Venki Ramakrishnan talks to Nuala McGovern

Scientific advance means we are tackling diseases that were seen as incurable just a few years ago.  But if this means we can live longer, is it ethical to do so?  Human lifespan has already doubled in the last century. Are we burdening younger generations with an increasingly elderly population? And will new treatments lead to further societal divides? The rich already live longer than the poor.

The Nobel prize-winning scientist Professor Sir Venki Ramakrishnan outlines incredible advances in our understanding of the aging process and the medical science now capable of halting and reversing changes.  In only the last few years a greater understanding of micro level cell biology and the harnessing of the body’s own genetic mechanisms have led to treatments that do offer the potential to reverse life-threatening cancers and debilitating diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

As well as lifting the lid on how these work, Ramakrishnan also explores the dilemmas such treatments raise.  Initially they will be expensive. We already have a global society in which there is a direct link between life expectancy and affluence. Does medical advance increase the disparity?
Is it good to be old? Your incurable disease may now be cured , but what is your quality of life?  Can the planet support an increasingly needy generation? These are hard moral question, and death has a purpose, argues Venki. Given the finite nature of our planet’s resources, is trying to live longer a selfish act?

Ramakrishnan heads the Ramakrishnan Lab at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology University of Cambridge.

Forward Thinking is a series of 4 programmes for the BBC World Service presented by Nuala McGovern and recorded at the Oxford Literary Festival.
Audience questions will follow the initial conversation with the guests. 

If you are planning to attend the event there will be an opportunity for you to ask a question.  If you are unable to attend but might like to ask a question that the BBC then features in the broadcast, you can send those in advance to the producer of the shows julian.siddle@bbc.co.uk

Tickets are free but must be booked through the box office.

The recording will begin at 11am in The Tuanku Bainun Auditorium located within the Sultan Nazrin Shah Centre at Worcester College Oxford. If attending the recording, please arrive at least 15 minutes before the start time. The auditorium is a few minutes’ walk from the main Worcester College entrance.