X-Message-Number: 6526 Date: 14 Jul 96 21:10:10 EDT From: "Kent, Saul" <> Subject: Should Prometheus Be A "Vital Concern" To Cryonics Organizations In today's Cryonet, Steve Bridge, President of Alcor, argues that there are "many possible legitimate reasons why an organization might not make the Prometheus Project a 'vital concern'" Here are my comments on several of the statements Steve made in expressing his reasons: Steve says that: "Many people...seem confident that somebody out there *knows* what lines of research will work and that money is the only barrier to the success of cryonics. That assumption is purely wrong." Certainly, no one can say that they *know* what line of research will work, but it is quite reasonable to say that they *know* what the most *promising* line of research is. Steve says that "there are some interesting directions for research" and that "the vitrification research of Greg Fahy is one of these directions". I think this statement is misleading. I think Greg Fahy's "direction" is by far the best documented and most promising approach to brain cryopreservation at this time. Of course, what seems promising today might not seem so promising after a couple of years of research. As I see it, the purpose of The Prometheus Project is to follow the most promising lines of research leading to perfected brain cryo- preservation based on the best available evidence and the advice of the best available scientists. Steve says: "It is possible that the Prometheus managers will chose a dead-end research path with a giant money sink-hole by its side." Yes, Steve, that is possible. It is true that a project that relies on the best available evidence and the best available advice from the best available scientists to decide on the direction of its research might fail. What's your alternative? I disagree with Steve that "anyone who invests in any cryonics- oriented research in the anticipation of 'a tremendous future source of funds' is a fool of the worst kind." On the contrary, I believe that investing in cryonics research in search of financial profit is not only legitimate, but necessary. In my opinion, if the company that arises from The Prometheus Project does *not* aim at tremendous future profits, it will be making a serious mistake. Of course, any investment in cryonics research is risky, but is it *more* risky than *not* investing in cryonics research? For me, the prospect of growing old and dying is not a "risk", it is a *certainty* unless I take action to prevent it. As a result, there is no "risk" I would rather take than investing in the best possible cryonics (and anti-aging) research. Steve says that "solving the question of suspended animation does not assure profits." I disagree. I think a company that owned the rights to perfected suspended animation technology would be as close to a sure bet to be profitable as I can think of. Unless, it was a company that owned the only technology capable of controlling the aging process. Is there anyone on Cryonet who would *not* be willing to invest in a company that owned the rights to perfected suspended animation technology? I think it is useful to visualize the possibility of increasing our chances of survival and the possibility of making money from The Project as two sides of the same coin. As we demonstrate that we can improve our chances of survival by improving our cryonics methods, we will increase our chance of financial profit. This increased chance of financial profit should then motivate us to invest more money in The Project and to help persuade others to invest more money in The Project. This kind of "profit-oriented" thinking will help push us towards our goal as quickly as possible. When we finally achieve perfected brain cryopreservation and are moving to perfect whole-body suspended ani- mation, we will have a realistic chance of being able to enjoy our financial profits from The Project for centuries. That's why I *strongly* urge all cryonics organizations and all cryonicists who can possibly afford to do so to join The Project by sending in your pledge right now! ---Saul Kent Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=6526