44 votes

Storing dead people at -196°C

14 comments

  1. [6]
    Ember
    Link
    From the Wikipedia article for cryonics:

    From the Wikipedia article for cryonics:

    Considering the lifecycle of corporations, it is extremely unlikely that any cryonics company could continue to exist for sufficient time to take advantage even of the supposed benefits offered: historically, even the most robust corporations have only a one-in-a-thousand chance of surviving even one hundred years. Many cryonics companies have failed; as of 2018, all but one of the pre-1973 batch had gone out of business, and their stored corpses have been defrosted and disposed of.

    23 votes
    1. [4]
      Protected
      Link Parent
      At least giving the corpsicles to a nonprofit offshoot that uses passive income from the low risk investment of the deceased's mandatory monetary contribution at death to pay the bills seems like...

      At least giving the corpsicles to a nonprofit offshoot that uses passive income from the low risk investment of the deceased's mandatory monetary contribution at death to pay the bills seems like a rational way to try to keep the lights on.

      14 votes
      1. [3]
        Gekko
        Link Parent
        My guess is that the goal for these companies isn't the preservation of their clients, it's the marketing expansion to convince more rich people to buy their fancy coffins.

        My guess is that the goal for these companies isn't the preservation of their clients, it's the marketing expansion to convince more rich people to buy their fancy coffins.

        10 votes
        1. godzilla_lives
          Link Parent
          The owner did mention that with the current technology they are using, there's no chance at all that they can bring them back, barring some miraculous innovation. So at least that's on the table...

          The owner did mention that with the current technology they are using, there's no chance at all that they can bring them back, barring some miraculous innovation. So at least that's on the table in the video.

          10 votes
        2. Carighan
          Link Parent
          Exactly. As always, it's a business. They're not out there to try preserve people for reanimation, they're trying to get rich.

          Exactly. As always, it's a business. They're not out there to try preserve people for reanimation, they're trying to get rich.

          3 votes
    2. teaearlgraycold
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      There's an interesting This American Life episode about cryonics in the 60s - and the failure of (one of?) the first companies to attempt it.

      There's an interesting This American Life episode about cryonics in the 60s - and the failure of (one of?) the first companies to attempt it.

      9 votes
  2. [7]
    godzilla_lives
    Link
    "To defeat death," is an interesting concept. He didn't allude much further, but I wonder what he meant by that.

    "To defeat death," is an interesting concept. He didn't allude much further, but I wonder what he meant by that.

    5 votes
    1. [4]
      owyn_merrilin
      Link Parent
      A high stakes game of chess is the traditional method.

      A high stakes game of chess is the traditional method.

      15 votes
      1. [3]
        BoomerTheMoose
        Link Parent
        What if he demands best 2 out of 3??

        What if he demands best 2 out of 3??

        2 votes
        1. [2]
          owyn_merrilin
          Link Parent
          Ever see Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey?

          Ever see Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey?

          1 vote
          1. BoomerTheMoose
            Link Parent
            So what you're saying is I should give him a melvin?

            So what you're saying is I should give him a melvin?

    2. [3]
      Comment deleted by author
      Link Parent
      1. JRandomHacker
        Link Parent
        In my mind, "defeating death" starts with just better treatment, etc, for diseases and injury, but then goes on to address senescence itself - why do we have to "age" at all? Can we prevent or...

        In my mind, "defeating death" starts with just better treatment, etc, for diseases and injury, but then goes on to address senescence itself - why do we have to "age" at all? Can we prevent or even reverse the gradual breakdown of our body, the DNA damage, all of that, so that people simply don't die "of old age"?

        The reason why I think it's a non-trivial question is because it opens a whole slew of complications around things like "how do careers and retirement work if people live twice as long or longer" or "what is the actual human capacity of Earth, and how quickly do we reach it if people don't die"

        5 votes
      2. godzilla_lives
        Link Parent
        Yeah most likely, that's what I was thinking. Just seemed like such a poignant statement to me that stuck out, "I think humanity should be trying to defeat death." I'm probably looking into it too...

        Yeah most likely, that's what I was thinking. Just seemed like such a poignant statement to me that stuck out, "I think humanity should be trying to defeat death." I'm probably looking into it too much, heh.

        3 votes
  3. the9tail
    Link
    Damn. Won’t stop me trying though.

    Damn. Won’t stop me trying though.

    1 vote