http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/13/us/cancer-immortality-cryogenics.html?smid=pl-share&_r=0
This article was shared in my psychology class on death and I find it so interesting. The article describes how one girl who died at age 23 decided to use cryogenics and have her head frozen when she died in the hopes that one day she will be able to experience life again, either attached to some form of a body or experiencing life through a computer chip. I think it is fascinating that some scientists believe that we are only about 40 years away from obtaining these outcomes. It's hard to imagine a world where after people "die," they will continue living as a computer, being rebooted from their last back-up. Or maybe, the technology will even be so advanced that people with chronic illnesses can choose at any point to abandon their failing body and live through the computer chip. I think I agree with Kim that this technology is probably more than 40 years away, but who knows what the future may hold.
I wonder what happens once (or if) the brain is resurrected in this fashion. A huge feature of the human brain is its neuroplasticity, our ability to continually learn and grow. Could a computer program not only simulate the connections the brain has already made, but continue to make new ones? Could it retain memory?
ReplyDelete