Brain Transplant

I don't know about brain transplants, but there's been a lot of work done over the years on whole-head transplants, and on keeping severed heads alive.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_transplant

There are videos of Soviet experiments, done in the 1940's, keeping severed dogs' heads alive http://youtube.com/watch?v=WfIUnIpSbQI

Damnit Steve. I watched that. You know I can't erase that stuff. It's like all that smut from my adolescence. It's stuck in there now.

Hey, maybe the Soviets can help me...

If the tissues of the body degrade with age what makes you think the tissues of the brain do not. That said what would be the reason. So some rich person can have a few more years to amass a larger fortune. Until the mind goes and now sets comatose waiting for the body to age and die. What a waste.

A think about all the legal problems.

Who's to decide on what bodies to use. Parents have a child that has brain damage. Can they sell the body. Where do the individual rights start and end. Mans mind is placed in second body younger now. Is the man still held to the legality of his marriage. Now finds second wife marries has more kids. Dies children fight over legality of the wills. Children of the first marriage contend that the the new body is not the same man that sign the first will.That the mind install in the body was changed by the body. Man kills some one has transplant contends he is not the same man that killed. No physical evidence was buried with the man first body.

I think there are other ways to increase the life of man. Better to spend time researching them. Opening another can of worms. Same as cloning

It would be an incredibly interesting experiment - to see if the soul, or self, or personality of the person was transplanted along with the brain.

What would be more interesting would be if you could do a "back up" of your brain, clone yourself, and then download the backup into the new body. That would in effect allow you to live forever, assuming the backup is not corrupted.That also over comes the problems with a brain transplant.

Problem is that if Microsoft built the backup device, end of life would be from a "Blue screen of death"

Problem is that if Microsoft built the backup device, end of life would be from a "Blue screen of death"

-----

Yes, and BSOD would occur 32 seconds after bootup, which would take about three years on Vista.

"Igor, fetch me a brain!"

"Here. This one came from Abby somebody or other"

Actually, brain cells start dying at a very predictable rate after a certain age. If you haven't done anything to speed this process, it is estimated that the limit at which you do not have enough brain cells to avoid dementia is 165 years. After that - it's "Mister Poopie Pants," no matter what you do.

So get working on them brain drugs!!!

Yeth mathter, and would you like fries with that order thir?

Go watch the movie Free-Jack.

The brain's blood vessels will degrade eventually, so I do not know how much time could be bought. It would be better to work on robots to take care of us in our old age.

Some day, probably it will be a while, we will likely match the human brain in computing power. Then all we have to do is find a way to transfer a model of the specific electrochemical patterns of each brain into the electronic version. The results might settle some age old arguments, or not, but would most assuredly create some new ones, especially if it worked. If you could create a world that sustained consciousness of any imaginable reality, virtualized, existing only in electrical activity... would it be different in any way other than the platform that supports the electrical activity? Hal, are you there? Daisy, Daisy...

Brain transplant? Mmmmm....

How about EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS, ETC. to preserve the accumulated knowledge of those older experienced and knowledgeable skilled craftsmen, and teachers that are gradually slipping from the scene.

"Would it be a step closer to finding a way to eternity or much increased life expectancies?"

Unless and until great strides are made in Frankensteinology I can guarantee almost 100% that a brain transplant will be an instant gateway to eternity! Do you really want to go there that way?

They can keep your head alive indefinitely in a jar. I know this 'cause I seened it with my own eyes of Futurama!!!

Nice....

The life after death is being remembered by loved ones and those you've helped on the way, those who pick up your tools after you and think 'My Dad showed me how to do this...'

Nice indeed.

Since I was born brainless I have had three unsuccessful implant attempts. I would, however, like to try again if I can find a suitable brain, any volunteers?

Also, in my science readings, I have been following the developments of Nanotechnology and the development of quantum computing. This is also being spearheaded in Japan with robot research and in the USA with brain-computer interface. A great deal of success, of late, has been in the area of prosthetics and the use of nanobots to bypass broken nerve pathways, restoration of sight and hearing, etc. Keep in mind, too, that this topic is being well discussed in science fiction, too, in programs such as Star Trek, Jake 2.0, Painkiller Jane, etc.

