Re: Medtech 2180 a la Fulton

G'day guys,

>** You seem to believe there is nothing we can do to accelerate the
>process while ameliorating the effects of tissue damage. I merely
>suggest (not from expertise, merely from the wonderment of science and
>progress) that such a technique or technology may evolve. That changes
>the rules.

You're right, in 30 years we can all sit back and have a good laugh at
what
we thought was impossible/implausible/nonsense ;)

>** Again, I was sort of looking at the brainless or at least
>virgin-brain style of clone... such that the brain's neural pathways
>would be remapped to match that of the overlay being installed.

There is a problem with this in that even with the over capacity you
mention. We don't know what that over capacity is for, it definitely
doesn't seem to be for anything the other bits do - you can't just stuff
it
all in and say the over-capcity will fix her up, it doesn't - that why
strokes are so devastating.

>** Clone them at 20. If we have a high level of anagathic tech, we
>could well have a clone soldier useful for 60 years... Make two or
>three when a promising soldier is twenty, with all development of
>muscles and such and brain pathways, make sure the mapping is
>reasonably accurate, and cold sleep them. Then revive and overlay as
>required. Periodic update periods would help lessen the transition
>shock.

One thing though OK, explain one tiny detail to me here, skipping the
ethics of creating virgin brain clones, how the hell do you get one?
People
who are cerebrally dead waste away in beds in hospitals all around the
world; microcephalic foetus have a 99.99% abort rate etc etc. So how the
heck are you going to get a clone to the size of a 20 year old (even if
you
do it damn fast) without it having any cerebral function at all? Guess
this
is another one I'm going to have to put down to future science hey?

>** Seems like if you could quantify enough of a human to build a
>clone, you could control the development by matching parameters so it
>came out like the one you were cloning from - this isn't purely
>genetics, it might well include controlling in utero chemical
>environment, and post uterine development as well. Not a trivial feat
>perhaps. Perhaps even impossible. I just suspect we *might* be

>surprised.

I doubt it somehow. Like I said how many identical tiwns are exactly
identical in every way and every attitude? None, they're close alright,
but
not exact matches otherwise twin experiments would be of moot value.

>** As a comparison, I don't think it would be any harder than
>harnessing gravity. This is the pipe dream of physics and is a staple
>of the GZGverse. Are the GZGverse bioscientists second rate? I think
>not. If the phys geeks can solve FTL and gravity control, then I think
>we should give the bioscience guys some magic too! ;)

Bioscience guys are also 2000+ years behind the physics guys and work in
areas that I've seen leading physicsts say would make their hair curl!
But
I guess we all need a good challenge ;)

>** Sort of my point. Imagine what they were talking about in 1880 and
>what we could do in 1980... I'll bet they would not even have come
>close.... we're in the same boat. How many things thought impossible
>would we have actually made easy? How many things they thought were
>rules or laws of the way humans were put together have we broken and
>ground into the dirt? A fair few.

We haven't had much of a chance in bioscience as yet as we haven't
nailed
down any laws - Darwin ain't that long dead (in the rand scheme of
things)
and most of the founding fathers of ecology are still walking the planet
;)

>** Perhaps not, and again, it boils down to PSB. 

As usual! ;)

Hope you all have a fun (but blessedly uneventful) new year ;)

Cheers

Beth

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Elizabeth Fulton
c/o CSIRO Division of Marine Research
GPO Box 1538
HOBART 
TASMANIA 7001
AUSTRALIA
Phone (03) 6232 5018 International +61 3 6232 5018
Fax 03 6232 5053 International +61 3 6232 5053

email: beth.fulton@marine.csiro.au