Already close to 100 time travelers are sitting in a large stainless steel thermos bottles, technically called Dewars. This is not science fiction. It is happening right now in Scottsdale Arizona. (At right you can see the huge Dewars at the Alcor life extension Institute. Shiny silvery objects radiate and absorb heat much more slowly than dark ones. This preserves the liquid nitrogen protecting our intrepid group of travelers to the future. Liquid nitrogen, a byproduct of the oxygen cylinder industry is actually less expensive than milk.

Two other similar facilities exist, one in Michigan one in Russia. Already, a kidney removed from a rabbit and cooled to the temperature of liquid nitrogen for a prolonged period of time and re-warmed, functioned normally after being re implanted. While you might say, that’s just a tiny rabbit kidney; this is exactly what people thought when Robert Goddard launched his first rocket in 1926. It rose but 41 feet into the air during a 2 1/2 second flight.

In 1920, when Goddard first proposed using liquid fuel rockets to send humans to the moon and beyond, he was subjected to great ridicule and avoided public discussion of his very important work. From the New York Times ” That Professor Goddard with his “chair” in Clark College and the countenancing of the Smithsonian Institution, does not know the relation of action and reaction, and of the need to have something better than a vacuum against which to react—to say that would be absurd. Of course he only seems to lack the knowledge ladled out daily in high schools.^[68]

Robert Hutchings Goddard (1882-1945)

^{Robert Goddard and his 1926 Rocket}

^{Interestingly, the New York Times finally issued a retraction in 1969, shortly after Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. (My readers might be interested to know that, while I joined an expedition to Africa to see a solar eclipse, Neil Armstrong also took part.. I still have my journal with his autograph)}

^{We are now at a point with the technology of cryonics far beyond where Robert Goddard was with his early rockets. An array of special chemicals have been developed prevent the formation of ice crystals, as humans and even some pets are cooled to -320 Fahrenheit Soon, supercomputers will lead to even more impressive results.}

There are two factors that I believe make Cryonics a viable proposition (cryogenics is the study of low temperature physics, cryonics is the technology of freezing humans)

Factor one: What has come to be known as Moore’s law. Gordon Moore, the cofounder of Intel proposed in 1969 years ago that computing power would double approximately every two years. Since that time he has been proven correct. This means for example, that in a period of 10 years after five doublings computers become 32 times as powerful as before, and after 20 years approximately 1000 times. Such computing power can be used to make tremendous analysis and discoveries. Technical problems which seem insurmountable today, will be easily solved in the not too distant future. Interestingly, Ben Franklin also dreamed seeing America’s future in a similar way – preserved in a huge wine flask!!

Factor 2 is the advent of nanotechnology. Already, we have produced airplanes the size of insects. In addition we have developed microscopic machines that are getting smaller all the time. At some point in the future, we will have devices far smaller than human cells, which actually contain powerful digital brains. At that point it should be possible to analyze human cells and repair them to original function. These devices, inside our cells, will be so small that they will be equivalent to the customers walking about  a Costco super center. They will be maintaining and repairing all the cells in a human body. They will also be capable of repairing damage caused by the original cause of death and by the cryopreservation process. Below is a nanite depicted among red blood cells.

Source: What is Nanotechnology Used for Today?

If you think that what I’m saying is incredible, imagine trying to describe an iPhone and its workings to a person living say, 120 years ago and 1891. The vacuum tube, radio, and most modern technology did not even exist. The concept of integrated circuits and transistors were far off into the future and unimaginable. Scientists of the day could not conceive of constructing such devices or even how such every day conveniences as the Internet, cell phones, and high definition television using LEDs would exist.

Not too many years from now, since our genetic code is based on four different letters (DNA bases) we will be able to not only read, but improve that code. That means we will be able to write our own genetic programs. This is a base 4 system. (Computer code is base two – ones and zeros.) At that point we can control our genetic future.

Religious fanatics in the United States might claim we are playing God and try to put a halt to such improvements in human beings enhancements. Already they rail against “Designer babies” What is wrong providing our children with better health, elimination of disease genes, and especially, higher IQs to cope with an ever more complex world?

 Smarter people would be less prone to stupid behavior, such as following false prophets and demagogues promising free stuff stolen from the produce of other, empty rubbish such as “Hope and Change” and a great afterlife, if you give them YOUR money for THEIR better life here and now. Of course, these are the people who will try to stop Americans from securing  these benefits for their offspring. Understand however, other nations will continue to march forward even if we are sabotaged by ignoramuses here.

  I assure you, China and other Asian nations will not go along with glue trapping this vital progress. Imagine, competing with a billion people who have vastly enhanced IQs and physical abilities? You are stuck with your randomly genetically selected, obsolete body and brain? Not a pleasant thought.

Like it or not, the future is coming with wonders that we can hardly conceive of, in the same way that people in the late 19th century could not conceive of our wonders. Cryonics can be your personal vehicle to join the future, let us hope that ignorance does not prevent the United States of America from being a part of that future.

My personal goal is not just to see this future, but to sit in the stands, perhaps at Yankee Stadium with my late mother, who was a huge baseball fan. There before us, Ted Williams takes the field for the first time in a century.

For those of you who were not baseball fans, Ted Williams was the last major league player to hit 400 over an entire baseball season. Hopefully, he will not be bored with baseball and instead, resume his real passion, fly-fishing, thus disappointing me and millions of other 22nd century baseball fans.

PS The suspension of Walt Disney IS AN URBAN LEGEND!! No evidence for this.

References – Cryonics Organizations

Cryonics: Alcor Life Extension Foundation

The Cryonics Institute Home Page

Suspended Animation (They actually do much of the research and help with suspensions. Click on their link for information SA’s May 20 – 22 Cryonics conference)