X-Message-Number: 6001
From:  (Brian Wowk)
Newsgroups: sci.cryonics,sci.life-extension
Subject: Re: INCREASE YOUR LIFE-SPAN RADICALLY...
Date: 28 Mar 96 22:01:15 GMT
Message-ID: <>
References: <> <>


In <> John de Rivaz <> 
writes:

>Someone wrote a book called "If we could keep a severed head alive" under 
>the psuedonym Chet Flemming. I think the real intention of the book was to 
>poke the finger at surgeons who keep people alive fruitlessly under 
>horrific conditions, with various bits cut off or out and replaced with 
>tubes, in the late stages of terminal illness. However it described 
>equipment that could soon appear to enable heads to be kept alive on 
>artificial support systems. The author suggested that surgeons may persuade 
>people to undergo the operation in order to get a few more weeks of life to 
>get their affairs in order.

	Indeed.  Mr. Flemming even tried to patent this idea (so he could
control it), but I believe the application was finally rejected.

	Those familiar with the group may be interested to know that
the people at NeoTech (I&O Publishing) had a brief flirtation with
the severed head approach to "immortality" several years ago.  Ten
years ago I struggled hard for several months to convince them to
fund brain cryopreservation research.  They were initially receptive,
but ended up publishing a public dismissal of cryonics (citing the
hoary old stopped metabolism = death argument).  Next thing I know
they're talking about supporting severed head research.  Anybody
know what they're up to these days?
      
 ***************************************************************************
 Brian Wowk          CryoCare Foundation               1-800-TOP-CARE
 President           Your Gateway to the Future        
    http://www.cryocare.org/cryocare/
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