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This is wrong. Whales live longer because they are bigger. Larger animals have slower metabolisms and consequently longer lifespans. See this paper: http://www.
by astazangasta 11y ago
This is wrong. Whales live longer because they are bigger. Larger animals have slower metabolisms and consequently longer lifespans. See this paper: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15855403 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15855403
- DennisP 11y agoBut the article also mentions the naked mole rat, which is about the size of a mouse but lives ten times longer, and Brandt's bat, which weighs as much as a sugar cube but lives 40 years.
- astazangasta 11y agoNot sure about the mole rat, but bats cheat by shutting down their metabolism (basically hibernating) most of the time.
- kolev 11y agoWhy do people try to boost their metabolism (or demise) these days then? I strongly believe that being physically lazy (i.e. not expending much energy and keeping metabolism slow), but mentally active, and walking 30-45 minutes a day is the healthiest lifestyle one could have (if they can afford it).
- astazangasta 11y agoBecause heart disease is the main killer, and obesity and poor vascular fitness resulting from inactivity are major risk factors. Plus people want a tight ass.
- kolev 11y agoI don't exercise and I'm fine although genetically I have 30% higher risk of obesity, so, just don't eat more than you have to and find pleasures in creation and discovery, in socializing, not in eating!
- debacle 11y agoWhales also live longer because it's evolutionarily advantageous for them to live longer (they have a long, fragile reproductive cycle). There's little need for a fruit fly to live 100 years and historically it doesn't seem that there has been a great need for humans to do the same, either.