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06/12/2022 7:21 pm
Dear all, I am copying this message from the 110 Club, posted by its founder Ben Meyers, as I think it is a very interesting one:
(Original post here.)
For 15 years, The 110 Club has served as the virtual home of the longevity tracking field, with a special focus on super-longevity (108+). Throughout this time, global interest in longevity has grown tremendously. This is no longer a niche field. Now more than ever before, the ability to extend one’s lifetime is within our grasp. Yet despite this immense interest, our field has always lacked the investment needed to address the worldwide demand for our research. That is about to change. The 110 Club is here to stay, but our field will soon be served by a new project, much larger in scope.I am pleased to introduce the first company ever built to address the needs of super-longevity researchers: LongeviQuest, which will be launching publicly next month.LongeviQuest (LQ) initially arose out of conversations over the past couple of years between me and Robert Young, the world’s foremost authority on supercentenarians for the past generation. Robert and I, along with many of you, have long agreed that our field is woefully underserved and underfunded. This scarcity of resources has impeded our field’s development, and that is now coming to an end. For the past year, I have invested in the development of technology built specifically for the purpose of enabling, organizing, displaying, and promoting super-longevity research. Dozens of experienced researchers were consulted in the design process. LongeviQuest is the infrastructure around which global research operations will be conducted.Technology is one component of a business we have created to support research. LongeviQuest is an organization that will enable passionate fans around the world to pursue high-level research, and to have their research promoted to the media. We will work diligently to recognize many more centenarians (108+) than are being honored currently, and to tell their stories to the world. All of this can be done because for the first time, revenue generated from the public’s interest in this field will be used to enhance our research capabilities. We have barely scratched the surface of longevity research; there remain so many frontiers yet to be pursued.LongeviQuest is a collaboration between many of today’s most active and respected researchers. Many of you know some other members of our core team. I am honored that Yumi Yamamoto will be leading LongeviQuest Japan research efforts. She will be supported by an excellent team including Yu Li, an experienced validator of Japanese cases. I am equally proud that Fabrizio Villatoro will be leading LongeviQuest América, bringing his expertise and passion to develop our research capabilities in the Western Hemisphere. LQ América will also include another co-founder of LAS, Stefan Maglov, who has joined LongeviQuest as Global Administrator to help ensure that our research worldwide is of the highest quality. Of course, in addition to his big-picture focus on advancing the field, Robert will be active at this highest level of research operations as well, ensuring that this new project can build upon the institutional knowledge of the Gerontology Research Group and International Database on Longevity. With this group of experts leading our validation operations, LongeviQuest research will meet the highest standards of scientific integrity.Beyond formal involvement, LQ’s validation process has been refined with valuable contributions from dozens of additional researchers. I’d like to specifically thank the members and leaders from the following organizations who provided feedback: the Gerontology Research Group; GRG Japan; Latin American Supercentenarians; and the European Supercentenarian Organisation. While I cannot speak for the members of these organizations, I can attest to the goodwill that has been present in all of these discussions, and our shared recognition that this investment in our field is long overdue.Our process establishes global minimum validation standards and dispute resolution procedures, but otherwise grants full autonomy to the regional LongeviQuest subsidiaries. Research looks much different in Japan than it does in Mexico, or France, or the United States, etc. LongeviQuest has been built to account for the unique challenges faced by researchers in each country. LongeviQuest’s governance structure will democratize the field.Everyone I mentioned has approached this project with an attitude of cooperation. Our subject matter is relevant to all of humanity. We are much stronger together than we are apart.LongeviQuest will launch publicly in January, after a Beta testing period. An exact date will soon be announced. We are excited to share more details with you about the project in the coming weeks, including more details on the new democratic validation process which will empower the best researchers.As this project moves towards launch, your feedback will be more valuable than ever. In that spirit, I invite anyone interested in participating in the Beta testing of the LQ website to contact me or any member of the founding team to let us know you’d like to be involved. Our e-mail addresses are below for those who wish to research with LongeviQuest:The incredible passion shown by the members of this forum was a convincing factor in pursuing this project. Thank you all for the inspiration. I am very excited for what lies ahead for us all.
06/12/2022 8:09 pm
[moved to Admin section of the forum after deliberation.]
07/12/2022 6:53 am
@stoa-oid Isn't this an inappropriate and unconstructive post? I think the admin will do something for you.
------------------------
The 110 Club admins, and no one, has explicitly stated which member is the same person as the person named Yu Li, which can makes people feel mysterious. Of course I am not the same person as Yu Li.
