How Will You Die?

Summary

This script explores the varying likelihoods of death, highlighting how life expectancy has risen from 31 to 71 years over a century. It contrasts historical causes of death like tuberculosis with modern ones like heart disease and cancer, influenced by medical advancements. The narrative also addresses unusual fatalities, the role of media in shaping our perception of death, and the impact of geography and lifestyle on mortality. It concludes with the advent of predictive software capable of forecasting death with remarkable accuracy, posing a philosophical question about the human desire to know one's end.

Takeaways

• 📊 Life expectancy has significantly increased from 31 years in 1901 to an average of 71 years, with developed nations like France and Canada seeing averages closer to 82 years.
• 🌍 Geographic location greatly influences life expectancy and common causes of death, with developing countries often facing different health challenges compared to developed ones.
• 🏥 Heart disease and cancer are the leading causes of death in the United States, accounting for nearly half of all deaths, a shift from a century ago when tuberculosis and influenza were more prevalent.
• 💊 Scientific advancements, such as antibiotics and vaccines, have reduced deaths from infectious diseases like the flu and tuberculosis, and improved cancer survival rates from 50% in the 1970s to 68% today.
• 🏥 Prolonged hospital stays are common for those dying from heart disease or cancer, with 60% of hospital deaths attributed to these two causes.
• 🚑 Sudden deaths do occur, with over 136,000 people in the US dying from unintentional injuries or accidents in 2014, yet media portrayals can distort public perception of the likelihood of dying from rare events.
• 🦈 Media influence can skew perceptions of risk; for example, no one died from shark attacks in the US in 2014, but 38 people were killed by dogs, highlighting the need for a balanced view on mortality risks.
• 🚶 Walking as a pedestrian is statistically more dangerous than biking within a city, with more pedestrian fatalities compared to bike accident deaths.
• 🍺 Alcoholism is a significant cause of death, with 80 times more deaths attributed to it than from terrorist attacks in the western world.
• 🌎 Globally, terrorism is not a leading cause of death, with the majority of terrorist-related deaths concentrated in a few countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Syria.
• 🔮 Advancements in technology now allow for software that can predict the cause and timing of death with a high degree of accuracy, raising ethical questions about whether individuals would want to know such information.

Q & A

What was the average life expectancy in 1901?

The average life expectancy in 1901 was 31 years old.

How has the average life expectancy changed in developed nations over the past century?

In developed nations, the average life expectancy has increased significantly, with people in countries like France or Canada living close to 82 years on average.

What was the cause of death for 27 people in 2015 according to the script?

In 2015, 27 people died from selfie-related accidents.

What is one example of a strange cause of death mentioned in the script?

One example of a strange cause of death mentioned is a man who died of heart failure and exhaustion after playing Starcraft for 50 hours continuously.

How many people died in the US in 2014, and what were the two leading causes of death?

In 2014, over 2.6 million people died in the US, with almost half of these deaths caused by heart disease or cancer.

What impact have scientific advancements like antibiotics and vaccines had on death rates?

Scientific advancements have allowed for less frequent deaths from diseases like the flu or tuberculosis, and have even decreased the mortality rate from cancer.

What was the survival rate from cancer in the 1970s, and how has it changed today?

The survival rate from cancer in the 1970s was only 50%, but today it has increased to 68% with 15.5 million cancer survivors alive in the US.

What percentage of deaths in hospitals are attributed to heart disease or cancer, and how long do some individuals stay in the hospital?

60% of deaths in hospitals are attributed to heart disease or cancer, with 1 in 10 of those individuals being in a hospital for a month or more.

How many people died from unintentional injuries or accidents in the US in 2014?

In 2014, 136,053 people in the US died from unintentional injuries or accidents.

How does the media influence our perception of death from strange causes, as mentioned in the script?

The media can affect our fear and anxiety of death from strange causes by highlighting unusual incidents, such as more people being killed by dogs than shark attacks in the US in 2014.

What is the likelihood of dying from a terrorist attack compared to dying from alcoholism, according to the script?

For every 1 person that dies in a terrorist attack, 80 will die from alcoholism.

What does the script suggest about the future of predicting causes and timing of death?

