At the end of that ABC Good Morning America segment on cryonics, they pointed viewers to a poll on “Would you have your body cryonically frozen after death?” Out of 15,335 answers so far, 78% said “No, that’s too weird!”, 14% “I’m not sure”, and 8% “Yes, I believe in the science.” Of course these are mostly made up opinions; far less than 8% of the show’s 4.6 million viewers of the show will actually sign up. (Over forty years, only two thousand have signed up worldwide.)
Interestingly, the poll website shows a graphic that breaks votes down by location, and the 274 who live outside the US, probably expats, like cryonics the most – 18% say yes and 19% not sure. Arizona, where the cryonics provider Alcor is located, is second at, 13% yes, 14% not sure, out of 146. (I ignore Rhode Island, with only 26 votes.) Are people more comfortable with moving to foreign lands also more comfortable with moving to the future?!
I'm an expat in Germany by choice along with my expat wife. I'm ready to be frozen! Seriously I told my wife when we first got married: "...when I die put a manikin in the coffin and donate my body to science or have it frozen..."
I think there is good reason to believe that people who are willing to relocate for the sake of it are also more "open" to the possibilities of technology, even the ones who relocate trying to escape "complicated" life and society. While life is simple you still have those fancy devices that make you modern but you have unfinished floors and used rugs. Appreciating simple living but embracing the future. Aesthetic but functional living... though not to be confused with douche-bag hipster living.
After being here for since '06 I can say for certain that looking back and reading the things going on in the US... a lot of people back home live in a fish tank, for the fish looking out the light shines through a bit different than when your standing on the outside looking in.
Freeze me.
yup. see the trackback for my overly elaborate argument about selectivity that you put much more simply.