Does cryonics have a reasonable chance of working?
Cryonics can fail in two ways. Either cryonics patients will not remain cryopreserved long enough to reach the medicine they need, or an insufficient record of their mind has been successfully cryopreserved. The likelihood of the second failure mode has been diminishing for years as cryonics technology improves, and will continue to diminish. The risk of inadequate preservation may be ruled out completely within another decade if techniques for transplantable organ banking can be adapted to achieve reversible preservation of the brain. At present, the greatest uncertainty seems to be whether cryonics patients will remain preserved long enough to reach the medicine they need. This includes the risk of socio-economic disruption, and the fact that the general public does not currently regard cryonics patients as people worthy of protection.