Born 3 Feburuary 1999. Founder of 5ch anonymous message board about longevity (1 January 2012) / Founder and chief administrator, the oldest people research forum in Japan founded in 1 January 2017. Link: 長寿者研究フォーラム (oldestpeopleforum.jp)
07/12/2022 11:43 am
Under no circumstances I would expose the name of the person I have described in my modest summary in public. Else it could be understood as inappropriate.
PS Ad inappropriate: Please note: If somebody feels addressed or believes that I could have meant a special person behind, it is not my problem.
If you are thinking that it could be XY, it will be debunking the conclusions of oneself .
07/12/2022 12:06 pm
@930310 Principally spoken, I would say. Yes.
07/12/2022 12:24 pm
@aquanaut_chalk Thank you very much for your statement. By the way, a countless number of silent readers here are tremendously grateful for your words.
diego reacted
07/12/2022 3:52 pm
@aquanaut_chalk and @C. : Thanks for your words.
http://www.supercentenariditalia.it/persone-viventi-piu-longeve-in-italia.
Persone viventi più longeve in Italia – Supercentenari d'Italia (supercentenariditalia.it)
stoa-oid reacted
07/12/2022 4:47 pm
https://the110club.com/introducing-longeviquest-t28778.html#p40156342
He wrote:
Together, Ben and I will be the OWNERSHIP TEAM to bring this project to fruition.
Note the capital letters....
http://www.supercentenariditalia.it/persone-viventi-piu-longeve-in-italia.
Persone viventi più longeve in Italia – Supercentenari d'Italia (supercentenariditalia.it)
07/12/2022 5:58 pm
@ale76 It sounds like an ambitious undertaking and I agree with Robert that the GRG website is out of date and that an update is needed. I further agree with him that the fan community can be a bit toxic and the scientific community rigid.
What I am wondering is how much public interest there is in this endeavour and if it can obtain the funds necessary to allow actual scientific research to take place?
Topic starter
07/12/2022 6:52 pm
Dear all,
Thanks for the feedback; the posts in this thread reveal that there is still a lot of hurt and mistrust, which explain the reaction to the news of LongeviQuest. Wounds take time to heal (although some wounds may prove to be 'beyond repair').
However, we (the Admin team) are also hopeful that LongeviQuest will succeed to connect the different areas in the field, and we genuinely feel that, should it prove to be successful, it can also bring people back together that have fallen out with one another. Yet, it would help if Robert didn't continually spread misinformation on the 110 Club by calling the GSCF the "rival" forum or "competitor," which we so clearly and so obviously are not. In doing so, he willingly and knowingly perpetuates a false narrative about the origins of this supercentenarian forum.
Nonetheless, we hope that the skeptical members of our forum will give LQ the honest chance it deserves to see if it can bring what the GRG hasn't been able to deliver. We eagerly anticipate its arrival.
stoa-oid reacted
07/12/2022 10:23 pm
@stoa-oid I don’t come on here very often, but when I read this I had to reply. This is totally inappropriate. This further spreads mistrust and ill-feeling. It enflames the wound, not heals them. You mention at the end the being stronger together than apart… but that won’t happen with the attitude you give here in this statement. Plus, Robert did not mention anywhere the GSF, yet he was brought into the discussion here??
Record_116 reacted
07/12/2022 10:38 pm
@admin it’s interesting that you mention Robert calling the GSF a rival and competitor. As the group who broke away from the 110 club, surely it made itself a rival and competitor? Just an observation. I don’t wish to fan the flames here in this thread, as some are very obviously aggrieved in some way, but the language used in one or two posts here is highly inappropriate and will not go any way towards the unity the site desires.
08/12/2022 6:08 am
This is an interesting conundrum - and I agree with pretty much all of the posts above.
On one hand there is no doubt that a successful venture of this type could be of huge benefit to the Supercentenarian Research area, as a whole.
On the other hand if it were to be substantially "headed up" - or the "face of the entity" was the wrong type of person it would be a disaster.
An individual who had polarized people across this industry in the past, could never hold a team together - or was a risk in terms of what may be said to the public on a bad day will clearly not work. All that particular situation would do, is transfer an existing problem to a new entity and ultimately do more damage.
I wonder how much thought has gone into the number and the identity of the key people here - and their roles - or whether it may be worth contacting Ben, in the first instance.
08/12/2022 1:12 pm
@ollieukscfan
Thereafter it could come true: "We are much stronger together than we are apart." = Quotation of the original post above.
