Works in Progress Podcast Longevity
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Mar 11, 2026 Aria Shrecker, editor and longevity writer, explains long-lived animal strategies in plain terms. She explores naked mole-rat social life, regenerative tricks like lobsters and axolotls, ultra-slow metabolisms in sharks and whales, sedentary clams, cancer-resistant elephants, and how these patterns inform human lifespan debates. Short, curious, and full of surprising animal stories.
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Mascot Lobster Release Likely Caused Its Death
- A famously large lobster was displayed in a restaurant then released and likely starved rather than live on.
- Aria recounts animal welfare intervention that probably caused the lobster to die because it could no longer molt and feed.
Child Mortality Declines Drove Early Life Expectancy Gains
- Past life expectancy gains mostly came from reduced infant and child mortality.
- Saloni explains mid-20th century onward gains shifted to reducing middle-age and old-age deaths (cardiovascular, cancer, infections).
Two Complementary Paths To Living Longer
- Two approaches to longevity coexist: whack-a-mole disease treatment and searching for a central aging mechanism.
- Saloni says most progress so far is tackling individual diseases, though a universal aging fix remains possible.