The couple went on a quest to find a general theory that could explain what aging is and why and how it happens. After more than 20 years of "sustained intellectual effort"—first at Moscow State University in Russia and recently at the University of Chicago's Center of Aging—they produced a "fundamental reliability theory of aging and longevity."1 It is, they suggest, "a promising approach" for developing a comprehensive theory that integrates biological knowledge with systems repair principles and mathematical methods.
Since its publication, the Gavrilovs' paper has sparked discussion among those in theoretical biology and others interested in the evolution of aging, garnering comments ranging from "astonishing" to "a useful contribution," as well as "incredibly clever," "robust," "original," "thought-provoking," and "a pointer in the direction of how to understand the aging process."
To adapt general reliability theory to biological systems and make it work, however, the Gavrilovs had to make ...
