Longevity of the Nerds (Continued)

           So far, this has been a really good century for nerds. Lots of jobs. Higher pay. An abundance of promotions. Then there’s the admiration, however reluctant, that can be seen in almost every TV show and a multitude of movies. With the exception of medieval dramas, there’s a role for the Resident Nerd in every show.

The last century was pretty good, too.

Clearly, the Age of Nerds has arrived.

Technology Day at MIT

This was evident at a gathering at my alma mater, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Grey, if not white, hair prevails for the class of 1962. Our 60^th reunion was part of Technology Day at the end of May.

I wasn’t there with my classmates. I was in Annapolis awaiting a new suit of sails for my boat. But I had already obtained the newest data. It tells me that this truly is the Age of Nerds. Better still, the reward is way better than mere money. Or ephemeral prestige.

It’s longevity! The blessing of a longer life.

More life, per life

Just as an earlier measure showed that my classmates were failing to die as rapidly as their age cohorts were back in 2016, the current measure continues the trend. While a typical member of the class of 1962 is about 82 years old, the survivorship of our class more closely resembles a group of men who are about 72.

Here are the basics. According to Institute figures, of 840 graduates in the class of 62’ some 234 have died. Another 18 are missing. But if we take the most basic figure, the 234 that have died of 840 graduates, we learned that an amazing 72 percent of those 22-year-olds have survived. Adding the missing, who might be assumed dead, doesn’t change the percentage greatly.

For most, the odds are far worse

In comparison, the most recent CDC life tables inform us that of every 100,000 non-Hispanic white males born, 98,765 could be expected to survive to age 22 but only 45,723 could expect to live to 82. That’s only 46 percent. The Nerds are surviving as though they were 72, not 82.

If you’re wondering why I used the life table for non-Hispanic white males, rather than a table for all males or a joint male and female table, the reason is simple. In 1962 women were a trace element at MIT. And almost all the men were white.

You can delay death, but you can’t escape it

Please note that living longer should not be confused with immortality. Vast wealth and philanthropic contributions to medical research notwithstanding, classmate David Koch was one of the 234 that didn’t make it. The distinction for the MIT class of 1962 is that we are departing more slowly than most humans.

Fortunately, you don’t have to go to MIT to enjoy this blessing. Just persevere for a good education and earn a higher than average income and a longer life is likely. I believe it will work nicely for our grandchildren who have, or will, graduate from A&M and UT.

Why am I so confident?

Simple. Every bit of research since the original Whitehall studies on longevity indicates that you’re likely to live a longer and healthier life than those with less education and less income.

The printed Facebook

That reality turns into really good news when you compare the class of 1962 with current and coming graduating classes at MIT (and elsewhere).  Sixty years ago, very few women went to MIT.

The Institute (or the Grey Pile on the Charles, as some called it) was all Yang and no Yin.

The original Facebook, for me, was a copy of the coveted annual printed directory, with pictures, of the new women at Radcliffe, then the college for women at Harvard, several miles away.

Today, nearly half of all MIT undergraduates are women. And women now account for more than 50 percent of undergraduates at all colleges. So the last 60 years has seen a seismic event. At last, the full pool of human talent is being developed.

It’s not just white guys anymore. It’s both sexes, some non-binaries, and significant percentages of Asian, Hispanic, black and mixed-race students.

In a news year that’s desperately short on hope, I just love this. It’s Good Will Toward All.

Related columns:

Scott Burns, “Longevity of the nerds,” 1/24/2016 https://scottburns.com/longevity-of-the-nerds/

Scott Burns, “Life is (Still) Worth Living after 75,” 11/2/2018  https://scottburns.com/life-is-still-worth-living-after-75/

Scott Burns, “How much is a future year worth?”  10/27/2018  https://scottburns.com/how-much-is-a-future-year-worth/

Scott Burns, “Trust me, your retirement will be longer than David Bach predicts,” 10/12/2018  https://scottburns.com/trust-me-your-retirement-will-be-longer-than-david-bach-predicts/

Scott Burns, “The Hedonic Clock,” 10/24/2014  https://scottburns.com/the-hedonic-clock/

Sources:

Elizabeth Arias, Ph.D., and Jaquan Xu, M.D,  National Statistics Reports, U.S. Life Tables, 2019, 3/22/2022   https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr70/nvsr70-19.pdf

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Photo: M.I.T.

(c) Scott Burns, 2022