X-Message-Number: 6102
From: John de Rivaz <>
Newsgroups: sci.cryonics
Subject: Re: "investing in cryonics"
Date: Mon, 15 Apr 1996 10:46:27 +0100
Message-ID: <>
References: <4kj5d9$>

This is undoubtedly an idea whose time has come, but it is dangerously 
narrow to invest in just one company.

If your cryonics company were to go bust, you would probably be taken on by 
another cryonics company simply to prevent the process getting a bad name. 
So you would still be revived, but without your money. You may even have a 
large debt to work off.

For cryonics to succeed, technology as a whole needs to expand far more 
than anticipated by present stock market quotations. Therefore what you 
need is a fund that is invested in a spread of technology companies (and 
companies that would benefit from technology).

There are several organisations that provide facilities for this sort of 
investment, such as The Reanimation Foundation (RF). At present I am not 
sure of how practical it would be to construct a small portfolio of 
suitable shares and get them managed properly. One may have to go instead 
for a technology mutual fund held by the RF.

Companies that benefit from technology are those companies whose products 
and services can be made cheaper and better by the application of 
technology. 

The hospitality industry is one that *cannot* benefit. This is because you 
cannot easily make machines to wait at table or clean hotel rooms. Yet most 
finanical professionals will put clients' funds in this industry because it 
is regarded as "safe as houses" becuase so much of its capital is in bricks 
and mortar.

The pharmaceutical industry is regarded as being fairly safe, yet it can 
benefit a lot from technology. Its products are technological, and what is 
more rapid advances in the automation of experimental chemistry are 
increasing the rate of research by factors as much as 20:1. (Reference: 
Warner-Lambert annual report dated 1995.) I would look for an average price 
rise of this magnitude over the next five to ten years in this sector.

Your cryonics investment needs to be in several parts:

1. a portfolio of technology shares in trust for your cryonics organisation
   to pay for your suspension
2. a portfolio of shares in an organisation such as the RA
3.
4. as many similar portfolios with different organisations as you can find 
   and as you can afford.
5....


If you are young you could take term life insurance (if you are faint 
hearted, otherwise carry the risk (of death) yourself) and seed a few 
thousand dollars in (1) above using a sound technology stock newsletter for 
advice. Go on putting as much as you can into the portfolio. You won't need 
to do this for long. Once its growth outpaces anything you can put in, 
start another as (2) and so on.

But remember that technology companies are risky investments, not all will 
succeed. You have to pick carefully. It is the sector as a whole that will 
succeed. If it does not, then you won't be there to observe it (as cryonics 
would fail without the advances).

Also many sectors of technology tend to rise with a staircase pattern, ie 
chaotic growth over a few months followed by a couple of years up and down 
movement. It is possible that the chaotic growth occurs when professionals 
suddenly discover balance sheet changes caused by the relentless growth of 
technology which they deny exists. Balance sheets cannot be denied, and 
they usually then buy too much of the stock causing it to rise too far. 
There is then a correction, they say "I told you so" and deny technology 
again and go back to fast food or whatever. Some eighteen months later the 
process is repeated. However as long as the price after the correction is 
two or three times what it was before the growth spurt, who cares? Alright 
if you had sold at exactly the right moment you would have got three or 
four times, but you're not selling so you get *another* growth spurt later 
on above what you have already had.

If your original investment block was $1000, after the share price has 
quadrupled, you could sell 1/4 of your holding, take your $1000 and invest 
it somewhere else. 3/4 are left to go on growing. Some investors say sell 
half on a double - you can take your choice. A lot depends on the capital 
gains tax dictatorship of the country in which your trust is domiciled.

The rags to riches stories of stockmarket are based on big gambles, they 
can be shown with hindsight. You can become a multi-millionaire over twenty 
years with only $1000 or so if you put it in the right company and leave it 
there. But picking the right company is not easy! Suppose you had picked 
Apple Computers. To start with, that looks like the right choice. Then 
along comes the PC. Suppose someone predicted the PC and chose IBM. They 
would have lost their growth because IBM made machines were overpriced and 
clones prevailed. Only the person who picked Intel (who make the 
chips) would be a winner, but will Intel still be as successful as the 
middle of the next century? Hint - which company is nost interested in 
nanotchnology and spending a lot of research money on it?

A portfolio of purely technology stocks may be seen by some advisors as a 
similr gamble, but if one is investing for cryonics it is not such a big 
gamble. Because of it doesn't work you won't be there to observe it! 

In article: <4kj5d9$>   
(Eoin Malins) writes:
> 
> With reference to the series of articles appearing on the cryonics
> digest on "How to invest for cryonics" can anyone tell me if cryonics
> companies sell shares?
> 
> 	If they do would it not be a lot easier to invest all your money 
(at
> death) into the company you are being taken in by,  If the company did
> well your shares would be worth somthing when you are "re-animated".
> If the company went into liquidation it is unlikely for you to be
> re-animated so you really wouldn't notice you didn't have any money.
> 
> comments please.
> 
> 
> "Life is what happens when your making other plans"
> 
> 
-- 
Sincerely,     ****************************************       
               * Publisher of        Longevity Report *
John de Rivaz  *                     Fractal Report   *
               *          details on request          *
               ****************************************
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