Topic starter
08/12/2022 6:48 pm
@admin it’s interesting that you mention Robert calling the GSF a rival and competitor. As the group who broke away from the 110 club, surely it made itself a rival and competitor? Just an observation. I don’t wish to fan the flames here in this thread, as some are very obviously aggrieved in some way, but the language used in one or two posts here is highly inappropriate and will not go any way towards the unity the site desires.
We think you view the matter from a different perspective here, OllieUKSCfan (which is understandable, considering you haven't been around as long as some of the other members here). We genuinely feel that no form of rivarly or competition exists between the 110 Club and the GSCF. 110 Club members are welcome here, are treated respectfully, and can post over there as much as they like without receiving GSCF criticism for it. In fact, quite a number of active members here are fortunately also (happily) active on the 110 Club. The 110 Club, on the other hand, has had the tendency to censor posts that contain a link to our forum, we've been silenced over there, and we have also received intimidating messages behind closed doors. The narrative that we are a rival is only upheld on the 110 Club; we would never think of the 110 Club in such a way.
Obviously, there are also members here who have been banned from the 110 Club or no longer feel at home there, for varying reasons. And that is exactly why the GSCF exists: these (former) 110 Club members still feel passionate about supercentenarians and would like to be in touch with like-minded people, but in a safe environment. We genuinely hope that we have created this safe haven for those members that don't feel comfortable at the 110 Club (and if we haven't, we hope they feel confident enough to mention this to us). This undoubtedly means that there really is no rivalry, because we are not tapping from the same resource - and, above all, we celebrate supercentenarian achievements as much as 110 Club members hopefully do, and we will continue to be happy with any validations or achievements that the GRG or other organisations with intimate ties with the 110 Club will inform the public about.
The reason that we haven't removed or censored the more extreme emotions shared in this thread is that we'd like LongeviQuest to be aware of the fact that if it aims to be a global, united force, it should definitely learn of the different sentiments that exist, however divisive they (the sentiments) might seem at first glance. This is not to say that we condone or approve of the choice of words expressed in those messages - definitely not! - but we are hopeful messages like these will make Ben and his team aware of the long healing process that will be ahead of them if they aim to become the new, leading, worldwide organisation that validates supercentenarians (which is what we hope they will become!), and that this process of unison should be carried out with trepidation. And, yes, it will unfortunately also make them (LQ) aware that some connections / former links might have become burnt bridges / ships that have sailed by, which is also something to accept.
Having said that, after private discussions with a number of concerned members of this forum, we have decided to keep this thread open to express some final sentiments, before closing it during the weekend.
08/12/2022 11:52 pm
No one talks about it's logo... but it's be like four leaf clover, or the letter "S" is crossed.
LongeviQuest's logo is reminds me a logo of "Life", one of the most popular supermarket chains in Kansai region of Japan (near Osaka). Similar, not only logo but also a origin of title.
Born 3 Feburuary 1999. Founder of 5ch anonymous message board about longevity (1 January 2012) / Founder and chief administrator, the oldest people research forum in Japan founded in 1 January 2017. Link: 長寿者研究フォーラム (oldestpeopleforum.jp)
09/12/2022 4:24 am
Thanks for these details Admin.
My own final sentiment then is that my support, including some financial assistance may be possible here and past assistance may potentially be extended for this greater group, provided that the roles, positions, power and influence of one or two people are made public.
Clearly that’s not incumbent on anyone to deliver.
in the knowledge that the new venture personnel are reading this for information, I’d also like to see the 110 Club made a safer environment to protect young and vulnerable people, some of whom have copped unacceptable behaviour from a very small minority in the past. A general charter to which ALL members are subject to, would be the answer.
If these outcomes can be secured and the team here remains comfortable with the relationship and progress, then I’ll personally look to assist in numerous capacities if approached.
Matcha reacted
11/01/2023 7:36 pm
Having said that, after private discussions with a number of concerned members of this forum, we have decided to keep this thread open to express some final sentiments, before closing it during the weekend.
Somehow this thread has not been closed yet
Born 3 Feburuary 1999. Founder of 5ch anonymous message board about longevity (1 January 2012) / Founder and chief administrator, the oldest people research forum in Japan founded in 1 January 2017. Link: 長寿者研究フォーラム (oldestpeopleforum.jp)
Topic starter
12/01/2023 7:18 am
Somehow this thread has not been closed yet
I seem to have forgotten this, but as LQ has just announced its first validations, I'll leave this thread open so people can comment about LQ.
Record_116 reacted
