Subject: [mind-l] Digest Number 1071

Message: 2
    From: "Ken Michel" <michelangelo46@...>

An article about the brain that was posted on one of my other lists.
It may not have anything to do with the technological nature of this
list but I thought it was interesting.

Ken Michel
************************

Study: Brain Growth Does Not Stop in Adolescence

By Will Dunham
Reuters

WASHINGTON (May 14) - A key aspect of brain development continues
until
nearly age 50, scientists said on Monday in a finding that
contradicts the
current view that such maturation ends before 20 and may shed light
on brain
ailments such as Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia.

The researchers, led by Dr. George Bartzokis of the Department of
Veterans
Affairs, used magnetic resonance imaging to measure brain development
in 70
normal men aged 19-76.

So-called white matter -- which sends signals from one part of the
brain to
another -- continues to develop in the frontal and temporal lobes on
average
until 48, the study found.

The researchers confirmed that so-called gray matter -- the cerebral
cortex
-- achieves peak development at the end of adolescence, then declines
until
old age.

''If your brain is the Internet, gray matter is your computer and the
white
matter is the telephone lines that connect your computer to all the
other
computers on the planet,'' Bartzokis, associate chief of staff for
mental
health at the VA's Central Arkansas Veterans Health Care System, said
in an
interview.

''Most people think of the brain stopping development either in
childhood or
by the time we are adults,'' Bartzokis said.

But he noted that people are very different at 40 than at
17. ''You're really
not the same person. And the issue is -- are you not the same person
because
you just had an awful lot of experiences or are you not the same
person
because your computer (brain) is very different? And this study
suggests that
your computer is very different.''

The study appears in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

AGE-RELATED AILMENTS

Bartzokis said that understanding how the structures of the brain
develop and
degenerate over the entire human life span is vital in gaining a
better
insight into Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and drug addiction.

The onset of Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia is closely linked
to age.
Alzheimer's disease is a degenerative brain disorder that manifests
itself
among primarily those over 65, although the disease may have been
eating away
at the brain for many years.

The onset of schizophrenia, a brain disease characterized by
delusions,
typically is seen in young adulthood.

Bartzokis said he focused on the frontal and temporal lobes -- the
front part
of the brain where memory, higher reasoning and functions such as
impulse
control take place. These functions define ''who we are as humans,''
Bartzokis added.

The brain abnormalities seen in Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia
and drug
addiction such as cocaine dependence are seen in that part of the
brain.

Suggestions were made in the 1960s that white matter brain
development
continued into adulthood, but that was based on findings from
autopsies,
Bartzokis said. He added that he employed an imaging technique that
maximized
the ability to track white matter maturation in living people.

Since both developmental and degenerative changes can be measured in
living
people, such brain imaging methods can be used to identify what
factors
interfere with development or promote degeneration of the brain,
Bartzokis
said. He suggested that imaging could be used to nail down what
medications
can promote brain development or prevent degeneration.

''It takes 20 to 30 years to actually manifest Alzheimer's even
though it's
eating up your brain because you have reserve capacity,'' Bartzokis
said.

''If you can measure that with imaging when you are 50 and you do an
intervention when you are 50 and you change the trajectory (of the
disease)
even by a little bit, all of a sudden instead of getting Alzheimer's
when you
are 70, you get it when you are 110. And then it's no longer a
problem.''

Reuters 16:42 05-14-01

Folks,

The issue of getting into Canada may be as simple as my last post. However,
it is acknowledged that a customs agent has the authority to make on the
spot decisions that may not go our way. There are still options.

1. NAFTA - There are a bunch of exemptions. I have to read through the list
but to make the point....   The woman I have been speaking to at Immigration
Canada (IC), after a long delay while she conferred with others in her
department, suggested that cryonics techs apply under the exemption
"International Trucking - Exemption number GR19 (1) (E)". Any person from
the US that is coming to Canada to transport products back to the States is
exempt. What they transport is not relevant. The hilarity of this is that
this would only pertain to a body being delivered back to the States by
truck. If the body were flown, this would not apply. However, there are
several other exemptions under NAFTA. More soon.

2. It is possible to get a work/NAFTA document in advance through a Canadian
Consulate. However, these are applied for and issued for a specific time
period. I was told by the folks at IC that there may be a chance that a
permit could be issued for an indeterminate period. The thought was that the
techs would apply each year and would have the approved documentation in
advance so they could be ready to go if the need arose.

The only problem is defining the occupation.

3. Should NAFTA fail and an appropriate exemption not be found, one can
apply for a specialized work permit through HRDC - Jane Stewart's
department. I will explore this option.


If a tech simply said that they were coming to Canada to visit, or to be
with the family of a deceased, there should be no problem. However, I
realize that stealth is not the best long term solution. As a group of
cryonicists we don't want to be sneaking around.

Over the next few days I will be investigating the issues regarding NAFTA
and HRDC. I don't expect an immediate solution, but my experience with
government is generally positive. If they get all the information, something
can usually be worked out.

This will be my hobby this summer :)

Guy

Ken:

I'm going to do some snipping here because we all have the initial posts...



> Guy Desrosiers wrote:
>>
>>> 2. The Canadian Insurance industry is structured in such a way that no
>>> company can can go broke. With this in mind, [SNIP] Alcor needs to be the
>>owner in order to have full
>> access to information (like:  is the policy still in force and is Alcor
>> still the beneficiary").
>
> This seems to contradict their statement in The Global Membership
> Challenge where they said they would only accept new members who had
> "American Insurance"... here she seems to be saying that a Canadian
> insurance company would be acceptable as long as Alcor was the
> beneficiary and owner of the policy.

Agreed. To my knowledge there is no problem with any of the mandates that
Alcor has imposed. I have the required insurance and all of the forms,
ownership, etc. was no problem from my end. So, from the dialogue I have had
with Linda, I don't think that in the Canadian case there should be any
problems.


>
>> 2. [SNIP}  There should be
>> no problem crossing the border.
>
> And there's the rub: the technician could be turned back by a completely
> arbitrary decision by a customs agent, with no chance for appeal (or
> none that's going to do any good). This is a problem regardless of how
> loose the rules become regarding foreigners working in Canada. It seems
> the only defense here is to make the technician as inconspicuous a
> target as possible: definitely do not try to cross the border *with*
> equipment in tow.

I am going to answer this one in a specific post. There are still options.


>
[SNIP]
>
> I think what you will find is that the equipment and medicine
> requirements for each company will be considerably different.

