American Cryonics News and Viewsby Jim Yount {picture of freezer chest and ice chests}{caption} LOW TECH!Not all equipment needed in a suspension is high tech. Picturedhere is a chest freezer which we just installed at the ACS officealong with our ice chests for transporting the cold stuff. Theused J.C. Penny's freezer cost a whopping $35.00 and will holdenough ice to freeze even our largest members.Low Tech: Man With A Load of ICEIt is a standing joke among cryonicists that anyone with a bucketfull of ice can declare himself a cryonics company and hang out a"We freeze to please" sign. This fact has been of considerableconcern. Since there are virtually no "industry standards," andlittle regulation, unscrupulous individuals might misrepresentthemselves and victimize customers.David Baker's recent article in the Dickinson Law Review (seebelow for complete reference) echoes that concern " For twenty-five years, all but a handful of governments have remained quietregarding cryonics." (page 710).In spite of this lack of government or industry selectedwatchdogs or establishment of standards, the cryonics organiza tions and companies have, by-enlarge, conducted their businesshonorably without the kind of consumer fraud some would-beregulators fear.Freezing customers is only the first step. Anyone hanging out ashingle is immediately confronted with the problem of how to keepcustomers frozen, a feat which requires considerably more money,effort, and dedication than simply showing up at the hospitalwith a bucket of ice.Provided that the man with the bucket of ice has somehow made ar rangements so his customer's remain frozen, is there anythingreally wrong with his business operation? Perhaps not.We certainly know that there are many cases where circumstancesof death are such that a high tech procedure does not "deliverthe patient to the future in the best possible condition." Forexample, when there has been considerable delay after cessationof vital functions, the circulatory system is often totally un usable as a pathway to introduce cryoprotectants and a "straightfreeze" is all that can be done.The man (or woman) with a load of ice can be fast. If his besttechnology is simply to pack the patient with ice (water ice), hecan concentrate on speed. The rapid initiation and continuationof cooling may be the single most important factor in preserva tion and one on which we all agree. There will be no delays toload complicated suspension equipment and supplies for the iceman. He simply grabs his ice and goes.Since ice-packing is such a simple procedure, with minimalcooperation and instruction, it can be initiated by almostanyone.Ice is cheap. If icebath cooling is all the technology used,the patient's suspension funds will largely remain in tact whichmay increase the cryonaut's chances of completing the time trip.Once the ice man has ice-packing down pat he may want to progressto another level of technical sophistication. However, whilethere is little disagreement among thoughtful cryonicists on howto pack ice, there is not a consensus on what should be the nextstep. There are cryonicists whose opinion on technical matters Irespect, who argue that unless we are competent to perform thetechnically sophisticated procedures introduced by Jerry Leaf,then it is better to simply stick with the "straight freeze." In my opinion, the "quality" of suspensions can be improved (overa straight freeze) by relatively simple procedures. Key to judg ment of "quality," for a suspension performed by people notskilled in the more complex procedures is SPEED OF COOLING. Ifthe patient's core temperature can be more quickly lowered byfollowing a procedure other than simple ice packing, then(generally) the quality of preservation will be enhanced. Inparticular, flushing chilled saline solution through the cir culatory system, after cannulation by a mortician, can speedcooling considerably. There are obvious problems with this: 1.lack of sterile (and sometimes even sanitary) conditions; 2. high pressure embalming pumps may rupture capillary walls; 3. ex posure of personnel to infectious blood; 4. problems of nonavailablility of proper saline solutions. The list could go on.Introduction of a cryoprotectant to the saline solution as tem perature decreases is the next logical step. In taking thisstep, we are going beyond rapid cooling to an attempt to minimizedamage from the freezing process itself. We also stray furtherinto controversy among knowledgeable cryonicists. Even when aparticular protocol has been decided upon, the introduction ofcryo-protectants can be tricky business. Even so, I favor theintroduction of low concentrations of glycerol into the salinesolution, but use of high concentrations should only be attemptedby skilled technicians.There are a number of tasks which are beyond the skills level ofthe man with ice, but which most doctors, nurses, and other medi cal people can perform. The ice person, who is not afraid toask, can often persuade these professionals for some elementarybed-side assistance. It has been our experience that this is so,even when such help may be against official hospital or nursing-home policy.CPR is a routine cryonics procedure in cases where it is possibleto initiate resuscitation shortly after clinical death. A littletraining, even if "on the job" by someone already trained, canincrease the suspension-worthiness of "he (or she) who bearsice."Part of the work of launching the cryonaut through time is simpleadministration or "anyone-can-do-it" labor. Making calls to get"remains" released, arranging transport, moving ice and patientfrom place-to-place are all ice-man tasks.While recognizing the value of someone with dedication but littletraining, we must also acknowledge the limitations of such un trained people. Years ago, when considering the question of whatshould be acceptable industry standards for a cryonics servicecompany or organization, Fred and Linda Chamberlain emphasizedthe importance of honest representation of whatever skills ortechnical level had been attained. "Yes, my cryonics suppliesand equipment consist of a bucket filled with ice. But my ice isjust as cold as the ice of everyone else, and my bucket does notleak."So, here's to the man with a load of ice. He could save yourlife.Send Your DNA on AheadIn a