ライブラリ登録: Guest
Ethics in Biology, Engineering and Medicine: An International Journal

ISSN 印刷: 2151-805X

ISSN オンライン: 2151-8068

SJR: 0.123

Cryonic Life Extension: Scientific Possibility or Stupid Pipe Dream?

巻 3, 発行 1-3, 2012, pp. 9-28
DOI: 10.1615/EthicsBiologyEngMed.2013006985
Get accessGet access

要約

The central quest in cryonics is to preserve brain-encoded information essential to personhood after cryonic preservation. Advocates of cryonics seek to use cryoprotectants, vitrification, and extreme cold to extend the life of an individual when conventional methods fail. This means of life extension is employed for an intended period of decades, or even centuries, until safe reversal of the preservation process, as well as treatment for the underlying medical condition, becomes feasible.
Such an undertaking is predicated on three principles, only one being well established. The first is that life can be suspended as long as attention is directed at preserving the basic biological structures upon which life is based. The second is that technology will become available to extend the first principle to human organisms. The third is that post-thawing cellular damage might be repaired, for example using nanomedicine.
However, a number of problematic scenarios may emerge as the required innovations are developed. Consider some possible outcomes where only the head is cryopreserved: (1) failure to reanimate the individual, (2) existence as a reanimated head attached to a new body, and (3) existence as a reanimated head existing independently from a body. Additional issues emerge: What moral standing does the cryopreserved individual now have? What is the legal and moral status of individuals who end up technically alive but with severe neurological damage? And finally, who should be responsible for the care of a thawed patient who requires complex medical care?

によって引用された
  1. Dein Simon, Cryonics: Science or Religion, Journal of Religion and Health, 61, 4, 2022. Crossref

最新号

Heroics at the End of Life in Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care: The Role of the Intensivist in Supporting Ethical Decisions around Innovative Surgical Interventions Mithya Lewis-Newby, Emily Berkman, Douglas S. Diekema, Jonna D. Clark Transplantation for Older Patients with Hematologic Malignancies in 2021: Uncertainty and Ethics in Decision-Making H. Joachim Deeg Exploring the Hippocratic Oath: A Critical Look at Medicine's Oldest Surviving Guide to Medical Ethics D. John Doyle All Sore Eyes and Beasts: Spiritual Care Providers' Role in End-of-Life Existential Distress Debra Josephson Abrams, David B. Brecher, Douglas W. Lane The Ethics of Technology Development and Technology Use David W. Chambers Ethical Challenges of Artificial Intelligence in Health Care: A Narrative Review Aaron T. Hui, Shawn S. Ahn, Carolyn T. Lye, Jun Deng The Goods of Health Care Wade L. Robison The Ethics of Observing Low-Risk Thyroid Cancer Betty Y. Chen, Brendan C. Stack A Sampling of Engineering Ethics Conundrums Intended for Classroom Discussion D. John Doyle Toward a Better Understanding of Risk-Taking in Medical Decision Making David S. Dinhofer, Shweta Agarwal Ethical Issues Involving the Development of COVID-19 Vaccines: Role of Vaccine Development, Clinical Trials, and Speed of Peer Review in Dissuading Public Vaccine Hesitancy Leisha M. A. Martin, Gregory W. Buck Autonomy and Addictive Design Stephen Scales Ethical Implications with the Utilization of Artificial Intelligence in Dentistry Neekita Saudagar, Rafia Jabeen, Pallavi Sharma, Sean Mong, Ram M. Vaderhobli Meeting Report: 9th International Conference on Ethics in Biology, Engineering, and Medicine Subrata Saha, Pamela Saha Index, Volume 12, 2021
Begell Digital Portal Begellデジタルライブラリー 電子書籍 ジャーナル 参考文献と会報 リサーチ集 価格及び購読のポリシー Begell House 連絡先 Language English 中文 Русский Português German French Spain