Death is a certain reality, but over the centuries, people have attempted innumerable methods to outsmart death. Now, a German firm has begun a business of preserving dead bodies and says that for $200,000, you can have a second lease on life. But how are they going to achieve this?
For 2 Lakh Dollars:
Europe’s first cryonic slab, Tomorrow Bio, has a specialized ambulance waiting alongside a roadside in Berlin. The aim is to dash to pick up a body as soon as they get a call. The freezing and vapor-clearing process starts in the ambulance itself before transporting the body to the lab.
When the body reaches the lab, all water elements are extracted from the body to stop decomposition. To preserve the cells, the body temperature is reduced gradually to below -196 degrees Celsius. In this period, cryoprotective agents such as dimethyl sulfoxide and ethylene glycol are used to make sure that no ice forms within or on the body even at subzero temperatures. The body is then finally carried by air ambulance to a special freezer in Switzerland for permanent storage. This may cost up to $250,000.
In the cryonics approach, human and animal bodies or brains are cooled to very low temperatures. Dr. Emil Kendziora, the founder of Tomorrow Bio, likens this idea to a medical revolution. He thinks that while it was impossible earlier, organ transplants are now routine due to medical science. Maybe one day, it will be feasible to revive dead bodies, and hence intact body preservation will be essential.
Yet, scientists and researchers have highly condemned Tomorrow Bio’s operations as impossible and unrealistic since no human has ever been revived successfully from cryonic preservation. Besides, decay starts immediately after death, brain cells degenerate rapidly, and memory and personality lose their form. Even assuming transplants of organs are feasible, revival in the future is virtually impossible.
Most people think that this process also has economic and ethical issues. What will be the situation if the onus of preserved bodies is on descendants in the future? Most people also condemn it as a luxury for the rich because of its expense.
Despite critics and scientists questioning, there are still many people who are not paying heed to these matters. The company has already cryopreserved 20 clients and 10 animals. More than 750 people from over 45 countries have also signed up to participate in Tomorrow Bio’s cryopreservation. Cryonicists view it as a risk, but they are not going to rule out possible benefits. Some of the clients are using life insurance to pay for it and consider it time travel.
