X-Message-Number: 8748
Date: Sun, 9 Nov 1997 11:31:21 -0500 (EST)
From: Charles Platt <>
Subject: Provable reversible cryopreservation

On Sun, 9 Nov 19997 Thomas Donaldson wrote:

> Furthermore, fully perfected suspended animation will not solve most of
> our problems with cryonics. In the first place, it could only be used
> on people who were still alive, though they suffered from some conditions
> for which a cure could not be found. What about people found dead 5 minutes
> after they ceased breathing and heartbeat? 

Thomas, I suppose I have to believe you are sincere, but your long list 
of quibbles (most of which snipped here) seems an attempt to distract 
from the obvious #1 issue, merely for the sake of argument.

Suppose heart surgery had a 100-percent mortality rate. Then someone comes 
along and refines the process so that it now has a 10-percent mortality 
rate. Would you respond in this case by saying, "Of course this won't 
solve most of our problems with heart disease."?

You may object that this is not a good analogy since even under current
conditions, cryonics may turn out to save some lives. But this is
irrelevant. Rightly or wrongly, most people (99.99 percent of the
population) believe that cryonics _is_ 100 percent fatal; that cryonics
patients are DEAD, period. As soon as you can prove otherwise (instead of
making endless hopeful, vague statements), the procedure moves from being
totally speculative (and unconvincing) to being a viable alternative to
mortality. Yes, it will still involve risks. But every medical procedure
involves risks. (You know this better than I do.)

Yes, people will still die in ways that prevent them from receiving a good
cryopreservation. But this was not my point. My point was that provably
reversible cryopreservation will totally change the public perception of
cryonics, at which point the problem will not be lack of growth, the
problem will be how to deal with the huge new wave of people wanting to
sign up. 

Lastly, you suggest that 5 minutes of warm ischemia is fatal. Earlier 
this year, at 21st Century Medicine, I watched a dog successfully 
resuscitated after 15 minutes of warm ischemia, with no measurable 
subsequent neurological damage. This is one example of the benefits that 
can be reaped from research.

--Charles Platt

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