X-Message-Number: 9350
Date: Wed, 25 Mar 1998 07:19:51 -0800 (PST)
From: Brian D Williams <>
Subject: reviving the frozen

Reposted from Extropians, sorry to interupt the turing
discussion... ;)

From: Damien Broderick <>
Subject: Reviving the frozen

A fascinating radio broadcast in Australia last night (Tues March
24) with James Lovelock, inventor of the Gaia hypothesis.  He was
interviewed by a very intelligent autodidact named Phillip Adams. 
I missed half the program, but was astounded to hear Lovelock's
claim that after his unpatented invention (in the '50s? ' 40s?) of
the microwave oven - or at least of using microwaves to thaw frozen
stuff - certain researchers in the '50s successfully revived small
frozen mammals by that method.  

How pristine the animals' neurology was and how long they lasted
after revival wasn't made clear, but Lovelock was explicit about
their chilly temporary state - frozen hamsters, he said, were quite
solid; you could knock them against the lab bench.  After thawing,
they'd run around.  

I have a lot of respect for Lovelock's integrity and ingenuity. 
Yet this claim appears to surpass anything that current cryonics
specialists seem able to replicate.  

It would be useful to hear some informed comments from, say, Paul
Wakfer or other knowledgeable suspension enthusiasts.

Damien Broderick

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