that assumes that every reversible aspect of aging can be solved – every disease, every cellular dysfunction – leaving only what is called somatic mutations: the largely random and apparently unavoidable DNA errors that accumulate over a lifetime and can't be inherited or (currently) reversed.  Every time DNA is copied or damaged by healthy cellular activity, small errors can occur. Most are harmless, but over time, these mutations accumulate and may eventually impair cellular function or lead to cancer.  Even with everything else eliminated, somatic mutations alone, according to the researchers, limit median human lifespan to roughly 146–194 years, about twice the current life expectancy in developed countries but far less than some of the more enthusiastic of the longevity acolytes are hoping for. 

You may be wondering: what is lifespan, if we figure out how to solve for somatic mutations?  Well, so were the researchers, and they gave us an answer: 1,759 years, at least according to the mathematical models. So that’s good news for those hoping for much longer life. It’s less good news if you are hoping that Donald Trump won’t be around to try to influence the presidential election of 3784.