X-Message-Number: 19540
Date: Wed, 17 Jul 2002 10:32:27 -0400
From: skipjack <>
Subject: Re: CryoNet
References: <>
Cryo-debate opens lid on freezing process.
Charles Beresford says most people are surprised to learn that
he
does not keep dead bodies in his freezer.
Beresford, president of
Scottsdale-based
Cryogenics
International, has
received a barrage of
telephone calls from
journalists and other
inquisitors in the wake
of news reports that
baseball legend Ted
Williams has been
cryogenically frozen in
Scottsdale.
But Cryogenics
International isn't responsible for freezing Williams -- or
anyone else,
for that matter. The company uses a patented cryogenic process
to
treat tools, engine parts and many other common items to make
them perform better and last longer. It also sells the equipment
used
in the cryogenic process.
"You can use cold temperatures for things other than turning
people
into Popsicles," Beresford said.
One reason for the confusion is that many people don't know the
difference between cryogenics and cryonics, he said. Cryogenics
is
a general term referring to the science of working with
extremely
cold temperatures. Cryonics refers specifically to the practice
of
freezing human bodies in the hope of someday thawing them out
and reviving them once the necessary technology has been
developed.
Beresford said the methods used by
cryonics firms are much cruder than
the process he uses. He has
developed a patented,
computer-controlled system that
monitors and adjusts temperatures to
provide slow and controlled cooling. It
takes eight to 12 hours to cool the
materials, and they are kept at a
temperature of minus 320 degrees
Fahrenheit for 24 hours before being
thawed out in an equally controlled
manner.
The cooling process slows down the individual molecules that
make
up all matter, thereby causing them to line up in more organized
patterns. This increases strength and durability of the material
and
removes structural flaws. Even when thawed, the materials retain
their more organized structure, Beresford said.
"The pressure of being cold squeezes out imperfections."
The primary function of cryonics, on the other hand, is to
efficiently
store bodies at extremely cold temperatures for long periods of
time,
Beresford said.
One problem with the procedure is that it sucks moisture out of
human tissues, often causing cracks in the frozen bodies, he
said.
Another is that freezing tends to rupture individual cells,
causing
essential chemicals to become displaced.
Beresford said even if technology is developed that can repair
each
individual cell, the chemical displacement in the brain would
effectively "erase" it like a reformatted hard drive.
"You'd wake up as an (adult) child," he said. "You wouldn't even
be
able to speak. Your memory, personality, every essence of you
would be gone."
Alcor Life Extension Foundation, the nonprofit group in
Scottsdale
that has reportedly frozen and is storing Williams' body,
explains on
its Web site there is "no guarantee cryonic suspension ever will
allow for future revival." Still the company asserts that the
continuing
development of nanotechnology and cloning techniques make
revival a growing possibility, and that there is nothing to lose
by
being placed in cryonic suspension, since bodies already must be
legally dead before they can undergo the process.
Alcor officials are not talking to the media and could not be
reached
for comment.
Beresford said unlike cryonics firms, his company can guarantee
results -- in the form of tools and equipment lasting two to
four times
longer than normal. The process also improves the sound quality
of
stereo components, musical instruments and CDs or DVDs, he
added.
Anyone can have possessions cryogenically treated. Cryogenics
International charges by the pound, anywhere from $1 to $9 per
pound, depending on the size of the order. It also offers fixed
rates
for CDs ($2 each), rifle barrels ($45) and many other items.
Beresford said the cryogenics industry has been growing steadily
since the company was founded in 1986. Still, there are many
misperceptions about what cryogenics is all about.
"Nine out of 10 people are going to think we're freezing
people," he
says. "That's cryonics, not cryogenics."
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