Agreed. However I don't think that the equipment list will be huge. It may
come to a point that the individual Canadian members of each organization be
responsible for getting the equipment into Canada. The CSC can coordinate it
if possible. I hope the CSC can be considered a neutral party as I realize
that there may be some proprietary issues from various cryonics providers.


Guy

Hey Chuck,

I’ll answer the first part of your question in another more general post.

As for the second part of your question. Alcor has some specific equipment they use to process and prepare a body. This equipment has been designed and manufactured by Alcor. Until this afternoon, I did not realize that this was custom equipment. Alcor’s retrieval of members is considered a superior service and used in marketing their services to prospective members. (I’m an Alcor member but I’m not advocating for any cryonics organization. In the next few days I’m going to get a hold of the folks at CI and get more information on their procedures. Getting the information from cryonics organizations and the government is very much a work in progress.)

With Alcor considering their equipment proprietary, I think that the Canadian Alcor members should be responsible for ensuring the equipment be in Canada before it was required. More work needs to be done on this – stay tuned.

Guy



Hi Guy
Thanks for your e-mail of May 14. You have done a lot of good work.
As residents of Canada we face a host of problems (as compared to living in the US) in order to obtain a good suspension. For example, I recently faxed Andy Zawacki of C.I. to determine the best way for a member in Vancouver to get to Detroit within 72 hours of death as required by the B.C. Health Act. The Funeral Director I visited was concerned if death occurred on Thrus.,Friday,Sat.,or Sunday to meet the 72 hour deadline. I still await Andy's response.
Regarding your suggestion on the purchase of a Medical Equipment, could someone tell me the purpose of this equipment and the importance in a suspension. When C.I. recommends to use a Funeral Director to deliver an unembalmed body to Detroit what Medical Equipment is used?
Regards   Chuck

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Guy, thank you very much for all your great work in this regard. Just a
few comments that came to mind as I was reading this...

Guy Desrosiers wrote:
>
> >2. The Canadian Insurance industry is structured in such a way that no
> >company can can go broke. With this in mind, why would Canadian insurance
> >that paid out an amount equivalent to US funds be unacceptable?
>
> Only if the specific insurance company will not allow the ownership to be
> Changed to Alcor.  Some companies will not allow a "foreign corporation" to
> be the owner of a policy.  Alcor needs to be the owner in order to have full
> access to information (like:  is the policy still in force and is Alcor
> still the beneficiary").

This seems to contradict their statement in The Global Membership
Challenge where they said they would only accept new members who had
"American Insurance"... here she seems to be saying that a Canadian
insurance company would be acceptable as long as Alcor was the
beneficiary and owner of the policy.

> 2. Even though the person will be performing procedures on the body that
> they are being paid for, this falls outside of NAFTA or the requirements of
> a working visa because the individual is not being paid by a Canadian
> company. Since the suspension organization is paying the technician, this
> person is merely performing their duties in Canada and is therefore not
> "taking" a Canadian job. The woman I spoke to was away from the phone for
> several minutes to confirm this. But as far as they were concerned,
> returning a body to the US, even though work will be done by the technician,
> does not necessitate any authorization or documentation.
>
> Of course, as governments go, Immigration Canada is not able to put this in
> writing because the final determination is made by the customs agent at the
> point of entry. However, the woman said that someone coming to Canada to
> arrange for the the return of a deceased is fairly standard. There should be
> no problem crossing the border.

And there's the rub: the technician could be turned back by a completely
arbitrary decision by a customs agent, with no chance for appeal (or
none that's going to do any good). This is a problem regardless of how
loose the rules become regarding foreigners working in Canada. It seems
the only defense here is to make the technician as inconspicuous a
target as possible: definitely do not try to cross the border *with*
equipment in tow.

> What would be the opinion of the group to the CSC purchasing equipment that
> could be shipped and used during a Canadian suspension. At this time I have
> no idea what equipment would be required or the cost. My thought would be to
> contact Alcor, CI, TransTime, etc. and have them produce a list of supplies
> that would be required.

I think what you will find is that the equipment and medicine
requirements for each company will be considerably different.

--
Ken Wolfe
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
kenwolfe@...
http://www.mts.net/~kenwolfe/

extropians-digest        Tuesday, May 15 2001        Volume 06 : Number 134

From: "John Marlow" <johnmarlow@...>

May his Towel be with him.

This summer's pool party will be on Sunday, July 29th at the
home of Bruce Waugh here in Toronto. This will be the 11th annual
pool party held in his backyard. This date was chosen to fit the
schedule of Kabuagi Takaaki, who will be our special guest. Kabu
(for short) is President of the Japanese Cryonics Association (JCA)
and the originator of the Metamorphosis Society. He is visiting the
United States (Boston) on business, and decided to include Toronto in
his visit to North America while he is "in the neighborhood".

     Paul Wakfer copied me on an e-mail that he sent to Kabu
telling Kabu that Paul & Kitty would meet Kabu at the airport
and will show him around -- and even drive him to the pool
party -- but that because of recent events Paul & Kitty will
not be attending the pool party themselves.

     For links giving more information about Kabu, go to
the CSC website and the pool party announcement I have put there.

             http://www.benbest.com/cryocdn.html

                   -- Ben

Folks,

Below is the e-mail exchange between Linda Chamberlain and myself regarding
the issue of international members specifically dealing with Canadian
members.

As well, I have had a long chat with the folks at Immigration Canada
regarding getting folks from the States into Canada to perform the required
procedures before a Canadian is returned to Alcor, CI, or another
organization for suspension. The details of this conversation also follow.

Finally, I want to float an idea pertaining to the CSC obtaining some
equipment which could be used by any suspension organization during a
Canadian suspension.


At 07:55 PM 5/7/01 -0600, you wrote:
>Linda,
>
>Thanks for the article. However, it was this article that caused me to
>write. Some direct questions...
>
>1. Does this impact my membership in any way? Also, if a current Canadian
>member died, would Alcor now come to retrieve the body?

This does not impact your membership, only new applicants.  We would attempt
(subject to legal constraints such as customs laws) to retrieve the member.
>
>2. The Canadian Insurance industry is structured in such a way that no
>company can can go broke. With this in mind, why would Canadian insurance
>that paid out an amount equivalent to US funds be unacceptable?

Only if the specific insurance company will not allow the ownership to be
Changed to Alcor.  Some companies will not allow a "foreign corporation" to
be the owner of a policy.  Alcor needs to be the owner in order to have full
access to information (like:  is the policy still in force and is Alcor
still the beneficiary").
>
>3. Have you had problems regarding Canadian customs in the past. Please give
>me the details and I will immediately work from this end to resolve any
>issue regarding getting personnel/equipment across the border.

