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What's in store for older adults? Robots for seniors...extended life...cures for the diseases of aging. These are just some of the things that await us in the not-too-distant future!

1. Robots for Senior Citizens: Pearl is a sleek-headed robot on wheels, which is being designed and tested on elderly people. Developed by Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pitsburgh, the nursebot is designed to provide the chronicaly ill elderly with an automated companion to do things such as carry household items, remind tthe individual to take medications, and monitor movements for signs of falls or mishaps, then notify a designated party through a 2-way video link. The robot can help older individuals remain independent and make his or her life easier. Perl has a smooth, iridescent metllic look and an expressive face thanks to eyes that have lids that open and close, eyebrows that tilt up and down, and a mouth consisting of light emitting diodes. The robot can nod or shake its head, and its ears twirl slowly when it thinks. If the project is successful, the robotic personal assistants will be available to the elderly within a decade.

2. Diseases of aging will become things of the past:
Research being conducted in many parts of the world have demonstrated that stem cells could be used to develop into any kind of cell needed, including heart cells, nerve cells, blood cells, cartilage and muscle. Scientists in Sweden transplanted adult mouse stem cells from their brains into mouse and chicken embryos, and found that the cells matured into a variety of cell types--including beating heart cells. Research elsewhere have demonstrated that stem cells could also mature into specialized nerve cells and blood cells. At the University of California, scientists hve taken stem cells from human fat to grow everything from human muscle to bone.
Experiments such as these are causing speculation among scientists that, in the future, science will be able to use stem cells to treat diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, macular degeneration, etc. Some researchers predict that the first practical use of laboratory-engineered tissue can come within five years.

2. Can you live to be 110...120..130 or more? Two researchers are so certain , that they've placed a 500 million dollar bet! S. Jay Olshansky believes that we have the capacity to live until the age of 130, but Steven Austad disagrees. He's betting that by January 1, 2150 the human life span will be extended to the age of 150. The winner will be decided by three scientists and payable to the heirs of the winner. If there are no living heirs the prize will go to universities. Olshansky is the co-author of a recently published book, "The Quest for Immortality: Science at the Frontiers of Aging." Austad, a zoology professor at the University of Idaho, wrote "Why we Age: What Science is Discovering About the Body's Journey Through Life," which was published in 1997.

[Editor's note: If you 've read one of these books, we would welcome your comments or a brief review. Please see our Books section for further information regarding submissions]

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