Double Standard: Anti-aging & Accelerated Pregnancies

Use this forum to discuss the July 2020 Book of the month, "Zona: The Forbidden Land" by Fred G. Baker.
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Kreads1
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Double Standard: Anti-aging & Accelerated Pregnancies

Post by Kreads1 »

Zona has an anti-aging effect on members of the expedition team. This aspect of Zona left me questioning the multiple accelerated pregnancies among the team.

How can Zona both accelerate aging during pregnancy and prevent aging at the same time? Did anyone else notice this double standard? Do you think this is an oversight of the author or intended?
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Post by moowshiri »

I also noticed this double standard. However, I don't think that it was intended.
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Post by bjoly2 »

That's a great point [mention]Kreads1[/mention], and I never considered it in that light. I don't know that it's necessarily an oversight of the author as they may have been thinking, as I did, that the acceleration of pregnancy was due to exceptional health, not age. My takeaway was that an extremely healthy body carrying a healthy fetus would be able to carry to term much quicker than the typical timeframe allotted. You've definitely put a new spin on it, though, and I'm second-guessing myself!
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Post by rahilshajahan »

It could be intended. I think the author thought the babies would grow faster given their parents being much healthier than they would be in the outside world.

For the point about anti-aging, the growth hormones simply grow your bones and muscles, thus improving their strength. The doctor, Petrowski, says that he 'feels' ten years younger. There's no direct claim by the author as to whether the residents of Zona are not aging. Great observation though!
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Post by Kreads1 »

bjoly2 wrote:
“That's a great point @Kreads1, and I never considered it in that light. I don't know that it's necessarily an oversight of the author as they may have been thinking, as I did, that the acceleration of pregnancy was due to exceptional health, not age. My takeaway was that an extremely healthy body carrying a healthy fetus would be able to carry to
term much quicker than the typical timeframe allotted. You've definitely put a new spin on it, though, and I'm second-guessing myself!”

That is an interesting takeaway as well, and perhaps in line with what the author intended. I believe a sequel is in the works, I hope that this aspect of Zona is explored further. Perhaps this ties into the unusual size of the animals in Zona? They seemed to have grown at an accelerated rate. Will these babies be born larger than the typical baby? And the big question on my mind, if they remain in Zona, will their development be atypical? So many questions!
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Post by Kreads1 »

rahilshajahan wrote:
“For the point about anti-aging, the growth hormones simply grow your bones and muscles, thus improving their strength. The doctor, Petrowski, says that he 'feels' ten years younger. There's no direct claim by the author as to whether the residents of Zona are not aging. Great observation though!”

I agree, the author does not directly claim the the residents of Zona are not aging. It may that I made that jump to anti-aging because if I were personally effected in that way I would feel that I was defying aging.

The idea you raise related to human growth hormone could be the reasoning behind the accelerated pregnancies, and is something to contemplate.
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Post by Suzer6440 xyz »

This is a very good point. For some reason though, I do not think the author intended to do this . The reviews are still good . I also think it depends what kind of reader you are . The writer and the reader both can look at it differently
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Post by JB3 »

I don't feel that it is a double standard. I think that the aging process has been slowed due to all the hormones by making them healthier. The accelerated pregnancies are also due to the beneficial effects of the hormones.
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Post by Crisis_12444 »

I noticed it too, but I don't think the author intended this. It really depends on how you view it.
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Post by Ellylion »

Kreads1 wrote:
> bjoly2 wrote:
> “That's a great point @Kreads1, and I never considered it in that light. I
> don't know that it's necessarily an oversight of the author as they may
> have been thinking, as I did, that the acceleration of pregnancy was due to
> exceptional health, not age. My takeaway was that an extremely healthy body
> carrying a healthy fetus would be able to carry to
> term much quicker than the typical timeframe allotted. You've definitely
> put a new spin on it, though, and I'm second-guessing myself!”
>
> That is an interesting takeaway as well, and perhaps in line with what the
> author intended. I believe a sequel is in the works, I hope that this
> aspect of Zona is explored further. Perhaps this ties into the unusual size
> of the animals in Zona? They seemed to have grown at an accelerated rate.
> Will these babies be born larger than the typical baby? And the big
> question on my mind, if they remain in Zona, will their development be
> atypical? So many ques[mention]kReads[/mention]

About the aging process I would say there is some miscalculation by the author or a flaw. As for the bigger than usual size of the animals, I think humans should look different too.
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Post by Edwin Amah »

This point was well noted by me, but from my reading view I just saw it to be normal. The author maybe didn't intend it to be viewed that way.
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Post by David_Kariuki »

JB3 wrote:
> I don't feel that it is a double standard. I think that the aging process
> has been slowed due to all the hormones by making them healthier. The
> accelerated pregnancies are also due to the beneficial effects of the
> hormones.
I really believe its a matter of perspective. I believe it is because it might seem obvious that younger ladies are more 'stable' to handle pregnancies, compared to older ladies, even as evidenced by science.
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Post by David_Kariuki »

Kreads1 wrote:
> rahilshajahan wrote:
> “For the point about anti-aging, the growth hormones simply grow your bones
> and muscles, thus improving their strength. The doctor, Petrowski, says
> that he 'feels' ten years younger. There's no direct claim by the author as
> to whether the residents of Zona are not aging. Great observation though!”
>
> I agree, the author does not directly claim the the residents of Zona are
> not aging. It may that I made that jump to anti-aging because if I were
> personally effected in that way I would feel that I was defying aging.
>
> The idea you raise related to human growth hormone could be the reasoning
> behind the accelerated pregnancies, and is something to contemplate.
I also think that, the anti-aging process also makes the body function more effectively and as a result pregnancy is accelerated.
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Post by Kreads1 »

I can understand the argument that perspective plays into this. Perhaps the author intended for the reader to recognize these aspects of Zona, or the author may have overlooked the double standard some of us are recognizing. Likewise, each reader is going to interpret the book in a different manner from their perspective. My interest in the sequel mentioned in other threads is mounting because I'd like to know if the author circles back to these aspects of Zona.
Personally, I think for the reader to "buy into" the book, human development should mimic that of the other animals residing in Zona. So these babies, if born and/or raised in Zona would develop differently then the "typical baby" would. If this is not the case, then I think there is a strong argument that there was an oversight rather than intention here.
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Post by Haywhyre7 »

I observed this too and it struck me as odd as well... I don't think it was intended by the author though. I feel the hormones improved their strength and didn't necessarily prevent then from ageing so I think the accelerated pregnancies is based on their increased health and strength
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