Hiro Protagonist

Somewhere amongst all my Web pages is a commentary on how I've come to think of my body. It's drifted from complete entity to a collection of cells to genetic angst. Here's a passage I stumbled across while flipping through "The Real Science behind the X-Files" by Anne Simon, PhD., that fits well into that thread:

Many of the 100 trillion hardworking cells in your body have very short life spans. One cell dividing to give two is the only way to replace the billions of cells in your body that die every day so that you can live. Skin cells last only between one and thirty-four days and the cells lining your stomach give out after only two days. Not happy with your current liver? If the cells are healthy and able to divide, you'll have a new liver every five hundred days. Some cells in your body don't divide and cannot be replaced. Nerve cells, such as your brain cells, and heart muscle cells are designed to lat a lifetime, but the manufacturer's warranty doesn't cover self-destructive activities.