Responding with a comment because a down-vote is not available...
This is a tired strawman argument that seems to rear its head in every discussion of cryonics. Cryonics patients are being stored for future revival, perhaps in the distant future. Successful revival is dependent on the technology existing in the future to reverse vitrification damage. It’s of no relevance whether that technology exists today, just that it is within the realm of physical possibility to create such technology and that sufficient funds are provided up front for perpetual storage, since we don’t know how long it will be until that technology exists. (But we know with near certainty that such technology is possible, by a number of different routes).
This is explained in the FAQs of all cryonics organizations I’m aware of.
Downvote accepted, I do miss that feedback mechanism (when it worked, not when it got abused). My comment was perhaps over-brief.
I stand by my assertion that any definition of “successful” for cryonics must include actual revivals or measurable progress toward such. Nobody would ever wonder why chemotherapy isn’t more successful because many cancer patients choose not to try it.
It now occurs to me that OP may have intentionally distinguished “cryonics movement” from “cryonics” in terms of success metrics, in which case I’m still concerned, but have expressed the wrong dimension of concern.
Yes, I believe we have wandered off he OP’s original topic.
But for what it’s with I think you are comparing apples to oranges. All cryonics cases that have not experienced early failure due to organizational or engineering flaws are still ongoIng. Only about 2% have failed. The other 98% remains to be seen. It is absolutely the case that modern cryonics organizations like Alcor have made tremendous progress in increasing the probably of success, mostly through organizational and funding changes, but also improvements to the suspension process as well.
Responding with a comment because a down-vote is not available...
This is a tired strawman argument that seems to rear its head in every discussion of cryonics. Cryonics patients are being stored for future revival, perhaps in the distant future. Successful revival is dependent on the technology existing in the future to reverse vitrification damage. It’s of no relevance whether that technology exists today, just that it is within the realm of physical possibility to create such technology and that sufficient funds are provided up front for perpetual storage, since we don’t know how long it will be until that technology exists. (But we know with near certainty that such technology is possible, by a number of different routes).
This is explained in the FAQs of all cryonics organizations I’m aware of.
Downvote accepted, I do miss that feedback mechanism (when it worked, not when it got abused). My comment was perhaps over-brief.
I stand by my assertion that any definition of “successful” for cryonics must include actual revivals or measurable progress toward such. Nobody would ever wonder why chemotherapy isn’t more successful because many cancer patients choose not to try it.
It now occurs to me that OP may have intentionally distinguished “cryonics movement” from “cryonics” in terms of success metrics, in which case I’m still concerned, but have expressed the wrong dimension of concern.
Yes, I believe we have wandered off he OP’s original topic.
But for what it’s with I think you are comparing apples to oranges. All cryonics cases that have not experienced early failure due to organizational or engineering flaws are still ongoIng. Only about 2% have failed. The other 98% remains to be seen. It is absolutely the case that modern cryonics organizations like Alcor have made tremendous progress in increasing the probably of success, mostly through organizational and funding changes, but also improvements to the suspension process as well.