X-Message-Number: 8014
From:  (Robin Hanson)
Date: Mon, 7 Apr 1997 12:03:17 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Scientists Want Immortality Less than in 1916

The 5Apr97 LA Times, p. B4, had an article reporting on a recent
Nature article comparing a survy of scientists in 1916 to 1996, using
the same questions.  The results:
  
                              1916   1996
BELIEF IN A PERSONAL GOD  
Personal belief                42%    39%
Personal disbelief             41     45
Doubt or agnosticism           17     15

BELIEF IN IMMORTALITY
Personal belief                50     38
personal disbelief             20     47
Doubt or agnosticism           30     15

DESIRE FOR IMMORTALITY
Intense                        34     10
Moderate                       39     26
Not at all                     27     64


The lack of interest by most scientists in cryonics may thus perhaps
be explained by their placing a low value on the potential benefit of
revival, rather than on their placing an especially low probability on
this possibility (say <5%).  This low value on revival is a new thing.  

The lack of interest by scientists may lead non-scientists to infer
that scientists belief the probability of revival is low, when in fact
it is a matter of values.   I suspect that if the percentage of
scientists who both intensely desire immortality *and* don't believe
in God is much lower than 10%.  

Robin D. Hanson    http://hss.caltech.edu/~hanson/

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