>> From: Randy <cryon@mindspring.com>
The same thought immediately struck me. After a brief serach, I
found the following communique:
>
>> http://www.chron.com/content/story.html/page1/204191
>
>"And while some gains in anti-aging research have been made, anyone hoping
to
>collect Quarles' prize had better work fast; it expires in 2000.
>
>"I'm trying to save my own ass," he admits. "And who wouldn't? According to
the
>charts, I only have about five years to live. The clock is ticking."
>
>"To clarify: Miller Quarles doesn't just want to live. He wants to live
forever. And
>he's offering a $100,000 reward for the scientist who finds the "cure" for
what he
>considers the disease of old age."
>
>Cryonics is never mentioned with regard to Quarles, so I suppose
>that he hasn't signed up yet (though afaik he knows about the
>procedure). Damn fool! He'll be long dead before they find that
>"miracle cure" for aging. Cryonics sure could use some extra
>funding, and Mr. Quarles will no doubt soon be needing cryonics,
>so perhaps someone should do some prodding (someone from
>ExI, perhaps?) Might be worth a try.
<<On Tue, 27 Jan 1998 09:33:29 Jim Halperin wrote
"den Otter" <otter@globalxs.nl> writes:Subject: Miller Quarles & cryonics
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 11:57:11 +0100
I suppose most people on this list have already heard of Miller Quarles,
a rich Texan oilman, founder of the Society for Curing Old Age Disease
and Geron Corp. http://www.geron.com/ (of telomerase fame). He seeks
immortality through genetic engineering, and has spent quite some money
on research etc. He is also over 80 years old, and although he's allegedly
in good health (unless, of course, he died recently) it seems obvious that
he's not going to make it, i.e. the breakthrougs in anti-aging research are
almost certainly too far off to be of any use too him. Since the man is an
immortalist, one would expect that he has therefore made the necessary
arrangements with a cryonics company. However, this doesn't seem to be the
case. There is no mention of cryonics in any of the articles about M.
Quarles,
in which he *does* state that he desires biological immortality etc. Is he
for
some strange reason anti-cryonics, or simply unaware of the option? (hard
to imagine, though). In the latter case it might be useful if someone (with
some standing in the cryonics community) would notify Quarles. It goes
without saying that a suspension contract would greatly benefit both Mr.
Quarles as well as the cryonics community (at least *one* company, anyway ;)
Apart from this, wouldn't it be a good idea for cryonics organizations to
specifically target the high(er) income groups (intensively)? Surely there
must
be plenty of rich folks out there without an urgent death-wish...Or has this
already been tried? For an article on Quarles, gentics & immortality:
http://www.inc.co.za/online/sunday_life/june_30/life.html
To den Otter:
Miller Quarles is indeed alive and well, although he was hospitalized
and nearly died last year from a staph infection. I have spoken with
him recently (he wrote to me after reading an advance copy of The
First Immortal). Although a subscriber to Alcor publications, he has
not yet signed up for suspension. He seems to believe that aging
reversal will come in time for him, an opinion from which I have thus
far been unable to dissuade him.
I expect,as a result of my book, to run into many people with odd
views of death, society, religion, likely biotechnological progress,
etc., and welcome all suggestions about how best to handle such
situations, especially from cryonicists who have actually read The
First Immortal.
Best regards, Jim Halperin>>
Source: http://www11.pair.com/kqb/archive/9059
Scott