There are always problems getting through customs, in any country.  The laws
continue to tighten.  Mike Darwin tried to bring equipment into Canada a few
years  ago and was turned away (of course, he lied about visiting just for
"vacation" and that didn't help.  But we would very much appreciate any help
you can give us on the issue of getting equipment, medications, team
members, etc. into the country in an emergency where a member has made
standby arrangements.
>
>4. It is no more difficult getting to a major Canadian city than it is to
>any point in the US. Speaking specifically about Canada, is this still a
>problem.

In most circumstances, probably not.  I have traveled to Canada a couple of
times in the last couple of years without any problems.  But, those were not
medical emergencies, they were "vacations".  We don't know what problems we
might encounter with customs.  I do know that last time we returned from
England we were told that we needed to obtain a "carnet" (a way of paying an
annual fee to get you past customs) for future visits or we would risk (upon
reentry into the US) having to pay a customs tax even on the personal laptop
we had with us (the carnet would declare the computer in advance and we
would pay an annual fee to be able to take the computer with us without a
customs tax on return - in other words, proof that we did not purchase the
computer abroad).
>
>
>As president of CSC, it is my goal to increase the knowledge and desire for
>Canadians to become involved in cryonics. I consider Canada a bit different
>than other international locations because of the proximity of our countries
>and the fact that from a Canadian perspective, dealing with the US is
>commonplace for both individuals and business. I realize that this is not
>the same from a US point of view but with NAFTA in place, an American
>dealing with Canada enjoys the same benefits. The issues mentioned in the
>article regarding funding etc. are really not valid from a Canadian
>perspective.

The issues of having to make sure that funding mechanisms are secure, and
will not result in endangering our current patients are valid anywhere.  The
specific dangers or lack there of will vary from country to country.  The
primary we have is that our resources (both money and man power) are too
limited to allow to spend the resources required to know for every country
(1) what problems exist for that given local, and (2) how to solve those
problems.

Thomas Donaldson continues to say that Alcor should not have to solve those
problems, that the members in the individual countries should do that (as
you have volunteered to do).  However, not everyone who volunteers to do
this will really have Alcor's long term security as their highest priority,
and others may just not be motivated to work hard enough to ferrit out all
the problems.  So, in the end, Alcor cannot just turn this responsibility
over to others.  That does not mean we will not welcome any assistance you
can give.   We do have Canadian members and a commitment to serve them to
the best of our ability.  However, we cannot keep extending that commitment
to a larger and larger circle of countries until we have more resources.


>
>If there are issues, please let me get to work on them from here. I have
>some excellent contacts in the federal government, so I can plough through
>any federal bureaucracy a little quicker than most.
>
>I want to see Alcor succeed and grow. What can I do to help.

Dr. Lemler is working on this very issue:  getting a standby team and
equipment into Canada in an emergency.  Your assistance will be very welcome
in helping that effort be a success.  I am including Dr. Lemler in this
email so that both of  you have each other's email address.

Thanks, Guy, for your assistance!

>Guy Desrosiers
>
.
Linda Chamberlain
President/CEO


---------------------------------

I had a long involved chat with Immigration Canada today regarding
specialists coming from the US to prepare and return a Canadian for
suspension.

After a complete discussion of the issues involved, I got a call back late
this afternoon with what I would consider good news.

First the relevant points:

1. Someone coming from the states to help in the preparation and shipment of
a Canadian *does not need a work visa of any kind*. US citizens can cross
the border as a visitor. All they need to tell the customs official is that
they are coming to Canada to make preparations to retrieve a body for
interment in the US.

2. Even though the person will be performing procedures on the body that
they are being paid for, this falls outside of NAFTA or the requirements of
a working visa because the individual is not being paid by a Canadian
company. Since the suspension organization is paying the technician, this
person is merely performing their duties in Canada and is therefore not
"taking" a Canadian job. The woman I spoke to was away from the phone for
several minutes to confirm this. But as far as they were concerned,
returning a body to the US, even though work will be done by the technician,
does not necessitate any authorization or documentation.

Of course, as governments go, Immigration Canada is not able to put this in
writing because the final determination is made by the customs agent at the
point of entry. However, the woman said that someone coming to Canada to
arrange for the the return of a deceased is fairly standard. There should be
no problem crossing the border.

3. One problem will be with the importation of the medical equipment
required by the technician. This is where the wheels fell off a few years
ago when Mike Darwin attempted to enter Canada. I explained the issues that
arose and the problems Mr. Darwin encountered to the woman from Immigration
Canada. She agreed that the equipment was an issue, and that this could not
be resolved in advance. The customs agent has the sole authority to accept
or reject any imported equipment.

So, getting people across the border is no problem. The best case scenario
would be if the equipment is already here.

---------------------------------------

What would be the opinion of the group to the CSC purchasing equipment that
could be shipped and used during a Canadian suspension. At this time I have
no idea what equipment would be required or the cost. My thought would be to
contact Alcor, CI, TransTime, etc. and have them produce a list of supplies
that would be required.

My thought would be to have these items placed in a custom made shipping
case and stored in Toronto (or wherever we decided to put it). When a
suspending organization is required in Canada, they would contact the CSC
and we would ship the equipment immediately.

I recognize that there will be costs incurred and I have a couple of
suggestions regarding recovery of shipping costs as well as the initial
expense of purchasing the equipment. However, I'll leave this as the subject
of a future message. First I would like to get the thoughts of the rest of
you as to whether or not this is something we should attempt.

I think we should.


Guy Desrosiers

A focus for vitrification research in the literature has been on
penetrating cryoprotectants with relatively low critical warming
rates. The theory has been that solutions incorporating these solvents
would avoid recrystalization at lower and hopefully less toxic
concentrations. Unfortunately these cryoprotectants tend to be quite toxic
even at low concentrations.
      An alternative strategy would be to cast the net wider to include
more consideration of cryoprotectants with exceptionally low toxicity,
rather than the lowest critical warming rates. A clear standout in this
regard is trimethylene glycol. It is the only cryoprotectant which gave no
evidence of any toxic effect at the maximum dosage tested (3.1 M), as
measured by rabbit spermatozoa mobility. (Incubation of spermatozoa was
for 30 minutes at 20 C.) DMSO earned second place with a maximum non toxic
concentration of 2.17 M. Ethylene glycol was third at 1.55 M. Lactamide,
acetamide, and propionamide tied for fourth at 0.93 M. Butyramide,
dimethylformamide, glycerol, and malomide proved  to be yet more
toxic.
     Glycerol has been used in vitrification solutions. The critical
warming rate for trimethylene glycol is about the same as for glycerol
(see Cryobiology 40: 151-158 2000). I suspect that replacing glycerol in
vitrification solutions with trimethylene glycol would reduce
vitrification solution toxicity significantly.

