CryoNet #31884 - #31886

CryoNet - Wed 19 Aug 2009

    #31884: Alcor legal action to claim buried individual? [Rudi Hoffman]
    #31886: Re: #31883: Some brief book reviews [swb1948]

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Message #31884
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:26:33 -0400
Subject: Alcor legal action to claim buried individual?
From: Rudi Hoffman <[email protected]>

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Hello, Cryoneters,

Does anyone have any additional details or inside information about the
current Alcor case referenced today on Cryonet by John de Rivaz?

It would be helpful to have the backstory and details on this potentially
rather explosive piece of news.

For those of you who may have missed today's post, I will reprint the link
here:
http://www.thehawkeye.com/Story/Cryonics-appeal-081409

sent to Cryonet, with copies to some insiders and friends

Rudi Hoffman

-- 
Rudi Richard Hoffman CFP CLU ChFC

World's Leading Cryonics Insuror rudihoffman.com
Former Board Member Financial Planning Association fpafla.com
Board Member Salvation Army salvationarmy.org
Member Alcor Life Extension Foundation alcor.org,
Member Cryonics Institute cryonics.org
Certified Financial Planner(TM) CFP Board of Standards
Member World Transhumanist Association http://transhumanism.org/

--0016364ed1d8e1e2ce04716dd141

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Message #31886
References: <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: #31883: Some brief book reviews
Date: Tue, 18 Aug 2009 18:10:33 -0400
From: [email protected]

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Sorry about those odd question marks all over my reviews.? I used a new laptop for this and I guess I have some settings to look at.? I have attempted to clean them up beow.



Steve






These are some recent non-cryonics books, but which fit the interests of many of 
the Cryonet readers.

*Newton and the Counterfeiter; the Unknown Detective Career of the World's 
Greatest Scientist.* Levenson, Thomas. Houghton Mifflin, 2009. We're all 
familiar with Isaac Newton's contribution to the laws of motion, the motion of 
planets, optics, etc. But you are probably not aware of his second career as 
bureaucrat and detective. This is not fiction; it's an entertaining biography 
of Isaac Newton, with special emphasis on his career as Warden of the Royal 
Mint. Not only did Newton help save England's currency, he caught and executed 
the most notorious counterfeiter of the time. The economic chaos of England and 
Europe of the time is quite fascinating to read about. With no international 
markets to set prices, it was possible for enterprising men of the time to take 
silver coins from England, and take?them to France to buy gold. In France, gold 
was cheaper than silver. But in England, silver was cheaper than gold, so these 
fellows could take the gold back to England and buy more silver, making a profit on both ends.

*Galileo goes to Jail; and other myths about science and religion.* ed. 
Numbers, Ronald L. Harvard University Press, 2009. An interesting collection 
of essays about conflicts between science and religion, from the murder of 
Hypatia in 415 AD to "Intelligent Design" theories. It includes stops to look 
at the execution of Giordano Bruno, the trial of Galileo, and the Scopes Trial, 
among others. Refreshingly, the book is not attempting to bash either religion 
or science. The authors are trying to get at the story of what really happened 
in these incidents, and comparing this with the mythology and interpretation 
that have grown up around them. For instance, in the title story, science 
writers -- especially anti-religious writers -- have often said that Galileo was 
jailed and even tortured by the Inquisition for saying that the earth moved 
around the sun. This is a myth generate
d by assumptions made at the time; but 
the reality has been known for over 100 years, with the release of many Vatican 

historical records. Galileo was found guilty by a 
Vatican court; but spent no more than one day in jail and was never tortured. I 
appreciate any attempt to inject facts into controversial discussions. This is 
well done.

*WWW : Wake* Sawyer, Robert J.  Ace Books, 2009. This one IS science fiction, 
an intriguing first volume of what looks to be a three-book series. A new virus 
in China threatens to become a pandemic. A blind girl in Canada is given an 
artificial eye by a Japanese researcher. The girl does learn to see -- in 
unexpected ways. A signing chimpanzee in California takes its first steps to 
self-awareness by signing to an orangutan in Georgia via a television link. And 
each of these unrelated incidents contributes to what seems to be a part of the 
Internet becoming aware. Sawyer is an intelligent writer with a good sense of 
wonder and of characterization. You may be familiar with his books 
*Flashforward* and *Mindscan*, two of many thought-provoking novels. If the 
remaining two volumes are as good as this one, I expect the series to become a 
classic exploration of the nature of intelligence, awareness, and human-ness.

I have also read Dani and Eytan Kollin's novel, *The Unincorporated Man." This 
will require a lot longer review, which I am working on. It's not a perfect 
book; but it's darn good, and kept my neurons firing more rapidly than usual for 
several days. It won't be a waste of your time, even if you're busy.


Steve Bridge

Librarian



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