When asked about her new title Tuesday, Besse Cooper, who is 114 years and 5 months old, said it's "rather great."
The Los Angeles-based Gerontology Research Group certifies supercentenarians
-- people who are 110 or older. It says Cooper became the oldest person after the death Monday morning of Eunice G. Sanborn of Jacksonville, Texas.
Cooper was born in Sullivan County, Tenn., on Aug. 26, 1896, and moved to Georgia to be a schoolteacher during World War I.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Cooper gave this recipe for her longevity when she turned 113: She minds her own business and doesn't eat junk food.
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