Note: The medline abstract below unfortunately hides
       trimethylene glycol's exceptional property.

_______________________________________________________________

Title
   Cryoprotective effects of
   some amides on rabbit spermatozoa.
Source
   Journal of Reproduction & Fertility.  60(1):247-52, 1980 Sep.
Abstract
   Semen was diluted 1:9  with egg yolk-citrate medium containing 0.31--3.1 M
   (final concentration) formamide, butyramide, acetamide, propionamide,
   dimethylformamide, lactamide, malomide, ethylene glycol, trimethylene glycol,
   dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) or glycerol. After 30 min incubation at 20 degrees
   C, sperm motility was superior in hypertonic solutions of acetamide,
   lactamide, dimethylsulphoxide, trimethylene glycol and ethylene glycol.
   Some of these compounds were added to semen diluted 1:2 in
   an isotonic egg-yolk-glucose-lactose-raffinose solution and frozen by the
   pellet method. Relatively good survival of motility was obtained in 1.0
   M-DMSO, -lactamide or -acetamide. Dimethylformamide (0.5 M), ethylene glycol
   (0.5--1.5 M), trimethylene glycol (1.5 M) and propionamide (0.75 M) also gave
   some protection. Insemination of does with semen frozen and
   thawed with 1.0 M-DMSO, -lactamide or acetamide gave fertilization rates of
   68--88%, and 84% (38/45) of does gave birth to an average of 5.3 young.

CryoNet - Fri 20 Apr 2001

Message #16070
From: "PMC" <igart@...>

New Scientist issue: 21st April 2001

Contact: Claire Bowles
claire.bowles@...
44-207-331-2751

Dried-out human cells can come back to life

NORMAL human cells have been dried out and revived eight days later using a
trick evolved by a bacterium that can survive for centuries without water.
The technique could have all sorts of medical uses.

Blood for transfusions could be stored for long periods, for example, or
carried to remote disasters without having to be kept cool. Antibodies and
vaccines would have an almost unlimited shelf life, making them easier to
distribute in developing countries.

Desiccated medical supplies could even be sent on long space missions. And
it should become possible to make cell-based biosensors to detect poisons
such as nerve gas. "You could rehydrate them when you needed the sensor,"
says Malcolm Potts of the Virginia Tech Center for Genomics in Blacksburg,
who developed the technique.

Our cells usually die within seconds without water. But Potts and his
colleague David Helm knew of a photosynthetic bacterium, or cyanobacterium,
called Nostoc commune, that can survive such harsh conditions. N. commune
lives on exposed rock surfaces, where it often dries out. When the rock gets
wet again the cells come back to life, swelling up to form gel-like masses
whose sudden appearances led to the popular names "star jelly" and "witches
butter".

N. commune survives by surrounding itself with a slimy substance called
glycan, Potts says. "It forms a woolly overcoat for the cells." Glycan is
thought to protect cell membranes, as well as slowing the rate of drying.

So Potts and Helm tried mixing purified glycan with human kidney cells and
drying them out at room temperature. When they rehydrated the cells 8 days
later, half of the cells recovered and started dividing again, Potts told a
meeting of Britain's Society for Experimental Biology in Canterbury earlier
this month. "It's a breakthrough," says Potts. "By applying the techniques
we have found in cyanobacteria, we can dry out human cells. It's very
exciting."

Alan Tunnacliffe of the Institute of Biotechnology at Cambridge University
says he's surprised the cells survived with only glycan to protect them, as
it does not get inside the cells. "I am a little sceptical," he says. "But
if it does work, it is a major achievement."

Last year, Fred Levine of the University of California in San Diego reported
that he had revived dried human cells after 5 days (New Scientist, 19
February 2000, p 11). But this technique doesn't work for normal
cells-Levine's team had to genetically modify the cells to make a sugar
called trehalose, which protects cells against freezing and drying from the
inside.

Other researchers have failed to repeat Levine's results. But he insists the
technique works. "We have been drying cells, putting them in a standard
cardboard container, sending them [from California] to the East Coast and
having them successfully rehydrated," he says. Potts and Helm hope that one
day tissues and perhaps even organs could be dried out and revived. But this
won't be achieved with glycan alone, Potts says. "In the end it's bound to
require a combination of different approaches."

###
Author: Joanna Marchant
PLEASE MENTION NEW SCIENTIST AS THE SOURCE OF THIS STORY AND, IF PUBLISHING
ONLINE, PLEASE CARRY A HYPERLINK TO: http://www.newscientist.com.

From the May 8, 2001 edition of the Vancouver Sun newspaper;

  WHITEHORSE - The 550-year-old remains of an aboriginal hunter found by
  hikers two years ago will be cremated, aboriginal groups have decided.
      The three B.C. hikers who found the remains will be invited to attend
  the cremation ceremony. They were looking for sheep near the Yukon-B.C.
  border in August 1999 when they found the hunter embedded in the ice and
  touched off worldwide scientific and public interest. - Whitehorse Star

extropians-digest         Sunday, May 13 2001         Volume 06 : Number 132
From: Spudboy100@...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid_1326000/1326657.stm

Author Douglas Adams, who wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, has
died suddenly aged 49.
Mr Adams died on Friday morning in Santa Barbara, California, following a
heart attack, said his spokeswoman Sophie Astin.

Adams's novel was turned into a BBC series
The author became a household name when the cult science fiction novel was
turned into a BBC TV series.
Adams was born in Cambridge in 1952 and educated in Essex before returning to
Cambridge to study at St John's College.
His career included work as a radio and television writer and producer before
his life was changed by the publication of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the
Galaxy in 1979.

Film

The satirical tale chronicled the journey of alien Ford Prefect and his human
companion Arthur Dent throughout the universe after the destruction of Earth.

It centred around the search for an answer to life, the universe, and
everything - which turned out to be 42.

Arthur Dent and Slartibartfast became cult figures

The novel went on to sell more than 14 million copies worldwide and was
followed by the sequels The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, Life, the
Universe and Everything and So Long and Thanks For All the Fish.

In recent years the author had been working on a Hitchhiker's Guide movie.

There was much speculation about who would play Arthur Dent, with Hugh
Laurie, Rowan Atkinson, Jim Carrey, Ben Affleck and even Bruce Willis said to
be in the running.

Adams married Jane Belson in 1991 and had a daughter, Polly, in 1994.

