Washington Post examines a hot-mic moment between Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin about the possibility of living to 150, and revisits the symbolic aging bet between scientists Steven Austad and S. Jay Olshansky.
USC Leonard Davis School Dean Pinchas Cohen is quoted, noting that while average life expectancy has climbed thanks to advances in public health and medicine, “the maximum life expectancy has not risen” and that there’s “no evidence anyone is going to exceed 120.”
The Brown Daily Herald mentioned USC Leonard Davis School faculty member Constanza Cortes, who hosted a Brown student in her lab for summer research in Los Angeles, highlighting her mentorship and lab’s role in cross-institution training.
Nautilus discusses how extreme heat can alter our bodies at the molecular level. The article highlights a USC Leonard Davis School study co-authored by Eunyoung Choi and Jennifer Ailshire, which found that older adults in areas with frequent heatwaves experience accelerated biological aging. The study indicates that living in regions with more than 140 days of temperatures exceeding 90°F per year can lead to over a year of additional biological aging compared to those in cooler areas.
New York Post highlights a USC Leonard Davis School study showing that older adults in regions with frequent heat waves experience accelerated biological aging. Researchers found that just two years of cumulative heat wave exposure can age a person’s cells, tissues, and organs by an additional eight to 12 days. This effect is comparable to the biological toll of smoking or alcohol use.
WFTV includes insights from Valter Longo on how AI could personalize prevention and care by analyzing vast biomarker data. “Soon enough, AI could look at 20,000 biomarkers and, based on millions of cases, recommend personalized interventions… It could recommend healthy actions based on biological age, hormones, and other factors.”
Hospice News features a new study co-authored by Susan Enguídanos detailing social workers’ roles and challenges in preparing patients and caregivers for hospice-initiated live discharges and underscoring the need for standardized, reimbursable discharge processes.
Knowridge Science Report featured a study by Max Thorwald and Caleb Finch on iron’s role in Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer’s disease.
Earth.com featured a study by Mateo Farina, Jung Ki Kim and Eileen Crimmins on how differences in biological aging based on education level have widened over the past 30 years. “Education shapes opportunities and risks throughout life,” Crimmins explained. “It’s a powerful social determinant of health, and it is leaving a mark on how fast or slow our bodies age.”
Scienmag reports on a USC-led randomized trial co-led by Mireille Jacobson, showing that modest guaranteed gift cards increased enrollment among low-income older adults into an Alzheimer’s research registry, potentially speeding diverse participation in studies.
Yahoo (via Telegraph) quoted Jennifer Ailshire in an article about how Baby Boomers may be the wildest generation. “I have often said that baby boomers are going to fundamentally reshape what ageing looks like… We had the stereotype of a grandma knitting or an old fellow gardening because we have associated ageing with frailty and ill-health and a lack of ability to be out in social spaces. Boomers are the first generation in the history of the world to have really benefited from new medical interventions and advice on how to stay fitter for longer, and as a result a great number feel younger and seem younger than those who came before them.”
© 2026 USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology.
