On 28Mar2023 1544, Jim Vassilakos - jim.vassilakos at gmail.com (via tml
list) wrote:
> Perhaps something brain-related. The brain is the most complex part of the
> body. Presumably, it would be the hardest to fix should things go wrong.
> And go wrong they do, particularly with age. Advancing dementia is not
> terribly uncommon. Some people even suffer from early onset. I'm sure
> there's a joke in there, but actually it's quite serious. So with people
> living longer (120-150, according to Jonathan), one would presume large,
> extended families with the elders often being in a state of pronounced
> mental decline. To some extent this might explain the conservatism of
> Vilani culture, especially if the people in charge are all over a century
> old. Solomani culture would likely mirror the Vilani in this regard, as
> their medical science improves.
>
> In any case, this would make dementia the most common incurable illness.
One of my aunts has dementia. She's fine for a bit, and then just sort
of disconnects, has no idea where she is or how she got there or who we
are, like a consciousness with no connection to anything. Then she
'comes back' and is fine for a while. She can't be left alone or she'll
go wandering off, and if left alone will do things like make a dinner
for her whole family (most who have long since left home) and then do it
over again and get very upset if those present don't eat it all. It's
really disturbing, and frankly dementia and the idea that I might suffer
from it some day terrifies me.

--
Rupert Boleyn <xxxxxx@gmail.com>