On Sat, 12 May 2001, Guy Desrosiers wrote:

> Thanks Ben for the snips from Cryonet. I believe that the comments posted
> deserve a reply, and I will do so on Cryonet in due course.
>
My advice is to forget it, and forget Paul Wakfer.
Nobody is going to think the less of you for once being
targeted for abuse by that sadly deranged individual.

Thanks Ben for the snips from Cryonet. I believe that the comments posted
deserve a reply, and I will do so on Cryonet in due course.

Guy Desrosiers

I am not planning to make any response whatsoever to the
posting by Paul/Kitty on CryoNet concerning the CSC elections.
However, there was a response by someone else, which I am
forwarding below.

      ******************************************************

Message #16259
Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 09:36:16 -0400
From: fair4us <fair4us@...>
Subject: Wakfer vs. Desrosier

In Cryonet #16256, Paul Wakfer quoted a number of excerpts from private
email of Mr. Desrosier, which were somehow supposed at face value to
illustrate deficiencies in Mr. Desrosier.  This does not, however, seem to
work.  Many of the statements seem perfectly reasonable as the thoughts of
a cryonicist, and it is not a stretch to figure how others also would,
within the proper context.

And what of the ethical issue of posting private email to a public forum,
or was Mr. Desrosier's permission first obtained?  Nevertheless, any damage
(if any) is done, and it might be clarifying if Mr. Wakfer would choose to
write his own version corresponding to each of the quoted email excerpts,
so that the objective reader can decide for her/himself which person has
the more sensible point of view.

For those of you who missed it, Paul/Kitty made a posting
to CryoNet concerning the CSC elections and my announcement
of the results on CryoNet. A copy of the message follows
below.

*************************************************************************

Message #16256
Date: Fri, 11 May 2001 02:20:33 -0400
From: Kitty Antonik <kitty@...>
Subject: Re: CryoNet #16238 Cryonics Society of Canada Elections
References: <20010510090001.41340.qmail@...>

>
> Message #16238
> Date: Wed, 9 May 2001 07:14:45 -0400 (EDT)
> From: Ben Best <benbest@...>
> Subject: Cryonics Society of Canada e-mail elections
>
>      The Cryonics Society of Canada (CSC) has recently
> concluded its first Annual General Meeting ever held
> by e-mail. CSC Bylaws require that members elect
> Directors and that the Officers be elected from
> among the Directors by the Directors. The following
> Directors/Officers were elected:
>
>                President -- Guy Desrosiers
>           Vice-President -- Gary Tripp
>      Secretary/Treasurer -- Ben Best
>
>     Guy Desrosiers lives in Alberta. Both the e-mail AGM
> and the election of Guy as President represent significant
> moves for the CSC becoming a truly Canadian organization
> rather than one centered on Toronto, Ontario.
>
>                   -- Ben Best, Director
>                      Cryonics Society of Canada
>                      http://www.benbest.com/cryocdn.html
>

This is written by Paul Wakfer with the concurrence of Kitty.

We wish to state that the election of Guy Desrosier was in complete
opposition to our views for reasons demonstrated by his quotes below. We
both resigned in protest over this impending event, and the lack of the
other directors being able to understand why this move was not in their
best interests or the best interests of cryonics in Canada.

Kitty was a CSC director. I was past President, but now repudiate the
organization. Guy Desrosier's views and priorities not only don't
represent those of all cryonicists in Canada, but they are antithetical
to some.

Here are some of the things which Guy said in emails after Kitty
pointedly queried him about his views of cryonics. Both the other
directors (Ben Best and Gary Tripp - I was no longer a director), with
one small exception from Gary, only cared about his academic, social,
political, and media "abilities".

"I would see life-extension to be separate from the subject of
cryonics."

"I do not see cryonics as a subset of life extension."

"As I have told people: in 25 words or less, cryonics doesn't make
sense."

"Give me five minutes and I will change the world."

"I have never suggested that the possibility of life after cryonics is
better than non-zero."

"That that is, is."

"The only risk in cryonics is financial and money is a renewable
resource. In fact, I don't see where money even enters into the
equation. If someone thinks that they can "buy" their way out of death,
cryonics is the wrong place to go."

"Why do people donate their bodies to science? Because they perceive
that their sacrifice will do some good. Cryonics is an experiment that
may achieve positive results for research in general.
>>>If we get away from a perception that cryonics is a
means to save self, and explain that
cryonics is a technology that requires volunteers to participate, people
will be more
receptive.>>> [emphasis added]
As I mentioned earlier, I'm under no illusion that cryonics will benefit
me. I'm far more excited by the possibilities that cryonics presents for
science, philosophy, and the attack on the perceived absolute of death."

"I have stated that I believe that cryonics is a wonderful experiment
that may lead to many unexpected positive results. I have also stated
that I have decided to participate in cryonics even though I doubt that
I will receive a viable suspension."

"It is imperative that we communicate the benefits of cryonics at large
and that we demonstrate that cryonics is not just a selfish attempt to
cheat death."

"As well, the suggestion that cryonics should be promoted and founded on
the selfish act of attempting to save one's own life is folly."

"We have the ability to put a positive spin on cryonics. We must do it."

The complete email dialogue is available to those interested.

-- Paul --

Voice-mail: 416-968-6291  Fax: 559-663-5511
Rational Philosophy, Unbounded Life Seeking
Extraordinary Performance Dancing.
--
**Kitty Antonik
MoreLife for us all - http://morelife.org
Reality based tools for more life in quantity and quality

Folks,

Regarding Alcor and international members:

I have attached a document that was sent to me by Linda Chamberlain. This
was published in the most recent edition of the Alcor magazine.

I have sent another letter to Linda asking specifically how this new Alcor
policy will impact Canadian members. I personally don't think that Canadians
should be considered "International" members because of the proximity of
US/Canada. I believe that we are significantly different than other foreign
sites. However, I'll wait to hear back from Linda.

I'll keep you posted.

Guy

GRODZICKI CHARLES wrote:
>
> Hi Ken   Thanks for your note. How many are there in Winnepeg who have
> an interest in cryonics?  Regards      Chuck

There are a handful of people who have "expressed interest" in the past
(mostly friends of Brian Wowk who came to the get-togethers he would
hold at his house when he lived here), but as far as I know I am the
only one in Winnipeg who is signed up and who has sustained an active
interest in the subject.

--
Ken Wolfe
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
kenwolfe@...
http://www.mts.net/~kenwolfe/

Folks,

Ben: No, I have not received any letter or notification from Alcor. In fact,
on Friday, I became aware of the issue with international members when I was
looking through the Alcor magazine. I will be writing Linda today and will
keep everyone posted when I hear.