The script suggests that in the future, we may not only live longer but also potentially know exactly how and when we'll die, with a computer software developed that can estimate this with 96% accuracy based on medical history and lifestyle factors.

Outlines

00:00

💀 Understanding Modern Mortality

This paragraph delves into the changing nature of death in the modern world. It starts by highlighting the public's preference for a quick and painless death, which is statistically unlikely. The average life expectancy has significantly increased from 31 in 1901 to 71, with variations based on the level of development of the country. The paragraph discusses unusual causes of death, such as selfie-related accidents and health issues from excessive gaming. It contrasts the top causes of death today, like heart disease and cancer, with those of the past, such as tuberculosis and influenza, and credits scientific advancements for these changes. The paragraph also addresses the reality of long, drawn-out deaths due to these conditions, the impact of media on public perception of unusual causes of death, and the stark differences in mortality rates and causes based on geographical location and socioeconomic factors. It concludes with a look towards the future, where predictive software can estimate the cause and timing of death with high accuracy, raising ethical questions about whether individuals would want to know such information.

Keywords

💡Life Expectancy

Life expectancy refers to the average number of years a person is expected to live, based on their date of birth, current age, and other demographic factors. In the video, it is mentioned that the average life expectancy has significantly increased over the past century, highlighting the improvements in healthcare and living conditions. The script provides examples such as the average life expectancy being 31 in 1901 and increasing to 71 in more recent times, with developed nations like France or Canada having even higher averages.

💡Heart Disease

Heart disease, also known as cardiovascular disease, is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. It is a leading cause of death globally. The video emphasizes that heart disease is a common cause of death, particularly in developed countries, and has become more prevalent than infectious diseases like tuberculosis and influenza, which were the leading causes a century ago.

💡Cancer

Cancer is a group of diseases characterized by the uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells. It is another leading cause of death worldwide. The video discusses how cancer survival rates have improved due to scientific advancements, with a survival rate increase from 50% in the 1970s to 68% today, reflecting the impact of medical research and treatment options.

💡Accidental Deaths

Accidental deaths refer to fatalities that occur unexpectedly and unintentionally, often due to accidents or mishaps. The video provides various examples of unusual causes of accidental deaths, such as selfie-related accidents, falling icicles, and choking on hot dogs, illustrating the wide range of unexpected ways in which people can die.

💡Terrorism

Terrorism involves the use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, to further political aims. The video contrasts the public's perception of death by terrorism with the actual statistics, pointing out that the likelihood of dying in a terrorist attack is much lower compared to other causes, such as alcoholism.

💡Respiratory Problems

Respiratory problems refer to any condition that affects the respiratory system, including the lungs and airways. The video notes that in the poorest countries, respiratory problems are a major cause of death, often due to inhaling smoke from cooking fires, which is a significant health issue in developing regions.

💡Diet and Health

Diet and health are closely related, with the type of food one consumes having a direct impact on their overall health and longevity. The video mentions the Japanese diet as a contributing factor to the lower incidence of heart disease and longer life expectancy among Japanese females compared to their American counterparts.

💡Medical History

Medical history refers to an individual's past health conditions, treatments, and family health background. In the context of the video, it is noted that a person's medical history plays a significant role in predicting how and when they might die, as it is one of the factors used by a new computer software to estimate death with high accuracy.

💡Lifestyle

Lifestyle encompasses the interests, opinions, behaviors, and behavioral orientations of an individual, group, or culture. The video suggests that lifestyle choices, such as diet and exercise, are important factors in determining health outcomes and are considered by the software mentioned to predict death.

💡Survival Rate

The survival rate is the percentage of individuals who survive a particular disease or condition over a specified period. The video highlights the improvement in cancer survival rates over time, indicating the effectiveness of medical treatments and the importance of ongoing research.

💡Sudden Deaths

Sudden deaths are those that occur unexpectedly and rapidly, often due to accidents or medical emergencies. The video discusses the occurrence of sudden deaths, using statistics from unintentional injuries or accidents to illustrate that while not as common as long-term illnesses, they still account for a significant number of fatalities.

Highlights

Most people prefer a quick and unnoticed death, but the odds are low.

Average life expectancy has increased from 31 in 1901 to 71 in the last century.

