Presenters
Emil Kendziorra
Emil received his doctoral degree in translational cancer research. Between 2009 and 2019 he founded, grew, and then sold multiple medical- and tech-startups by himself. In the medical field he founded MedLanes, a service that provides medical home visits at the press of a button, even during Covid times. In 2019, the experience and financial resources he gathered allowed him to finally create the company he always wanted to create: Tomorrow Biostasis...
Max More
Max More is a philosopher and futurist who writes, speaks, and consults on advanced decision-making about emerging technologies. He is the current Ambassador and President Emeritus (as of February 2021) after serving almost nine and a half years as president and CEO of Alcor Life Extension Foundation...
Summary:
Max declares that cryonics should be plan A – the first thing a person does to extend their lifespan because the future is uncertain. Emil agrees, and believes there is no clear life extension technology on the near term horizon, which is why he has become interested in cryonics.
Max believes that the number one source of skepticism of cryonics is the idea that if it works, you’ll be stuck in the far future in a foreign environment, and that most people are averse to that idea. Emil feels that the cost, and the immediacy of the act, are bigger issues. Why do it now when you can wait 5-10 years.
The process of cryonics involves SST – standby stabilization and transport, which is the emergency response to death. Then the team removes as much blood as possible from the body, because it contains a lot of water, and replace it with cryoprotectant solution. Rapid cooldown comes next, then slow cooldown to cool and freeze the body so it can be stored in cryogenic dewars. For overseas operations, there is a mobile operating room that takes care of the body up until it can be transported back to the cryo facility on dry ice. Cryonics companies will contract with each other to extend service area in case patients die while on another continent.
Challenges:
Cryoprotectant toxicity is still an issue. Vitrification requires chemical preservatives to prevent ice crystal formation, but these cryoprotectants are often very toxic. It doesn’t invalidate the process but does make it less palatable for many people.
Ischemia, non-ideal ultrastructure formation, and small amounts of ice formation are still issues.
Novel warming techniques would push the field forward tremendously.