Guy



>
>   Many or most of you probably saw the message below that
> was posted to CryoNet today. To my knowledge the only
> current Alcor member on this list is our President, Guy.
> I would like to ask Guy if he has had any requests from
> Alcor regarding his membership or insurance that he has
> had to comply with recently.
>
>  I was once a member of Alcor. In joining I got an insurance
> policy from TransAmerica Life -- which is actually Canadian
> based. I am still making payments on this policy (it is
> term-to-100). To join Alcor now I would have to get a US-based
> insurance policy and go to the US for a physical -- but I would
> not want to give up the policy I already have.
>
> Although I currently have a dual CryoCare/Cryonics Institute
> membership, I am very aware that Alcor has the best technology
> -- brain vitrification -- and I had thought that if I really
> needed to that switching organizations would be a possibility.
> Now this prospect is not looking so good.
>
>  I know that the Chamberlains are very committed people. And
> I know that they are doing their best to tight-up what had been
> loose funding policies. But I also think that they have pushed
> worrying too far. Their "what if" worrying seems to be strangling
> Alcor. Perhaps I am wrong, if others have other perspectives, I'd
> like to hear them.
>
>        --------------------------------------------
>           Ben Best (benbest@...)
>           http://www.benbest.com/
>
> ****************************************************************
>
> Message #16201
> From: "Alan Sinclair" <Alan@...>
> Subject: The UK siuation
> Date: Sat, 5 May 2001 10:36:00 +0100
>
> I think most if not all people in cryonics work very hard and do what they
> think to be best for there members and I think the Chamberlins fit into
> this group.
>
> However I think they are misguided and for me to explain how Platt's
> message came about I must very briefly explain the past.
>
> I sent Platt A message I had sent to Linda message when he asked why we
> did not do more for storage only (he could not believe Alcor would not
> agree storage.
>
> (1) I set up Alcor UK with Mike Darwin, Jerry Leaf & Saul Kent in about 89.
>
> We worked with the US to our mutual benefit until a couple of years ago,
> we had Alcor name and support, Alcor had the benefit of having the only
> other fully equipped Cryonics unit outside the US.
>
> The cost to the US was minimal and in main paid for by the first twenty UK
> members.
>
> (2)  A couple of years ago the Chamberlins decided we must go independent
> by 2002 (after so many assessments and mind changes you would not
> believe).
>
> (3) A few months later they then decides we should not use Alcor UK (the
> name which was agreed when we set up the UK branch)
>
> NOW CALL ME PARANOID BUT AT THIS POINT I WAS FEELING WE WERE NOT WANTED?
>
> (4) We were advised to sell the facility and go to a undertaker.
>
> Insurance's changes and policy changes were almost weekly but we kept on
> agreeing with there request.
>
> (5) As we proceeded to appease them they then said that only US insurance
> would be expectable (even though UK insurance is so secure that even if
> the company go broke they will pay out) .
>
> This desission meant that unless new members (and old members when there
> term insurance run out) could not join the UK.
>
> US insurers require they have a place to stay in the US, we would have to
> get over to supply doctors with all the test required etc.
>
> I know the reasons given are, that the US members have to have US
> insurance but surly if UK members were still welcome common sense kicks
> in.
>
> Some of the people waiting to sign up had been waiting two years by this time.
>
> (6) Plagued with people having decided to want cryonics but being told
> Alcor could not take them, I had a meeting to advise them what to do.
>
> To my way of thinking we they had two choices.
>
> (a) Stay with the independent group that Alcor wanted us to form and go to
> CI for storage.
>
> (b) Go to CI
>
> Many years ago the Alcor board had agreed that as we were the only
> cryonics unit in the UK, should any member from any group die we could
> suspend them, I assumed the Chamberlins would honour that agreement (as I
> had never heard to the country).
>
> I sent the letter below to Linda HOPING I COULD HAVE SOMETHING TO OFFER
> THE PEOPLE ALCOR US HAD ALREADY REJECTED AND STOP THE GROUP SPLITTING.
>
> This was a last ditch attempted and it was at this stage my idea but I
> believe a agreement along the lines suggested would have been acceptable
> to us should the Chamberlins had responded.
>
> Sylvia and I were the founding members of Alcor UK, Sylvia was the advice
> president, and yet we did not even have the courtesy of a reply.
>
> In all fairness the Chamblins did not ignore my request all together, They
> decided not to come over to do training and postponed the new agreement
> they made for members to fly over there (NONE OF WHICH WERE INVOLVED IN
> ANY WAY WITH ME) and lost at least o ne member $840 for his pre paid
> ticket.
>
> At this point I realised there was no point in continuing with Alcor and
> my pension fund, the $420000 plus it had cost to set up the UK, the twelve
> years I had given had all been a waste of time.
>
> Along with several other old Alcor members, and of cause the members
> waiting to join , we joined CI.
>
> The facility was lost, no more Alcor UK.
>
> Fred has emailed a couple of weeks after we split to say he thought the
> suggestion of storing was the worst of both worlds
>
> I am surpassed that Dave Pizer who I thought was still on the board was
> not aware of the situation .
>
> Sent: 18 March 2001 10:42
> Subject: Insurance
>
>
> Dear Linda
>
> I hope you and Fred are well.
>
> I am so sorry you only seem to hear from us when something needs to be
> answered and I am sorry we will not see you in May but if you ever come
> for a holiday please feel free to stay, as you know we have moved to a
> better house at the cost of a smaller g arden, hope to see you soon.
>
> Now to business.
>
> Is the UK insurance the real reason for not wanting new members outside
> the US or do you just not want the problems of non US members?
>
> I fully understand if it is the latter but if this is the case a answer
> would stop our members running around trying to overcome a problem that is
> not solvable.
>
> If being sure you will be paid is your only concern it would be quite
> simple to solve.
>
> (1) All agreements made with Alcor US for members of the UK could have
> the proviso that Alcor UK or the new company will be responsible for
> sending the money before the patient.(this would only require minimal
> alteration on the existing agreement and if
> this was not done your agreement would non & void).
>
> (2) We will have all insurance's made out to us.(and be covered for non
> payment).
>
> (3) In return we will set up a mechanism to pay you in dollars to be
> transferred at the time of death.
> i.e. Alcor UK members give a personal guarantee to the banks for a
> bridging loan to be in place when required, thus the funds would be
> released to you and we would wait for the insurance to pay us.
>
> It would be our responsibility to satisfy ourselves with the insurance
> agreements.
>
> (4) If you so wished we would set up a independent cryotransport to
> serve our members, in other words the patient would be delivered to you
> and Alcor US would only be responsible for storage.
>
> This is only a brief outline but would overcome any liability you feel
> you could have and enable us to stop the hemerage we have to CI.
>
> It seems such a shame that we have struggled to get new members for ten
> years and as soon as they come along Alcor changes its policy.
>
> Please let me have you comments as soon as possible as I have to give
> answers to many people wanting cryonics and I felt I should make one last
> effort to help them join the best.
>
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> cryonicssocietyofcanada-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
>

Many or most of you probably saw the message below that
was posted to CryoNet today. To my knowledge the only
current Alcor member on this list is our President, Guy.
I would like to ask Guy if he has had any requests from
Alcor regarding his membership or insurance that he has
had to comply with recently.

