Cryopreservation - the freezing fountain of youth is under fire

The word cryobiology is derived from the Greek words 'cryo' meaning 'cold', 'bios' meaning 'life' and 'logos' meaning 'study of' or 'science'.

Today cryobiology is a tangible branch of biology that studies the effects of living things in extreme below freezing temperatures.


Behind the frozen veneer of cryobiology life extension innovation
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There are many distinctions in the cryo-science practice and the freezing of non-living matter, but in cryobiology the main focus is in the study of preserving life in biological matter including proteins, cells, tissues, organs and organisms in their entirety.

The freezing temperatures in cryo-science may range from very cold, sub zero, hypothermic conditions to extreme temperatures of –300 °C.

As a result of the below freezing temperature measurement studies, scientists created a new temperature scale from the commonly known Fahrenheit and Celsius, which they call the Kelvin and Rankine scales: whereas –300 °C or –508 °F translates to -27 K (conversion calculator)

The field of research in cryobiology techniques, evolved procedures and emerging technologies is primarily focused on trying to achieve cryopreservation suspension and reanimation. In recent years, with support of emergency medicine, the basis that cryobiology may surpass organ transplantation and may have the ability to increase the length of a life may be slowly becoming a reality. However, behind the frozen veneer of life extension innovation lies the very cause of the opposition. The progressing cryobiology research of cheating death and extending the human lifeline is also the same reason for fueling a heated ethical debate with a strong opposition on the morality of cryo-science.

Many medical procedures today would not even be possible if it had not been for cryobiology. The newly evolved medical procedures in the cryobiology field have been successful in treating certain skin tissues from lesions, sustaining cell life and also improved quality of life with various new cryosurgery transplantation processes. Thus in essence, cryobiology is in fact already extending life. The ability to lengthen a person's life allowed many groups to surface as societies pursuing, funding and supporting cryonic suspension of humans. However, the belief that the length of life should not be tampered triggered other opposing parties hindering the research and the science of cryobiology altogether.

In addition to the ethics of meddling with mother nature and as cryobiology is being further explored, the complications of these processes are also becoming well known. Another supporting argument from the opposition to the science that is starting to surface is that any type of cryobiological procedure affects the cells and the surrounding areas causing, in many cases, extensive irreversible damage. In cryosurgery, the reported damage is almost equal to the success of the treatment for the problem. This damage on the cellular level can cause future problems that will require treatment producing a cryo-dependency cycle for the patient.

Damage may also occur in cryopreservation suspension where defects have been known to be caused by implications; the exact underlined cause is still unknown to the science. The cost of most cryobiological procedures is still very expensive and unless a payment plan similar to life insurance can be implemented, the price tag for prolonging one's life with cryobiology is too expensive for the average person to afford. The fact that there are not any successful resuscitations recorded for cryonics patients demonstrates the probability that the damage factor occurrence may be preventing reanimation of a frozen human being and to date it is still not possible.

While there is much controversy about whether cryobiology advancement is scientifically or ethically justifiable, it does offer the possibility of redefining mortality. As a result, several societies for cryobiology based on the life preservation theory have surfaced around the world through the years with members that date back to as early as 1964.

With the many important medical contributions of cryobiology being promoted in the field of organ transplantation and the high expectation of cryopreservation as a future technology, medical research may be the governing force in the cryobiology science that can sway the argument in favor of pursuing the research further despite the current set-backs

How to make New Year's resolutions work for you!

Every year millions of people commence new work out regiments, alter their diets and make ritualistic changes in bad behavior just in time for New Year's Day.



Studies show that guilty feelings from holiday spending, prolonged lack of exercise and overindulgence with festive treats leads to a guilt-ridden need for change.


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These feelings seem to coincide with the beginning of the New Year marking a psychological timeline to start fresh with the underlined goal of becoming a better person in the future, inside and out. However, by the first week of February most New Year's resolutions are a distant memory for most..

So how does one make the leap to a new beginning work for them?

The shift for change may be a difficult one but psychologists claim that with a few pointers, success is possible.

Firstly, something to watch for is that most people fail in their attempt for change because the human mind will rationalize with excuses that are rooted deep inside individualistic psyches so that the physical discomfort can end.

Learn how to overcome this obstacle before you even get started by examining your motivation for change. Be realistic and be vocal to your friends and family about the changes you are ready to make so that they can support you, stay away from negative people that would like to see you fail at least until you are confident in your success and strong in your lifestyle change.

Make your tasks non-negotiable and do not rationalize with yourself, for example do not rationalize that it is too early to get up for exercise, yet if it was a work related obligation it would be a non-issue. Do it regardless of how you feel about it, be aware that one can almost always find an excuse not to do something. However, if you make a non-negotiable decision that is based on a sound realistic goal you set in the first place rather than on how you feel at the moment, you will be successful.

Write down your goals, studies show that University graduates have a higher success rate of accomplishing their career goals if they had written them down. Because of our educational system's training of reading and writing, the brain retains the information better and has a better memory when the time is taken to write it down. Focus on the positive changes as a result of your behavioral shift, for example with quitting smoking, focus on the improved breathing, a smoker feels bodily sensations when the nicotine levels drop but it is a choice as to how this symptom is interpreted: symptoms can be defined as extremely unpleasant and curable by reverting back to smoking or alternatively they can be interpreted as the physical discomfort of being permanently cleansed from the drug.

Do not quit your program for change for a minor set back. If you give in to temptation, do not further the damage by using this as an excuse to abandon the whole program. Allow yourself to be imperfect, perhaps you can make it a secondary goal to learn from your mistakes and move on as this will undoubtedly ensure your success.

Start now! If you are waiting for a better time to start a behavioral change, that in itself is a behavioral change that needs to be addressed. Procrastination means it likely will not happen. It is almost never convenient to change mentally fused habits. But your need for change is the mind's own cry for help that is usually heard very late in the game. Now is just as convenient as any time. Plan your resolution(s) in advance, instead of waiting until New Year's Eve.

If you begin today rather than later, you will have a better chance of maintaining your goal and sustaining your discipline in the new year. If you cannot find a reliable friend for support at your times of weakness, use a simple CD related to your goal that will talk you through your temporary set-back and you will find success in whatever you set your mind to.

Best of L.U.C.K. (Labor Under Correct Knowledge); successfully accomplishing your goals is not by chance, it is a Science.

Remember To:

Have a strong commitment for change.
Write down a program that will help to achieve your goal(s).
Have a coping strategy to deal with set-backs that will come up.
Tell your friends, the more monitoring and feedback you have the better you will do.