Looking for refrence on 'orks' and 'Cybernetics', Shadowrun style... Options

[Ed Simons]

[hyzmarca]

The problem with defining averag elifespan is that the word "average" has three different meanings. Depending on the survey methodology and the definition of "average" used one could set the "average" human lifespan to be any number between zero and and infinity.

[Kagetenshi]

Not true. The term "average" used unqualified and mathematically always refers to the arithmatic mean.

~J

[mintcar]

The real problem with the "average" ork lifespan of 40 is that the number referenced for humans in the same table, 55, has (worldwide) printed next to it but the numbers for other races doesn´t. I think it´s obvious that this applies to all the numbers, and that the lifespan of 40 has much to do with the rough life of troggs, and does not have soley genetic reasons. However, some writers obviously took it a bit more litteraly, because in some fiction orks really do grow old very quickly. And that incosistency makes for a lot of debate.

[TheNarrator]

I thought Methuselah Syndrome had nicely explained that. Many Orks (including the CEO of Yamatetsu) have this Syndrome, causing them to age rapidly.

[nezumi]

Hmm... Am I the only one who thinks people are starting to nitpick just to see who can acquire the most? :P

Average lifespan of an ork is around 40. I seem to recollect there being canon examples of orks aging faster, for instance in orksploitation. I DO know it appears in some of the books. I seem to recollect Kham was related to an ork like that, who's like 70 years old in the Ork underground, and his wife who was born ork was about 50 and looked 90.

Edit: Changed 'Khal' to 'Kham' because I *KNOW* someone will make a [nitpick] post just to correct me otherwise.

[FrankTrollman]

[Moon-Hawk]

Where is the info on Methusela's Syndrome and Yamatetsu?

[FrankTrollman]

There isn't much of it. In Shadows of Asia it says that Yamatetsu's CEO has methuselah's syndrome and is undergoing treatment. By SR4, Evo Corporation (formerly Yamatetsu) is leading the way in "anti-aging experiments."

-Frank

[hyzmarca]

[Moon-Hawk]

What Kagetenshi is saying is that when the word "average" is used, unless otherwise specified, can reasonably be assumed to mean the arithmetic mean. Yes, average can apply to median, mode, geometric mean, and a very long list of other types of "averages", but the arithmetic mean is the "standard" use of the word average, (at least when used mathematically) unless otherwise specified.
I am inclined to agree.

[John Campbell]

The real problem with the "average" lifespan number is that knowing the arithmetic mean actually doesn't tell us much that's useful, and can be extremely misleading when used incautiously.

For example, an average lifespan of 40 could equally well represent a group where all members keel over dead from old age and extreme decrepitude on their 40th birthday, and a group where half the members die moments after birth and the other half are murdered by jealous spouses at 80. Without knowing something about the distribution, simply knowing the mean tells you practically nothing about the life expectancy of any random group-member-on-the-street, and even less about how they age.

Personally, I suspect that orks' mean lifespan has very little to do with how rapidly they age. They might age faster than humans, but not a whole lot... I figure if they make 30, they've probably got pretty good odds of still being in fairly good shape at 60. The average is just dragged down by the relatively large number that don't make it to 30, because of the various problems associated with being disadvantaged and discriminated against, with the tendency towards multiple births adding insult to injury. (The ork infant mortality rate must be horrific...)

This whole Methuselah Syndrome thing sounds to me like a way to retcon silliness written by people who failed to understand the above.

[Kagetenshi]