    I was once a member of Alcor. In joining I got an insurance
policy from TransAmerica Life -- which is actually Canadian
based. I am still making payments on this policy (it is
term-to-100). To join Alcor now I would have to get a US-based
insurance policy and go to the US for a physical -- but I would
not want to give up the policy I already have.

   Although I currently have a dual CryoCare/Cryonics Institute
membership, I am very aware that Alcor has the best technology
-- brain vitrification -- and I had thought that if I really
needed to that switching organizations would be a possibility.
Now this prospect is not looking so good.

    I know that the Chamberlains are very committed people. And
I know that they are doing their best to tight-up what had been
loose funding policies. But I also think that they have pushed
worrying too far. Their "what if" worrying seems to be strangling
Alcor. Perhaps I am wrong, if others have other perspectives, I'd
like to hear them.

          --------------------------------------------
             Ben Best (benbest@...)
             http://www.benbest.com/

****************************************************************

Message #16201
From: "Alan Sinclair" <Alan@...>
Subject: The UK siuation
Date: Sat, 5 May 2001 10:36:00 +0100

I think most if not all people in cryonics work very hard and do what they
think to be best for there members and I think the Chamberlins fit into
this group.

However I think they are misguided and for me to explain how Platt's
message came about I must very briefly explain the past.

I sent Platt A message I had sent to Linda message when he asked why we
did not do more for storage only (he could not believe Alcor would not
agree storage.

(1) I set up Alcor UK with Mike Darwin, Jerry Leaf & Saul Kent in about 89.

We worked with the US to our mutual benefit until a couple of years ago,
we had Alcor name and support, Alcor had the benefit of having the only
other fully equipped Cryonics unit outside the US.

The cost to the US was minimal and in main paid for by the first twenty UK
members.

(2)  A couple of years ago the Chamberlins decided we must go independent
by 2002 (after so many assessments and mind changes you would not
believe).

(3) A few months later they then decides we should not use Alcor UK (the
name which was agreed when we set up the UK branch)

NOW CALL ME PARANOID BUT AT THIS POINT I WAS FEELING WE WERE NOT WANTED?

(4) We were advised to sell the facility and go to a undertaker.

Insurance's changes and policy changes were almost weekly but we kept on
agreeing with there request.

(5) As we proceeded to appease them they then said that only US insurance
would be expectable (even though UK insurance is so secure that even if
the company go broke they will pay out) .

This desission meant that unless new members (and old members when there
term insurance run out) could not join the UK.

US insurers require they have a place to stay in the US, we would have to
get over to supply doctors with all the test required etc.

I know the reasons given are, that the US members have to have US
insurance but surly if UK members were still welcome common sense kicks
in.

Some of the people waiting to sign up had been waiting two years by this time.

(6) Plagued with people having decided to want cryonics but being told
Alcor could not take them, I had a meeting to advise them what to do.

To my way of thinking we they had two choices.

(a) Stay with the independent group that Alcor wanted us to form and go to
CI for storage.

(b) Go to CI

Many years ago the Alcor board had agreed that as we were the only
cryonics unit in the UK, should any member from any group die we could
suspend them, I assumed the Chamberlins would honour that agreement (as I
had never heard to the country).

I sent the letter below to Linda HOPING I COULD HAVE SOMETHING TO OFFER
THE PEOPLE ALCOR US HAD ALREADY REJECTED AND STOP THE GROUP SPLITTING.

This was a last ditch attempted and it was at this stage my idea but I
believe a agreement along the lines suggested would have been acceptable
to us should the Chamberlins had responded.

Sylvia and I were the founding members of Alcor UK, Sylvia was the advice
president, and yet we did not even have the courtesy of a reply.

In all fairness the Chamblins did not ignore my request all together, They
decided not to come over to do training and postponed the new agreement
they made for members to fly over there (NONE OF WHICH WERE INVOLVED IN
ANY WAY WITH ME) and lost at least o ne member $840 for his pre paid
ticket.

At this point I realised there was no point in continuing with Alcor and
my pension fund, the $420000 plus it had cost to set up the UK, the twelve
years I had given had all been a waste of time.

Along with several other old Alcor members, and of cause the members
waiting to join , we joined CI.

The facility was lost, no more Alcor UK.

Fred has emailed a couple of weeks after we split to say he thought the
suggestion of storing was the worst of both worlds

I am surpassed that Dave Pizer who I thought was still on the board was
not aware of the situation .

   Sent: 18 March 2001 10:42
   Subject: Insurance


   Dear Linda

   I hope you and Fred are well.

   I am so sorry you only seem to hear from us when something needs to be
answered and I am sorry we will not see you in May but if you ever come
for a holiday please feel free to stay, as you know we have moved to a
better house at the cost of a smaller g arden, hope to see you soon.

   Now to business.

   Is the UK insurance the real reason for not wanting new members outside
the US or do you just not want the problems of non US members?

   I fully understand if it is the latter but if this is the case a answer
would stop our members running around trying to overcome a problem that is
not solvable.

   If being sure you will be paid is your only concern it would be quite
simple to solve.

   (1) All agreements made with Alcor US for members of the UK could have
the proviso that Alcor UK or the new company will be responsible for
sending the money before the patient.(this would only require minimal
alteration on the existing agreement and if
  this was not done your agreement would non & void).

   (2) We will have all insurance's made out to us.(and be covered for non
payment).

   (3) In return we will set up a mechanism to pay you in dollars to be
transferred at the time of death.
   i.e. Alcor UK members give a personal guarantee to the banks for a
bridging loan to be in place when required, thus the funds would be
released to you and we would wait for the insurance to pay us.

   It would be our responsibility to satisfy ourselves with the insurance
agreements.

   (4) If you so wished we would set up a independent cryotransport to
serve our members, in other words the patient would be delivered to you
and Alcor US would only be responsible for storage.

   This is only a brief outline but would overcome any liability you feel
you could have and enable us to stop the hemerage we have to CI.