syndicated article by Nicholas Wade, first published for theNew York Times, it is reported that Dr. James Bicknell of ThirdMillennium Research, Inc., of Seattle will package your DNA for atrip through time. You rub your finger with piece of gauze, sendit to Dr. Bicknell. He "extracts" the DNA from your skin cellson the gauze, and returns it to you in a neatly sealed capsuleinside a metal case. The price of the processing is $35.00, payable to Third Millennium Research when you mail in your finger-scrappings.We haven't yet checked out this report. However, the concept ofstoring minute biological samples for purposes of determinationof identity appeals to many cryonicists. We have previouslyreported on our own efforts to preserve hair (with intact follicles) in a container filled with an inert gas (nitrogen) and adesiccant. It could be questioned whether it is best to extractDNA now, or simply store a biological sample in an inert gas un processed; but for $35.00, what do you have to lose? (except$35.00).Some Insurance Companies Use DNA Samples to Establish IdentityA number of insurance companies are now requiring a "finger prickand blood collected on a gaze swatch" in addition to blood colected in a vile, of all new life insurance applicants.I haven't seen anything from the insurance companies to confirmthis, but speculation is the companies are establishing a DNAbank to help prevent insurance fraud. If the DNA of the remainsof the person represented as the insured matches the DNA of thesample of the person who applied: no problem, the claim is paid. If no match: we've got a problem, the claim is denied.It may be that access to the DNA "fingerprint" will be availableto ACS, executors, or to the individual insured, through thefreedom of information act. If so, our own need for a bank ofDNA samples may be supplemented by the insurance companies.David Baker's Article in Dickinson Law ReviewACS was among the people and organizations receiving copies ofDavid M. Baker's article entitled "Cryonic Preservation of HumanBodies -- a Call for Legislative Action," which was published inVolume 98, number 4 (Summer 1994) of the Dickinson Law Review. I vaguely remember talking to Mr. Baker by telephone, who as Irecall, first published this article as a thesis or dissertationwhile a law-school student.Since a number of other people have written, or are writing aboutthe article, a full critique would be redundant; instead, I'llcomment briefly.Mr. Baker concludes that there is very little regulation ofcryonics, and this regulatory vacuum serves neither the publicnor cryonics advocates. His final paragraph of both the articleand his summery states: "The minimal government action to datehas been unjustly harsh, ineffective or insufficient. The twingoals of addressing the public concerns and solving thecryonicists' dilemmas, regarding the practice of cryonics, canbest be met through state adoption of a uniform and comprehensiveact."I am in agreement with Mr. Baker's conclusion. While somecryonicists argue against any government control, the political realities are such that for a practice as complex and controver sial as cryonics, regulation is inevitable. The industries whichhave the least regulation are those which have been able to im pose self-regulation through national organizations which estabish standards and self-policing practices. The cryonics or ganizations and companies haven't exhibited the adhesion andnecessary interorganizational cooperation to engage in self-regulation. At best we may be able to work with state regulatorsto help draft laws which aren't too burdensome, and which don'tsimply regulate cryonics out of existence.Mr. Baker's notion of cryonics history and trends appears to besimplistic and somewhat inaccurate. Baker's history has usflourishing in the late 1960's and early 1970's, almost disap pearing in the 1980's and reviving and prospering in the 1990's. The movement could better be characterized as one of slow painfulgrowth all along. Publicity, and perhaps public perception, hasbeen very uneven, but those committed to the concept are unlikelyto drop out because of any but the most sever problems.Also troubling is Baker's reliance on secondary sources, largelymagazine and newspaper articles. So many of the articles oncryonics have been inaccurate, sloppily written, and poorlyresearched. This error-ridden literature then becomes the basisof research for future authors, thus extending and compoundingthe errors. Authors of scholarly works should take special careto avoid this error compounding. Two Cellular Phones on One LineDuring a recent suspension, Sandra Russell's cell phone provedvery valuable. It allowed us to keep in contact with each otherto a much greater extent than on previous suspensions. We havebeen gathering material, with the intent of purchase of one ormore cellular phone for emergency use in future suspensions.A company in Alabama, CTwo-Plus-Technology (phone 205-264-0264)is in the business of converting, or adjusting cell-phones somore than one phone can be used on a single line.Minimum line-charge is a very significant cost of cell-phoneownership. Having more than one phone on a line should allowmore flexibility and a greater safety margin. There are disadvantages to having more than one phone on a line:it isn't possible to use both phones at once and hence partiesusing the two phones can't talk to each other or to a third partysimultaneously. During suspensions, messages could be relayed bya third party. Our answering service can function for this pur pose for more routine matters. A complicated kludge could also establish communication betweenthe two phones by use of a home-base message system. It wouldwork like this: Mutt uses his cell phone to call his home phonenumber and records a message. He then uses his cell phone to pageJeff directing him to call the home number. Jeff calls home anduses his remote message retrieval function to rewind the tape onthe home recorder to play back Mutt's message. He then recordshis own message in reply, and pages Mutt, who in turn calls hometo retrieve the answering message. After reading this, do youget the idea that either Mutt or Jeff would soon get a secondcell-phone line? Needless to say, we would never expect to usesuch a complicated system for suspensions.