Methuselah Mouse Prize is a $1 million+ prize by the
Methuselah Foundation. Also known as the M Prize, its goal is to stimulate research and break-through developments in
longevity. The prize will be awarded to whatever researcher can produce the world's longest living mouse (of the species
Mus musculus). The mouse must beat the current record holder known as GHR-KO 11C, which lived for 1819 days.
Mus musculus typically live about 1095 days, before going to the big
cheese factory in the sky.
The money is actually paid out on a
prorated basis. If you beat the previous record by a day, you don't actually get the whole million. If you beat the previous record by extending the mouse's life an extra 10%, you take home 10% of the prize. The value of the prize tends to grow over time. Currently the fund has $1,181,727 in total pledges.
The prize was inspired by the famous
1 Ansari
X Prize. The foundation is based on a similar foundation in
Robert Heinlein's 1941 novel
Methuselah's Children. The foundation was established by Aubrey de Grey, a
University of Cambridge computer scientist.
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1Or should that be fa
mouse? HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA. You wish you were me!