Re: Vitrification

From: Eugene.Leitl@lrz.uni-muenchen.de
Date: Sun Nov 19 2000 - 10:25:13 MST


Michael M. Butler writes:
> Some other points to keep in mind:
>
> 1) Initially, only neuro patients can/will be vitrified. Whole body
> suspension will not lend itself to the vitrification technology for some
> as yet undetermined time.
 
Yes, so what? Whole body should out of question, anyway, because
neuros offer a better brain preservation quality. I'm not interested
in keeping my reflexes alive (why, I don't expect to ever use them) if
this correlates with brain damage.
 
> 2) Initially, these neuro patients will be stored at LN2 boiling point
> with little or no annealing. This will mean that these subjects will
> develop gross cracks that will need something like strong nt to
> resuscitate.
 
1) Annealing doesn't work. You still crack.

2) You're worried about macroscopic cracks? Dude, you're a) real old
   and/or sick b) frozen c) loaded with high-molarity cryoprotectant
   toxic crap d) dead to start with. You really should not be worrying
   about cracks.

Strong NT is not strictly necessary if you consider the uploader
route (freeze, slice, scan). But, yeah, sure, it would make things
much easier.

> 3) Nobody knows for sure what the "right" temperature is for long-term
> storage of a vitrified patient. Over a long enough run, it is
> conceivable that icing or cracks might occur.
 
Why, below -130 but above -150, I would presume. Icing, that's that
thing on the cake. Don't get riled up on cracks, just because they're
nasty and visible. You should focus your worries on damage on nano and
microscale instead, which are far worse.

> Still, very cool.

And how.



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