X-Message-Number: 5220
From:  (Thomas Donaldson)
Subject: Re: CryoNet #5191 - #5200
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 1995 10:54:51 -0800 (PST)

Hi again!

To Keith Lynch: APOLOGIES. When I looked at the old message I jumped to a
conclusion I should not have jumped to. Squish.

To John Clark: 
My mailing was meant for general reading; note that I did not actually say 
that you were incorrect, and you weren't. I have personally been following 
scientific work on how we form long term memories for years, because  I agree
that it is very important. Also I think we are getting very close to 
understanding how such memories work.  One book you may wish to try is by 
Steven Rose, THE MAKING OF MEMORY. The current widespread interest in LTP
has some justification, but there are other stages  going on concurrently
that will actually make the changes leading to long term memory. You may also
wish to read the article by H. Thoenen in the 27 October SCIENCE and the 
articles on cognitive neuroscience in the 3 November issue.

Incidentally,  I have also been putting out a newsletter on scientific 
developments important to cryonics. So far, nanotech has basically been
theoretical, though I do have a few articles discussing it in the broad 
sense. Most of the articles deal with work on memory and how our brains work.
(This seems to be a major growth area right now --- I'm not claiming this
interest will go on indefinitely). The name of the newsletter is PERIASTRON.

To Brad Templeton:

You mistake cryonics badly. First, there is NO technology or body design 
which will make us indestructible. Not only that, but as our expected livespan
increases, events which we now ignore as too improbable will become major
risks. There will always be a need to store damaged people who cannot at that
time be fixed. Bringing in nanotechnology does not affect this.

Second, all the cryonics groups consist of people who not only want to be
frozen (our current best means of storage, not one we are permanently set
on if we discuss historical time) but also want to be revived. There is an
agreement between times here, even though it is implicit. If the cryonicists
of 200 years from now do not see to our revival, then they will call into 
severe question whether or not THEY WILL be revived when it is their turn.
If nothing else, their group will lose adherents to others which ARE 
reviving past members. Our idea is NOT that we will be revived by some 
total strangers with no relationship to us at all, but that we will be 
revived by other cryonicists.

And of course, we all expect that we will adapt somehow to the future:
whether it includes uploading or not. Since however it came about there would
be a continuous timeline from the human beings of today to whatever we become
tomorrow, it should be possible for us to grow into the same form.

		Best and long long life,

				Thomas Donaldson


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