Re: NEURO: Head Transplants"

Brian Manning Delaney (b-delaney@uchicago.edu)
Sun, 29 Aug 1999 20:14:18 -0700

GBurch1@aol.com wrote:
>
> I'm not vouching for the accuracy of this . . . .
>
> >From The Sunday Times,
> http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/99/08/29/stinwenws03005.html?99
> 9
> -
> August 29 1999 BRITAIN
> (c)
> Head transplants give paralysed new hope
> Jonathan Leake
> Science Editor
[....]

Hi Greg. I've followed White's research a bit, and I believe this is indeed an accurate report on the state of his research.

This, however, I think is not an accurate prediction:

> He said: "The Frankenstein legend, where a human
> being is constructed by sewing parts together,
> will become a reality early in the 21st century."

Stem cell research will soon obviate any need for whole part/organ replacement, I'm guessing -- at least in many cases.

In the case of "replacing" the brain (!), organ-replacement (in the near-term...) won't help anyway. It's in the case of the brain, above all, that I think stem cell infusion could be extremely beneficial. The newer cells could just take up the connections currently maintained by older cells (which taking up might require, though, "rehearsing the thought" that the old cells are maintaining).

In fact, it seems that we pretty much have the science for this to take place -- certainly in many organs -- just not, for the most part, the technology (though even that we partly have, in a not thoroughly tested form).

Brian. 

--
Brian Manning Delaney
<b-delaney@uchicago.edu>
(No need to CC replies to me.)