Living on the Edge: Musings on Micromorts and Microlives

I stumbled upon the concept of micromorts while editing a document with a simple misspelling: micro-dying instead of micro-drying. The subject has been on my mind for quite a while because the concept makes me think about the value of life.

I mean, life is good and all, and understanding the danger of dying is useful. But at the same time, I do not want to live a safe, boring life. So, I keep wondering: is there a way to live on the edge without increasing the risk of dying exponentially?

Perhaps, a more appropriate metaphor would be balancing on a tightrope.

I have always believed in balancing out my risks of death and disease. However, I did not consider the mathematical implications of the small risks I took until recently.

For example, if I drink, I will not take painkillers even under the threat of a horrible hangover. Why? The liver is responsible for drug metabolism. Therefore, the toxic effects of alcohol and medication would be additional and more harmful.

Therefore, I feel like I can only choose one at a time.

Micromort vs Microlife

The risk of the things you do daily and the probability of your death can be quantified like all things can be. And whether you know it or not, you are at risk of death every time you wake up. Micromorts and microlives provide a way to analyse the dangers to your life expectancy.

A micromort is the one-millionth chance of death, the one-in-a-million chance you will die from an activity. This unit of risk can be assessed through the historical data collected and analysed for different events people are involved in.

As you might expect, different activities have a varying number of micromorts, and more micromorts mean a higher risk of death.

A micro life is also a unit of risk, but it represents a half-hour change in one's life expectancy. In simple terms, an activity can lead to the loss or gain of a microlife, i.e., half an hour of life expectancy.

For example, if a person chooses a diet of red meat, they will lose a microlife with each portion while five servings of fruit and vegetables will mean gaining 3 or 4 microlives.

Of course, the above is an oversimplification of the concepts, but I think it is enough to discuss my point.

Decision-Making Based on Risk

I believe most of our human decisions are made through an analysis of the risk, consciously or subconsciously. Even love which seems irrational...

Of course, most people do not focus on the death aspect of decisions, but they do look at the risks.

For example, if you are leaving your house to meet friends on Friday, you must decide on your mode of transportation. Some people might not realise how much quick subconscious analysis they put into this choice, especially at night.

One must evaluate the type of friends and their behaviours, the location of the meetup, past experiences, the potential costs, and the day of the week before deciding to drive, walk, take a matatu, or order an Uber.

And when the risks are too high, you will choose just to stay home, safe and secure. (Of course, sedentary behaviour like watching Netflix for two hours leads to the loss of about one microlife).

Eliminating Subjective Choices

Micromorts are often used in decision analysis in complex situations where a choice must be made in a formal manner. If you work in a position that requires you to make important choices like hiring employees, you should already know that decisions are never truly objective.

The human factor always affects choices even when it seems like everything is on the up and up. Unfortunately or fortunately, decisions involving preventing human death must (in theory) be clear and justifiable.

Decision analysis using micromorts is useful for reducing informality and personal feelings when judging the cost of lives.

For example, governments use the value of a (statistical) life to determine the amount of money they should justifiably spend to protect their citizens from certain risks. Yes, yes, I know, you can’t put a value on human life (although you really can if you want, just saying).

If the risks are low (or the potential fatalities are few) in a situation, it is impractical for the government to put a lot of money into the protection.

Decision analysis allows the agencies to make cost-effective and practical decisions, ensuring more lives are protected with a small amount. This concept applies to healthcare, education, transportation, and other sectors.

Although theory and practice can differ...

You might feel that the government should put equal efforts everywhere to protect all citizens instead of calculating the micromorts. But let's be realistic...

I also believe we subconsciously calculate the micromorts in our personal lives and choose where to put our money. For example, I think everyone considers the real risk of death seriously when renting or buying a new house or apartment.

Applying the Principles for Personal Interests

I feel like understanding the units of risks, both micromorts and microlives can help me live the best life. And it is not about prolonging my life as much as possible.

I do not think knowing the micro-probability of your death or how many half hours you are losing for each action means you must be constantly cautious about your choices. Just because smoking a packet of cigarettes means the loss of 10 microlives doesn't mean you should quit (although you probably should).

From where I am standing, the knowledge is an opportunity to

1. Keep microlives balanced.

2. Spend micromorts more efficiently

Going back to the beginning of my subconscious dabbling with these two concepts through alcohol and drug use... Ok, let me rephrase that.

Drinking alcohol and taking analgesics, such as paracetamol, will have an additive deleterious effect on the liver. In simple terms, the total micromorts will be added together to determine the probability of death.

The obvious solution would be to avoid both, but where is the fun in that?

Usually, the risk analysis for cumulative micromorts is carried out for a specific period, and the risk is reset when the period is over.

Increasing Your Probability of Death

For example, think about waking up in the morning and going to work. The micromorts will accumulate due to possible risks like getting into a car accident, falling into a ditch, getting food poisoning, drinking with colleagues after work, getting back home in a sketchy Uber, and sleeping in a house where you could experience a violent robbery.

The 24 hours will reset your micromort count.

Then, you wake up and start over again. (It is a sad existence we live.)

But do not feel bad about it and wish you were on vacation.

You should understand that the micromorts are exponential for vacations, starting with the country or area you will choose for your holiday. Some locales just drop micromorts and take microlives by just breathing the air.

And let us not forget those fun activities you will engage in during your trip.

If you have a really good time, I think you should have at least 1000 micromorts under your belt.

It seems high, doesn't it? 1000/1,000,000 i.e., one-thousands of a chance of death before you get back home. Do not worry though. It will reset when you get back home.

If you get back home...

But before you think that doing something meaningful is better, remember that climbing Mt Everest has an estimated risk value of 40,000 micromorts per climb, which is a staggering 4% risk of death. Using heroin is only estimated at 30 micromorts (not a suggestion; addiction will pump those numbers up.).

All I am saying is that we should practise decision analysis for the sake of self-serving indulgence without risking too much death. In simple terms, budget your micromorts and always look for the point of reset.

Simple Addition and Subtraction

The concept of gaining or losing half an hour of your life is not new.

You have heard people chide smokers on how the sticks are cutting off days of their lives and so on. The effects of smoking on microlives are well-researched, but people do not often think about habits that could lead to the same cumulative effects as smoking.

A lot of small bad habits repeated over time will kill ya! Still, I am not campaigning for people to stop bad habits that cause microlives loss. You do you! However, do not forget to budget for your limited life expectancy.

You only live once for a couple of years, so you cannot just keep doing things that chop off microlives. If you kid around, you will probably lose all your twilight years.

Fortunately, you can balance some of your little bad habits with microlives gaining choices.

I believe in the concept of the yin-yang. Chaos organised. Opposites are separated but intertwined to create a beautiful balance. There is light; there is darkness. And in the light, there's a smidge of darkness and in the darkness, light.

When I achieve enlightenment, I will be free of earthly desires and become pure light. But for now, I like a little dark excitement. Still, I remember the hazards of living dangerously. So, I try to keep a balance between the light and the dark.

For now, I aim for the status quo. (Microlife gain= Microlife loss)

No Absolutes

You are one person, even if you have several personalities for different scenarios in your life. So, keep the personalities in check as if they are children. Let the boring one play a little and let the crazy one take a chill pill occasionally.

In simple terms, if you have habits that cost you microlives by doing all kinds of crazy, you need to cultivate others to help you gain microlives.

Of course, you can choose absolutes and focus on gaining more microlives if you wish.

But are you living... if you are not living on the edge?