X-Message-Number: 18479
Date: Sun, 3 Feb 2002 17:45:34 -0500
From: Thomas Donaldson <>
Subject: CryoNet #18466 - #18473

For the comments of Ettinger and others on what we must preserve:

I feel sympathetic to Ettinger's ideas, not because I can defend them
but because after considerable reading on how brains work it ceases to
be obvious to me that we can reproduce a brain in any other than 
a biological system. The net system making brains remains unknown;
even worse, the more we learn about how brains work, the harder it
looks to make something of silicon to imitate it. Abilities at
self-repair form the first issue, and a good imitation brain would
also have to have similar abilities. Yes, they seem small right now,
but simple application of the right hormones does lots of things to
increase the number of neurons and their connections.

However I would strongly disagree with Ettinger on the issue of what
we want to preserve. Though I do not insist that my memories ALL be
preserved, I would say that to be revived with NO memories of my
previous life is not to be revived at all. Not only that, but we're
already very close to being able to do that, by making clones of 
someone. In terms of the cryobiology needed, we're virtually already
there. Why then do so many people want their heads and brains to be
preserved, and others want their whole body preserved? ("Many People"
is a relative term here). 

Cryonics is about our revival on all relevant features, not just 
creating a twin.

		Best wishes and long long life to all,

			Thomas Donaldson

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