I believe that most young people don't understand aging. They condemn movie stars for growing old, and don't understand how an older person can be sexy. They know that when they get old, they won't be like the old people they see. But we don't have the healthy lifespans of Dragaerans. We have seen the case of one Dragaeran complaining that he needed to quit his job because of his age - being told to bide his complaint by Sethra. But neither of them are aged the way humans get. Certainly Dragaerans can expect to die violently, old age takes so much time. Also humans age in more than body. Older people tend to lose some of their social constraints. Our irritating characteristics become enhanced as we become less interested in moderating them. e.g. He's always been irascible, but now he's more so. She's always been self-centered, but now she's more so. I believe the powerful also develop this attribute. We have seen "scientists" become enveloped in their research in a way I would expect a long-lived scientist to become, where the outside world and rules didn't matter much. It's interesting to picture an ancient Issola or Yendi.