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A Personal Statement from Iain Banks

littlebrown.co.uk

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Re: A Personal Statement from Iain Banks

#91

Post by stiff »

reasonattlm wrote: post #36

Another person that might be cryopreserved [1], but probably won't be, much like the 150,000 who passed in the last day or so [2]. Many sorts of terminal case can actually lead to better quality cryopreservation under present legal restrictions [3], in comparison to the drawn out and uncertain end of aging, precisely because they are more rapid and certain in time. (Or might be plastinated [4] in the alternate histor…

Whole galaxies die, what to say about us poor humans, please do not offend basic physics with this "other option" thing, if there is a single certain thing in the whole universe it is the certainty of change and, as a consequence, death. We might extend lifespan greatly, it is a different thing altogether, it is worth discussing, it might even be a good thing, I don't know, but clinging to a dream of immortality will in my opinion sooner or later lead to a mental breakdown for most people who choose to pursue this path, latest when confronted with serious disease or dying.

Re: A Personal Statement from Iain Banks

#93

Post by hp50g »

gizmo wrote: post #70
polyfractal wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hmm...except that cryopreservation is still, as of this point, a complete crock of shit. Trying to find a necromancer would be more productive. As an ex-biologist, I can assure you that horrible cellular damage is being committed to these "preserved" people. I used to flash-freeze all sorts of cells, ranging from bacteria (e. coli) to animal (IMCD3 and MDCK kidney) to human (Human Embryonic Kidney, Primary cortical a…

The cell damage inflicted by the cryo process is readily acknowledged by its proponents. They argue that the neurological damage is not so large that the original brain can't be reconstructed either by scanning it while still frozen or by repairing it with nano-bots. Much like data from a wiped hard drive can still be recovered by digital forensics. As for the problem of outer layers freezing faster than inner layers…

The brain is like flash memory. Sure some of the conent is still possible to get at (electrical charge stays around for a long time) but the circuits between the flash cells are all dead. The connections are as important as the state.

Not going to happen.

Re: A Personal Statement from Iain Banks

#94

Post by gargoiler »

melling wrote: post #86

Very sad, of course. He's only 59. I've gotta admit that I'm also a bit angry. The war on cancer is 40 years old and we are still so far away from solving the problem(s). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_Cancer The first commercial microprocessor was released in the same year: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_4004 Solutions? Ideas? The list in my mind is starting to get painfully long: Randy Pausch (47), Steve J…

We'll likely all die from overcrowding problems in the end anyway... Solve all the diseases you want, but we'll all die at some point.

Re: A Personal Statement from Iain Banks

#95

Post by roc »

gizmo wrote: post #70
polyfractal wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hmm...except that cryopreservation is still, as of this point, a complete crock of shit. Trying to find a necromancer would be more productive. As an ex-biologist, I can assure you that horrible cellular damage is being committed to these "preserved" people. I used to flash-freeze all sorts of cells, ranging from bacteria (e. coli) to animal (IMCD3 and MDCK kidney) to human (Human Embryonic Kidney, Primary cortical a…

The cell damage inflicted by the cryo process is readily acknowledged by its proponents. They argue that the neurological damage is not so large that the original brain can't be reconstructed either by scanning it while still frozen or by repairing it with nano-bots. Much like data from a wiped hard drive can still be recovered by digital forensics. As for the problem of outer layers freezing faster than inner layers…

If the concept only works when we're relying on full-brain scans and future nano-bots with the capability to reconstruct brain tissue, the freeze/thaw would be completely superfluous.

Why not cut out the middle-man? Just do a full brain scan and store the digital data until the nano-bots arrive? Then just recreate brains within stock bodies or some virtual/machine environment?

Clinging to the freezing and thawing, when you're forced to concede they won't actually work and then having to invent far superior technologies, but only applying them as a band-aid over the broken technology, looks an awful lot more like someone with a belief grasping for intellectual cover, rather than someone with an intellectual understanding positing solutions.

Re: A Personal Statement from Iain Banks

#100

Post by khafra »

roc wrote: post #95
gizmo wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The cell damage inflicted by the cryo process is readily acknowledged by its proponents. They argue that the neurological damage is not so large that the original brain can't be reconstructed either by scanning it while still frozen or by repairing it with nano-bots. Much like data from a wiped hard drive can still be recovered by digital forensics. As for the problem of outer layers freezing faster than inner layers…

If the concept only works when we're relying on full-brain scans and future nano-bots with the capability to reconstruct brain tissue, the freeze/thaw would be completely superfluous. Why not cut out the middle-man? Just do a full brain scan and store the digital data until the nano-bots arrive? Then just recreate brains within stock bodies or some virtual/machine environment? Clinging to the freezing and thawing, wh…

> Just do a full brain scan and store the digital data until the nano-bots arrive?

Because we don't currently have the technology to either scan or store a 3-d scan of your brain in the same resolution you can get by physically perfusing it with antifreeze and dropping it into a bucket of liquid nitrogen.

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