   It seems such a shame that we have struggled to get new members for ten
years and as soon as they come along Alcor changes its policy.

   Please let me have you comments as soon as possible as I have to give
answers to many people wanting cryonics and I felt I should make one last
effort to help them join the best.

Hello from Montreal!

 

Hi guys. Well for the most part I've been more or less reading what's going on off the side lines. Encouraged by all the information I've seen being exchanged. Well in a nut shell I've been a an immortalist/transhumanist for approx half my life (I'm 33). Thanks to the versatility of the WWWW I've been able to connect with others like yourselves. You can really feel isolated at times, when no one around you shares your "eclectic" views. I got involved in BI (biological immortality) while majoring in philosophy in university. I read alot of Ayn Rand back then, Richard Dawkins, John Smith's "Atheism the Case Against God" etc. I try not to make obvious statements about my opnions, but when given a chance I've out-debated the mystics and life drainers to the ground. My non-verbal statement is an Ankh I wear around my neck (Egyptian symbol of immortality). I used to have a cryonics contract with Alcor, but that was many years ago. I wish to renew that but have new found questions about its effectiveness due to the geographical distance between Montreal and Arizona. Well that's why I tune in on the exchanges I get everyday. I'm presently a technical writer for a software development company. Talk to you soon! Great stuff guys!

 

All the best

 

Franc:)

Ben Best wrote:

>     I realize that most of you on the CSC list don't know
> one another, so it might be an idea for people to
> introduce themselves if they are so inclined -- with
> particular emphasis on their interest in cryonics.

Okay, I'll start off. I became interested in cryonics about seven years
ago when I met with representatives of CryoCare and Alcor at the World
Science Fiction Convention the year it was held here in Winnipeg. A few
months later I signed up with CryoCare. The following year I attended a
transport course given by Mike Darwin at the Rancho Cucamonga facility
of Biopreservation, Inc. Currently, my main interests in the cryonics
area are in the Hippocampal Slice Cryopreservation Project being
supported by the Institute of Neural Cryobiology, and the startup of
Kryos, a new company hoping to provide cryopreservation service. With
the technical advances that have been made in recent years, this is
becoming a very exciting time for cryonics. I am hearing more and more
people saying that true suspended animation may be with us in twenty or
thirty years, which to me is a thrilling prospect.

I work for IBM as a database software support analyst. I also have an
interest in nanotechnology, I have been a Senior Associate of the
Foresight Institute for several years now.

--
Ken Wolfe
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
kenwolfe@...
http://www.mts.net/~kenwolfe/

I realize that most of you on the CSC list don't know
one another, so it might be an idea for people to
introduce themselves if they are so inclined -- with
particular emphasis on their interest in cryonics.

    Most people are from the Toronto-area, but the others
are spread across the country:

         Douglas Skrecky -- British Columbia
         Guy Desrosiers -- Alberta
         Ken Wolfe -- Manitoba
         Frank Gagnon -- Quebec
         Jeffrey Behrendt -- Ottawa

    Shannon Foskett might be interested to know that a journalism
student from Ryerson with an interest in transhumanism did a
story on the Toronto group less than a year ago. His name was
Simon Smith <ssmith@...> -- I probably should have
added him to the list to start with, but I asked Ken to send
an invitation. Simon has a website with the article -- but the
website is not being maintained well. Nonetheless, the article
is still there:

http://www.betterhumans.com/departments/bodies/articles/2001_03_15_cryonics.shtm\
l

                       -- Ben

          --------------------------------------------
             Ben Best (benbest@...)
             http://www.benbest.com/
             ICQ -- http://www.mirabilis.com/20636141

Folks, Guy Desrosiers here - President of the CSC

First welcome to the group.

Second, thanks for those that voted for me and participated in our
discussions over the last week or so.

I'd like to start a bit of a discussion regarding the issues that you would
like to see undertaken by myself and the CSC. Our goal is to advance
cryonics in Canada and I'd like to hear from anyone with ideas and
suggestions.

I have been an Alcor member for 10 years. When I signed on, I was the 10th
Canadian member. There are now 12 Canadians enrolled. So, there is certainly
room for more rapid growth :)   I will not be advocating for any single
cryonics organization. Instead, I think that my role is to present
information to as many as possible, and for those interested to hopefully
come to a cryonics decision that is best for them.

I also would like to take aim at the political situation in B.C. The section
of legislation that bans cryonics in B.C. is something that we have taken a
crack at in the past but I think that it is time to revisit this issue. With
the provincial election in B.C. Looming, and the near certain change in
government, I will make it a personal issue to attempt to persuade the
powers that be to make the appropriate changes. This will not happen
overnight, and this will not be easy, but things that are worthwhile are
seldom simple. I would like to hear from anyone in B.C. who would be willing
to do some letter writing, etc.

As new president of the CSC, there will be some opportunity to get some
media in Alberta. I have some more reading to do before that is approached
because I want to present our organization with your thoughts and concerns.
Please let me know what you think.

Guy Desrosiers

Hello.  By now you have received an email from Yahoo Groups welcoming
you to the new mailing list for the Cryonics Society of Canada. For
those of you new to mailing lists, the way they work is very simple. To
send a message to everyone on the mailing list, all you have to do is
compose the message in your Internet email software just as if you were
sending the message to a single email address. Address your email to:
cryonicssocietyofcanada@yahoogroups.com
Yahoo Groups will then forward the message to everyone on the mailing
list.

Messages from this list (such as this message!) will appear in your
inbox with the subject prefixed by [CSC], and will be from email address
cryonicssocietyofcanada@yahoogroups.com, so they will be easy to spot.
To reply, simply use the 'Reply' option of your internet Email software,
compose your message and send it. Yahoo Groups will forward your message
to everyone on the mailing list. That's really all there is to it.

The web site associated with this Yahoo Group is:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/cryonicssocietyofcanada
As yet there is not much to see there, it is only there to support the
mailing list. I will send out email to the group as and when anything is
added here.

In case you're wondering, the moderator of the group
hubristicus@... is really me, and messages sent their will just
get forwarded to my primary email address below.

BTW, one thing is slightly different from what I had indicated before:
only members of the group can post messages to the mailing list. But it
is an open group that anyone can join, so if you know anyone else
interested in a discussion of Cryonics in Canada, by all means encourage
them to join by going to the web site, or let me know their name and
email address and I'll invite them. We don't mind lurkers, but at least
this way we will know who they are :-)

If there are any questions, please post them to the group by replying to
this message, chances are others may have the same question.

--
Ken Wolfe
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
kenwolfe@...
http://www.mts.net/~kenwolfe/