• Aneurysm

“I hope I die before I get old”

The Who, My Generation 1966

“Better to burn out than to fade away”

Neil Young, Rust Never Sleeps 1979

“Live hard, die young and leave a beautiful corpse”

James Dean

The sympathies expressed above are sympathies expressed by the younger generation. They lie not just with today's younger generation but historically have been the rallying cry of many a younger generation, if not expressed in so many words. The words should not be taken literally; most in the younger generation would not rather die before they get old. In fact, it is most probable that Pete Townsend and Neil Young would tone down their assertions if they were to make them today. Rather, the words reflect the ever present generation gap, the ubiquitous difference in thought and attitudes among generations. These differences are often so strong that members of the younger generation might claim that they would rather not exist than to transform into a clone of an older generation as they age.

At this point you may be asking yourself what this has to do with anything, let alone the field of neurointerventional surgery. I'm quite sure …