review of Doug Platts talk on Cryonics:

On May 16, Doug Platt came to talk with PhACT about Cryonics - which is
the study and practice of freezing people for ( hopefully)
revival at some time when technology can not only fix the ailment
which did (or would have) killed them, but also (and this is the big
step) undo all the serious damage reeked by freezing.  Normally, crystallization
which occurs with freezing destroys cells as would any chemical measures
to avoid crystallization.
   Doug has been into this subject 20 years, has 2 frozen dogs, will himself be
preserved and has participated in the "preservation" of others.  Doug's futuristic
stance in life was well underscored by the elaborate micro computer screen which he wore
on his head while speaking (a few of us computer people in the audience started
wondering if we should get one).  Doug ingratiated himself by declaring himself a skeptic and
mentioned having subscribed to Skeptical Inquirer 15 years ago.
  Doug early on started begging the question of definitions: most people feel there is
no universal definition of death (obviously, if you are revived from death, you weren't
really dead)  and the essence of the individual.  Doug believes there is no soul which
departs from people at the moment of death and hold little hope of a spiritual resurrection
as described by religionists.  He lamented that there are only about 1000 active
people in the cryogenics movement which has gone on about 30 years, and says, "we'd
have more members if we were nuts".  He suspects that  people
feel discomfort considering death and confusion over the definition of self  holds people back
from involvement.  He assured us that with one exception, there has been no real fraud or hucksterism
in the movement.  But, there's something gruesome about it which makes people reluctant. Doug
referred to the "icky poo factor" of people being freaked out by the whole concept.  But, if
you think about it, these people are attempting to make a one way trip into the future.
  As with any controversial practice, there are plenty of myths associated with cryonics:
like Walt Disney having been frozen - he was considering it but never did.  Or someone pulling the
plug and bodies thawing out - Doug says they are suspended head down in liquid
nitrogen - there's plenty of thermal mass and if the level of nitrogen, got too
low, only the feet would thaw. Doug addressed the question of massive damage with
a small ray of hope that maybe the fledgling science of nanotechnology (with micro miniature
machines) may be able to repair the damage. (This reviewing engineer feels that
warming a body enough for micro robots to work would also allow further decomposition.)

Among the questions raised from the audience were:

Subscribing member, Bob Pandolfi, who plans to be "preserved", distributed
neat cyronics literature at the talk.

Doug reminded us that even if it is impossible to revive people, at the very least, we would
be leaving behind well preserved corpses (he refers to as "patients") for possible future
scientific posterity.  He feels that present forms of "corpse care" insure less chance of
resurrection and that cryonics is for people who love life and don't limit themselves
to the accepted notion of getting old and simply dying.

Although, this reviewer is aptly skeptical of people frozen today ever being
resurrected, he concedes that some sort of suspended animation would be necessary
to send sentient beings to other solar systems in a few centuries.
 
 

More information on Cryonics can be had at: http://www.jps.net/cryonics/
 
 

This page is provided care of Eric Krieg   and is found
at: http://www.phact.org/e/skeptic/cryonics.htm