The American Cryonics Society (ACS), also known as the Cryonics Society of America, is a member-run,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
-based,
501(c)(3)
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...
tax-exempt
Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...
nonprofit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
that supports and promotes research and education into
cryonics
Cryonics (from el, κρύος ''kryos'' meaning 'cold') is the low-temperature freezing (usually at ) and storage of human remains, with the speculative hope that resurrection may be possible in the future. Cryonics is regarded with skepticis ...
and
cryobiology
Cryobiology is the branch of biology that studies the effects of low temperatures on living things within Earth's cryosphere or in science. The word cryobiology is derived from the Greek words κρῧος ryos "cold", βίος ios "life", and λό ...
. Cryonics is the
low-temperature freezing (usually at ) and storage of a human corpse or severed head, with the speculative hope that
resurrection
Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, which ...
may be possible in the future.
The American Cryonics Society is the oldest cryonics organization still in existence.
History
The American Cryonics Society was first incorporated in 1969 in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
as the
Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...
Cryonics Society (BACS);
its name was changed to the American Cryonics Society in 1985. The founding of the company followed over two years of organizational meetings by cryonics activists. Signers of the founding charter included two well-known Bay Area
physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
s, Dr. M. Coleman Harris, and Dr. Grace Talbot. The 1969 incorporation date makes it the oldest cryonics society still in existence. The
Immortalist Society
The Immortalist Society is a charitable 501(c)(3) organization devoted to research and education in the areas of cryonics and life extension. It was incorporated as a Michigan corporation by Robert Ettinger and five other local residents on June ...
(IS), with which the American Cryonics Society works closely, is a successor to the Cryonics Society of Michigan whose founding predates that of the American Cryonics Society.
In 1978, the Cryonics Society of America researchers collaborated with
Jerry Leaf
Jerry Donnell Leaf (April 4, 1941 – July 10, 1991) was Vice President and Director of the cryonics organization Alcor Life Extension Foundation, and President of the cryonics service firm Cryovita, Inc.
until his death in 1991. He was s ...
of Cryovita Laboratories in experiments that would apply the methodology to cryonic suspensions that were then in use as surgical procedures to treat patients with heart disease. Thus a team led by a thoracic surgeon and a perfusionist would use cardio-pulmonary resuscitation equipment and blood-pumps to quickly cool a patient, and replace his blood with a blood substitute containing cryoprotectants. For several years thereafter, Cryovita Laboratories led by Jerry Leaf and Mike Darwin, were responsible for the initial cryonic suspension of patients of the American Cryonics Society, which were then perfused, transported, and kept in cryogenic storage by Trans Time.
In 2002 when CryoSpan opted to close down its long-term cryogenic storage operations, 10 ACS patients and a number of pets were transferred to the
Cryonics Institute
Cryonics Institute (CI) is an American nonprofit foundation that provides cryonics services. CI freezes dead humans and pets in liquid nitrogen with the hope of restoring them with technology in the future.
History
The Cryonics Institute was fo ...
(CI) facility in
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
.
The American Cryonics Society had contracted with CI for the long-term
cryogenic
In physics, cryogenics is the production and behaviour of materials at very low temperatures.
The 13th IIR International Congress of Refrigeration (held in Washington DC in 1971) endorsed a universal definition of “cryogenics” and “cr ...
storage of a number of other members prior to the 2002 patient transfer. The ACS inspects CI yearly to ensure ACS quality standards are met.
The extra funds charged to ACS members beyond CI minimums could be used for moving the patients in the future if necessary, or other uses.
Perspective
The cryonics movement, which started with the publication of
Robert Ettinger
Robert Chester Wilson Ettinger (December 4, 1918 – July 23, 2011) was an American academic, known as "the father of cryonics" because of the impact of his 1962 book ''The Prospect of Immortality''.
Ettinger founded the Cryonics Institute ...
’s book ''The Prospect of Immortality'' in 1964, is still treated as a curiosity by most people, though cryonics continues to gain in acceptance by both the general public, and the scientific community.
See also
*
Charles Platt (science-fiction author)
Charles Platt (born 26 April 1945 in London, England) is a British author, journalist and computer programmer. He relocated from England to the United States during 1970 and is a naturalized U.S. citizen. He has one child, Rose Fox, who edits sc ...
*
Robert Ettinger
Robert Chester Wilson Ettinger (December 4, 1918 – July 23, 2011) was an American academic, known as "the father of cryonics" because of the impact of his 1962 book ''The Prospect of Immortality''.
Ettinger founded the Cryonics Institute ...
References
External links
*
Cryonics Institute
{{Authority control
Cryonics organizations in the United States
Non-profit organizations based in California
Medical and health organizations based in California