I don’t think that writing yourself into the future would work very well, but I’ve got another idea for a cheap cryonics-substitute: get your brain frozen in plain old ice. By the time we get whole brain emulation, a brain frozen in ice may contain enough information to replicate on a computer, even if it cannot be biologically revived like a cryogenically frozen brain.
Permafrost burial has been explored, but is generally considered an inferior option. If I were going for a cheap cryonics substitute, I’d try plasticization. A lab can do a head for a couple thousand bucks, it preserves enough microstructure for an electron scanning microscope, and there’s no worries about staying cool.
The cost of cryonics is more than just the liquid nitrogen. You need to mobilize a team to properly preserve the brain, then keep it in a refrigeration unit indefinitely.
If you keep tissue at temperatures slightly below 0ºC, it’s not really frozen. Tiny pockets of concentrated ions will lower the freezing temperature of water in in those areas, keeping portions of the tissue liquid. I think the effect is similar to salting roads in the winter time. Anyway, the tissue degrades over time scales we care about.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Cryo is not expensive.
Repeat 5000 times until it sticks…
Seriously, the cost of reliably getting people to bury you in ice somewhere would be more than the cheapest cryo.
It has to be ice that never melts
You have to find a group of people who are willing to “move a body” for you without freaking out. They will probably also have to trek somewhere remote and then break the law. They have to not “chicken out” at the end.
It has to not be found out by the authorities and exhumed
It has to be found again at the other end (perhaps when your associates are themselves dead)
It has to be super-cold ice (south pole, perhaps?) and even then bacteria would be a problem.
EDIT: apparently cryonics societies will do the work for you, but it’ll still cost $5000+. Why not get the real deal for only a little more?
I don’t think that writing yourself into the future would work very well, but I’ve got another idea for a cheap cryonics-substitute: get your brain frozen in plain old ice. By the time we get whole brain emulation, a brain frozen in ice may contain enough information to replicate on a computer, even if it cannot be biologically revived like a cryogenically frozen brain.
Permafrost burial has been explored, but is generally considered an inferior option. If I were going for a cheap cryonics substitute, I’d try plasticization. A lab can do a head for a couple thousand bucks, it preserves enough microstructure for an electron scanning microscope, and there’s no worries about staying cool.
A couple of things:
The cost of cryonics is more than just the liquid nitrogen. You need to mobilize a team to properly preserve the brain, then keep it in a refrigeration unit indefinitely.
If you keep tissue at temperatures slightly below 0ºC, it’s not really frozen. Tiny pockets of concentrated ions will lower the freezing temperature of water in in those areas, keeping portions of the tissue liquid. I think the effect is similar to salting roads in the winter time. Anyway, the tissue degrades over time scales we care about.
Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive. Cryo is not expensive.
Repeat 5000 times until it sticks…
Seriously, the cost of reliably getting people to bury you in ice somewhere would be more than the cheapest cryo.
It has to be ice that never melts
You have to find a group of people who are willing to “move a body” for you without freaking out. They will probably also have to trek somewhere remote and then break the law. They have to not “chicken out” at the end.
It has to not be found out by the authorities and exhumed
It has to be found again at the other end (perhaps when your associates are themselves dead)
It has to be super-cold ice (south pole, perhaps?) and even then bacteria would be a problem.
EDIT: apparently cryonics societies will do the work for you, but it’ll still cost $5000+. Why not get the real deal for only a little more?