In developed nations, life expectancy is closer to 82 years.

In developing countries, the average life expectancy is around 64 years.

Unusual causes of death include selfie-related accidents and icicle falls.

Heart disease and cancer are the leading causes of death in the US, unlike a century ago.

Scientific advancements have reduced deaths from tuberculosis and influenza.

Cancer survival rates have increased from 50% in the 1970s to 68% today.

Heart disease and cancer often involve long, drawn-out deaths.

60% of hospital deaths are due to heart disease or cancer.

Sudden deaths from unintentional injuries or accidents are less common.

Media can influence our fear and anxiety about unusual causes of death.

You are more likely to die walking as a pedestrian than in a bike accident.

Alcoholism causes more deaths than terrorist attacks.

Most terrorist activity in the west is not caused by Islamic fundamentalists.

In 2015, 78% of all terrorist deaths occurred in just five countries.

Respiratory problems from cooking smoke are a leading cause of death in the poorest countries.

Japanese females have a lower rate of heart disease and live longer than American females.

Future advancements may allow us to predict how and when we will die with high accuracy.

A computer software can estimate the cause and time of death with 96% accuracy.

Transcripts

Surveys show that most people want to die “quickly, in their sleep, and without notice”

but the odds of that happening for you are incredibly low.

So, when the time comes, how are you most likely to die?

In 1901 the average life expectancy of humans was 31 years old, and in just over 100 years

that average has gone up to 71.

If you live in a developed nation like France or Canada, you’ll likely liver closer to

82, while developing or majority world countries like Rwanda age to 64 on average.

And many of these people die in weird ways, including 27 people from selfie-related accidents

in 2015.

One man died of heart failure and exhaustion after playing Starcraft for 50 hours on end,

and annually 100 people die in Russia from falling icicles.

Not to mention about 70 children will choke to death on hot dogs every year.

But if we use the United States as an example of the western world, we had over 318 million

people living in 2014, of which more than 2.6 million died.

Almost half of these people died of heart disease or cancer, which is much different

than 100 years ago when most people died from tuberculosis and influenza.

Scientific advancements such as antibiotics and vaccines have allowed us to die less often

of the flu or TB, and even decreased how often we die of cancer.

In the 1970’s the survival rate from cancer was only 50% - today that has increased to

68% with 15.5 million cancer survivors alive in the US today.

Thanks SCIENCE!

Unfortunately both heart disease and cancer aren’t ‘sudden killers’ and involve

mostly long, drawn out deaths.

In fact, 60% of deaths in hospital are attributed to one of these, with 1 in 10 of those individuals

being in a hospital for a month or more.

Of course, sudden deaths do happen, with 136,053 people dying of unintentional injuries or

accidents in 2014, in the US.

The media can also affect our fear and anxiety of death from strange causes.

After all, not one person died of a shark attack in the US during 2014, but 38 people

were killed by dogs that year.

Many fear biking within a city, but you’re more likely to die walking as a pedestrian,

with 6,200 pedestrians killed, and only 900 killed in bike accidents.

For every 1 person that dies in a terrorist attack, 80 will die from alcoholism.

In fact, a majority of terrorist activity in the west is caused by lone wolf attackers,

of which 80% were not islamic fundamentalists, but instead political extremists, nationalist,

racial and religious supremacists.

On a worldwide scale in 2015, 78% of all terrorists deaths occurred in just five countries: Afghanistan,

Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan and Syria.

Where you live has a big impact on how you’re likely to die too; in the 34 poorest countries

you’re mostly likely to die of respiratory problems - not from cigarettes, but from ingesting

smoke while cooking.

Females in Japan are less likely to die of heart disease, and live to 87 years old on

average, compared to 80 years old for American females.

This is often attributed to the Japanese diet.

In the future, we will likely not only live longer, but potentially know exactly how and

when we’ll die.

In fact, a recent computer software has been developed that has been shown to estimate

how and when you will die with 96% accuracy, based on medical history, lifestyle and many

other factors.

The question is - do you want to know how and when you’ll die?

Let us know in the comments below.

You can also find out the Top 5 Regrets People Have Before Dying in our AsapTHOUGHT video.

Link in the description for that video.

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