Is it possible to live forever? And if so, should we even want to? This hour, we discuss the search for immortality, from ancient philosophers to the elixir of life. Plus, a look at immortalizing public figures through obituaries.

Guests:


Tushar Irani is a Professor of Philosophy at Wesleyan University studying Ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy.


Philip Ball is a freelance science writer and the author of “Alchemy: An Illustrated History of Elixirs, Experiments, and the Birth of Modern Science”


William McDonald recently retired as the obituaries editor for the New York Times, a position that he held for the past 20 years.

Music featured (in order):
Galahad – Aoife O’Donovan
You Only Live Twice – Nancy Sinatra
If We Were Vampires – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
Alchemy – Cam
Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven (But Nobody Wants to Die) – Ellen McIlwaine
CUT FOR TIME I Don’t Want to Die (In the Hospital) – Connor Oberst
Fame – Irene Cara

The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Dylan Reyes contributed to this show.

Is it possible to live forever? And if so, should we even want to? This hour, we discuss the search for immortality, from ancient philosophers to the elixir of life. Plus, a look at immortalizing public figures through obituaries.
Guests:
<ul>
<li>
Tushar Irani is a Professor of Philosophy at Wesleyan University studying Ancient Greek and Roman Philosophy.
</li>
<li>
Philip Ball is a freelance science writer and the author of &ldquo;Alchemy: An Illustrated History of Elixirs, Experiments, and the Birth of Modern Science&rdquo;
</li>
<li>
William McDonald recently retired as the obituaries editor for the New York Times, a position that he held for the past 20 years.
</li>
</ul>
Music featured (in order):
<ul>
<li><a href="https://youtu.be/25k_JrZdxP4">Galahad</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Aoife O&rsquo;Donovan</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nco2zJ28qJQ">You Only Live Twice</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Nancy Sinatra</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivYkyC8J29M">If We Were Vampires</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzjydoodP_E">Alchemy</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Cam</li>
<li><a href="https://youtu.be/a7eJqVIiFx0">Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven (But Nobody Wants to Die) </a>&ndash; Ellen McIlwaine</li>
<li>CUT FOR TIME&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-BqiPhWNAg">I Don&rsquo;t Want to Die (In the Hospital)</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Connor Oberst</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChhCpSVrjvU">Fame</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Irene Cara</li>
</ul>
The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-colin-mcenroe-show/id714179884">Apple Podcasts</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p">Spotify</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9b6b3cee-f69b-4729-a78b-181f851d80e8/the-colin-mcenroe-show">Amazon Music</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/The-Colin-McEnroe-Show-p1208473/">TuneIn</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-colin-mcenroe-show-connecticut-public-lXR08dxQSM5/">Listen Notes</a>, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!
<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/newsletters">Subscribe to&nbsp;The Noseletter</a>, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by&nbsp;The Colin McEnroe Show.
Join the conversation on&nbsp;<a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow">Twitter</a>.
Colin McEnroe and Dylan Reyes contributed to this show.

The Colin McEnroe Show is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called The Nose for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/about">The Colin McEnroe Show</a> is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/tags/the-nose">The Nose</a> for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.