Handbook of the Biology of Aging

By now, most of us know that America (and the rest of the world) is aging. Not as many are aware of the effects that this demographic revolution is having on the elderly, their families, and the health care system. At the beginning of the century, those under the age of 65 years made up only 4% of the North American population. But as we approach the second millennium, this percentage has more than doubled, with attendant strains on all spheres of medical care. Beyond the demographic imperative and thoughts about what we surely owe our older citizens, there exist at the same time some profoundly interesting scientific questions relating to the phenomenon of aging. For example, why are there so many old people nowadays? What happens to us as we age? What, in fact, is this phenomenon of aging? An ambitious attempt has been made to answer these and