Are you over 100? Then you've got a better chance of living even longer!

It’s considered an inescapable fact of life: the older you get, the more likely death becomes. But a new research conucted in Germany disproves of that suggestinh that the chances of dying may level off – at least for those who make it to 105 years old.

The study found that death rates, which rise exponentially in adulthood, begin to decelerate after 80 years old and appear to eventually plateau, or even decline slightly, after the age of 105. By that point, the chances of passing away in a given year are approximately 50-50.

“It’s the equivalent of tossing a coin each year,” said Prof Jim Vaupel, a specialist in ageing at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Germany and one of the authors. The findings add fuel to an unusually hostile debate between two camps of scientists, who are locked in an escalating dispute about whether humans are approaching their upper limit in terms of lifespan.

The latest paper, from Vaupel’s team who argue there is no evidence of a looming longevity limit, is based on data tracking the survival trajectories of almost 4,000 Italians older than 105 between 2009 and 2015. And they believe it bolsters their position. “If [mortality] stays constant, as more and more people survive to very old ages, the record will be broken,” said Vaupel.

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Iranian police arrest 29 for involvement in hijab protests

Police in the Iranian capital, Tehran, have arrested 29 people for their involvement in protests against the country's compulsory headscarf law. Masih Alinejad, the Iranian activist behind the "White Wednesday" social media campaign against mandatory hijabs, who is now based in the US, told CNN that the movement has not been influenced from abroad. The wave of anti-goverment demonstrations last month was sparked by concerns over rising living costs and a stagnant economy, but also provided an opening for Iranian women to push for equal rights. In the past, women who allowed their hijab to slip could be admonished by the religious police, but these forces have been less prominent under the regime of President Hassan Rouhani. Soheila Jaloodarzadeh, a female member of the Iranian Parliament, said on Wednesday during an event on women's rights that the protests were the conclusion of years of restrictions, the semiofficial Ilna news agency reported.

UPDATED: Swansea hire Carvalhal as boss until end of season

Premier League strugglers Swansea City appointed Carlos Carvalhal as their manager until the end of the season on Thursday. Carvalhal was sacked by second-tier Sheffield Wednesday on Christmas Eve, but Swansea surprisingly chose the Portuguese coach to replace Paul Clement, who lost his job on December 20 with the club languishing at the bottom of the Premier League. The Welsh club said Carvalhal’s contract included the option of an extension at the end of the season. “We felt we needed to get the managerial situation resolved as soon as possible and while the timing is not always perfect, we can look forward to the second half of the campaign with renewed optimism,” Swanseachairman Huw Jenkins said. To convince Swansea to keep him beyond this season, Carvalhal might have to save his new club from relegation. They sit five points from safety and bottom of the table with no wins in their last four matches after a 5-0 thrashing at Liverpool on Tuesday. Carvalhal is Swansea’s fifth...

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