Slate's Geezer Issue One Year Later: Full Metal Socket- How Seniors Become Cyborgs

"The baby boom has aged into a bionics boom," writes the author of this article, which describes the rapid growth of the artificial body industry and questions the moral dilemmas that have arisen as a result of the new technology that is now available to senior citizens.

While the author does list numerous dry statistics in order to illustrate the burgeoning size of this industry, he keeps the article fresh and relatable by peppering his writing with pop-culture references. For example, he draws us into the article by claiming that Arnold Schwarzenegger has actually turned into a terminator in his old age because his hip and heart valve replacements, as well as the bevy of metal holding together his femur, render him part machine. The author again brings back the Terminator reference as he ponders the ethics of turning off the artificial machines that give life, asking "who has the right to terminate a terminator?" These myriad pop-culture references help breathe life into the dull and somewhat depressing topic of bodily aging, making the subject matter more accessible for those not in the 65 and over age bracket.

I also thought the many interesting ethical questions he posed, such as whether we can afford to have Medicare continue to pay for these expensive procedures, revealed the darker side of what we often gloss over as new miracle technology.