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要论世界上寿命最长的国家，日本总能遥遥领先。但是对于生育率极低的日本来说，这一长寿优势只能加剧恶性循环，甚至催生出了不少怪象，比如，成人纸尿裤销量超过婴儿纸尿裤，监狱变成养老院，和朋友结婚等等。专家估算，长此以往，日本人将在3776年灭绝。 Japan is dealing with what economists call a "demographic time bomb." 日本正面临经济学家所谓的“人口定时炸弹”威胁。 Through a vicious cycle of low fertility and low consumer spending, the country's economy has gradually shrunk over the last 25 years. 受制于低生育率和低消费性开支的恶性循环，日本的经济在过去25年正逐渐缩水。 People are living longer, and they're heaping greater social-security costs onto younger generations who aren't having kids to replace them — thereby furthering the cycle. 人们的寿命变长了，老人们滚雪球一样的社保负担被转嫁到了年轻一代的身上，而年轻一代又没有生育出可以替代自己的孩子，于是这种恶性循环进一步加剧。 Here are some of the most visible signs in daily life that the time bomb is ticking. 以下是最能反映日本人口炸弹危机的日常迹象。 There are now 68,000 people over 100 years old. 现在日本100岁以上的老人已经有68000位。 | 
