There's an irony behind the latest efforts to extend human life: It's no picnic to be an old person in a youthoriented society. Older people can become isolated, lacking meaningful work and low on funds. In this intriguing talk, Jared Diamond looks at how many different societies treat their elders some better, some worse and suggests we all take advantage of mature experience.

TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less). Look for talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more.
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