Observations about the Hard-Won Wisdom of Old Age

The world's population has just passed the 8 billion mark and an increasing proportion of those people are old, including increasingly the so-called "old old" in their 90s and beyond. Indeed, never before have so many older people inhabited the planet. Are we prepared for them? Given the inevitable medical and health challenges that accompany old age, are we ready to take care of all those people? We also need to know how people experience old age. Are you really just as old as you feel?

In this episode of International Horizons David Troyansky from the History departments of Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center, CUNY refers to the demographics of aging and the causes of the unprecedented disproportion of the amount old with respect to younger generations. Troyansky also discusses how older individuals’ perspectives can inform research on aging, and whether the intergenerational gap between old and youngsters may (or may not) yield to conflict. Finally, the author addresses sexuality issues in aging people and why it is seen as taboo.

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