alan@rnms1.UUCP (0000-Alan Lovejoy(0000)) (03/24/89)
In article <8903230413.AA09060@athos.rutgers.edu> dietz@CS.ROCHESTER.EDU writes: > >It seems to me that the big problem with cryonics is the expense. >$100,000 ($35K for a "neuro") is just too much for widespread interest. > >Why is cryonics so expensive? It must be nontrivial to maintain a >freezer at 77 K indefinitely. The refrigerators must be maintained, >backup cooling must be available, power must be supplied. It currently costs about $4000/year to keep a body in cryonic suspension. It costs so much because there are less than thirty people currently in suspension. If there were several thousand, the cost would approach $500/year. (Source: H. Jackson Zinn, President, American Cryonics Society, in a letter to me). Since the period of time that suspension is necessary is unknown, the interest from the patient's suspension fund must both cover all yearly expenses AND increase the principal in the fund by enough to offset the effects of inflation. The cryonics organizations have used very conservative estimates of the inflation-interest rate differential in determining what price to charge. Also, the initial suspension is rather expensive. Neuro-suspension is cheaper mostly because the yearly maintenance costs are much less, and because the size of the head makes it easier to share storage dewars and thus achieve economies of scale. The temperature in the dewar is maintained by a periodic resupply of liquid nitrogen. There is no need for continual operation of refrigeration equipment. This lessens the danger from short term/localized power outages. I have two $90k universal life insurance policies for funding my cryonic suspension (I find it prudent to provide more than the minimum funding). The one from Travelers costs me $667/year. The one from Aetna costs me $518/year (the price difference is a function of the speed in which the cash value grows). I am a thirty-two year old male in average health. I feel that most people in fact can afford cryonics, since if most people opted for it, the costs would decrease by an order of magnitude. I think that Social Security will eventually have to make funding of cryonic suspension an optional benefit (for those who want it). Alan Lovejoy; alan@pdn; 813-530-2211; AT&T Paradyne: 8550 Ulmerton, Largo, FL. Disclaimer: I do not speak for AT&T Paradyne. They do not speak for me. __American Investment Deficiency Syndrome => No resistance to foreign invasion. Motto: If nanomachines will be able to reconstruct you, YOU AREN'T DEAD YET.