Reading this book is a little like attempting to peer into a crystal ball, with statistics. The authors mined data from a study begun around 1920 which followed 1,500 bright, healthy 10-year-olds throughout their lives. The original researcher (whose name escapes me now - sorry!) interviewed the children, as well as their parents and teachers, in great detail, and continued to do so at frequent intervals throughout their lives. The current authors attempted to correlate personality characteristics and life events with the longevity of the study participants, now almost all dead. So here's the scoop. You may live to be very old if:
- you are conscientious, which the authors don't really define
- you started 1st grade at age 6 or older
- you wound up in the European rather than the Pacific theater in WWII
- Your career entails responsibility, upward mobility and even stress, provided you have a sense of automony
- you spend a lot of time helping others
On that last point, judging from what I see at UCPL every day, you are all going to live to a ripe old age.
For more information about The Longevity Project and to read the Introduction (free), go to The Longevity Project
ReplyDeletehttp://www.howardsfriedman.com/longevityproject/
There is also a Facebook page with lots of discussion about The Longevity Project.