X-Message-Number: 22781 Date: Thu, 06 Nov 2003 19:23:11 -0500 From: Paul Antonik Wakfer <> Subject: Re: CryoNet #22774 - Relationship of Xenon to Cryonics References: <> In message #22774, Kennita Watson reported: In a related editorial, Thomas Marx, MD, from the University of Ulm in Germany, wrote that xenon's neuroprotective effects may reduce the length of ICU stay, which might offset its high price. "Prolonged ICU stay due to neuronal damage after cardiac bypass surgery alone is regarded to cost $2-4 billion in the United States annually," he notes. He adds, "It is an important milestone for xenon's future to demonstrate how xenon could be administered during ICU therapy. I regret that the authors did not measure the real xenon usage to give a rough estimation of the expected costs." While anything which is neuroprotective (although such an effect for non-ischemic people has yet to be shown) should be of interest to all life extensionists, this use of Xenon has another aspect which may be of particular importance to cryonicists. The reason that Dr Marx was concerned about the cost was because xenon is a rare noble gas (which is also why it is unlikely to have major side effects) which is produced by the fractional liquefaction of air. For the same reason that the price of bulk liquid nitrogen (LN2) is artificially low because it is a byproduct of the production of liquid oxygen, neon, and argon for industrial purposes, if this use and demand for xenon becomes high enough this may further reduce the price of the liquid nitrogen byproduct of the liquefaction process. At the least, this development should exert pressures against price increases in that product. Note also that this below cost byproduct pricing of LN2 is a major part of the reason why it has never been really cost effective for any cryogenic user of LN2 to do in-house production. In fact, such small LN2 production plants are only justifiable for cryonics purposes as back-up in case of extended failure of the bulk delivery infrastructure. --Paul Wakfer MoreLife for the rational - http://morelife.org Reality based tools for more life in quantity and quality The Self-Sovereign Individual Project - http://selfsip.org Rational freedom by self-sovereignty & social contracting Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=22781