If one is to replace his brain, i.e., transplant the brain, is seems to me that he would not be himself any longer, but rather, would become the person that own the brain in the first place. In other words, he would be taking on a new body, not a new brain. I suggest that we would be better off with the brain-computer interface that with exchanging brains. We might find this link a good starting point for such discussions of the brain-computer interface. At the bottom of this Wiki you will also find a great deal of further readings to follow. And while you are at it, try a google search for the key word Nanotechnology. You will find some very interesting work with the brain-computer interface in nanotechnology.

"Since I was born brainless I have had three unsuccessful implant attempts. I would, however, like to try again if I can find a suitable brain, any volunteers?

Just get married. Your wife will do (or attempt to do) all your thinking for you.

Problem solved!

Like I said, I have had three implants. I am still living with the third and yes, she does my thinking for me. But since she is 80 years of age, her thinking is almost as bad as mine, now.

Transplant into what? another body? or a machine? With regard to the latter, the transhumanist movement seeks to extend life expectancy via technology, presumably driven by a fear of death and an absence of spirituality. I suspect that only the very wealthy would want that, after all they have everything else. For myself, I'll settle for hip joints that don't go rusty and comfortable spectacles that don't cost a fortune . . . oh, and a sense of humour to the end.

I don't think it's feasible because during the operation some external device (call it artificial assisting brain) has to take over all vital functions similarly to heart transplant. If you shut down the brain to be replaced, that's DEATH. Assuming that surgery techniques will evolve up to the point of being able to disconnect and reconnect all nervous links to the brain stem, the operation will still be unsuccessful because the brain is not only a bunch of neurons but also the biggest gland of our body. What artificial chemical brain may put in the circulatory system the same complex cocktail of hormones in order to maintain and balance all vital functions of the entire human body? Assuming the brain transplant is done, the new brain will reject the body and the body will reject the brain. The major conflict as I see between the chemical signals (stimuli and responses to stimuli) in both directions cannot be resolved in real time. By contrast, a heart transplant is more of a plumbing fix in a hydraulic system.

Personally, I don't think immortality or eternity is even wishful. I very much accept the idea of dying one day and I'm not afraid of it. Actually, this is the the only certainty we may have after being born. Eternity will eventually come if you manage to do something meaningful in your lifetime. To my understanding, eternity or at least remembering for a few generations to come is only spiritual, not physical.

Nature is offering some examples of self-reproducing organisms. Maybe that is all that can be achieved in this direction.

On the other hand, let's say brain transplant is doable. Common sense and all history of mankind make us think that this technique will not be accessible to everyone (like a walk-in clinic) but only to a few ruling this planet. Don't we have too many nuts in the most powerful positions? Should they live for ever?

Now let's take the most appealing application: make Einstein be immortal. I'm pretty sure that any creator's mind will someday be drained of inspiration and he will simply switch jobs. Getting bored is also "embedded" in our brain and human nature.

To make this story short, nothing in the world is good unless it is compared to the opposite. Why not just enjoy life as it is given to us and make it as good as we can?

Why not just stay on the continent of Europe and not bother to go to all the trouble of building a ship and taking the risk of sailing off the end of the earth? We just don't do that as humans. Part of what we are is driven to explore possibilities. Why people seem to suggest that we have gone far enough in any given realm and expect that we will all go along with that sentiment I will never understand.

Really now. If it became no big deal, if it were easy and only a modest expense and there was the opportunity to be fully functional in some manner, not necessarily in the exact configuration of your birth but none the less to continue on in some form and continue to learn and experience consciousness an some presence in the physical realm would you really prefer to choose a natural death? If it were a choice instead of an inevitability would you really just say "I'm bored, I've seen enough, I'm done and even though I could go on in another form just let me die? Would you really?

Hi rcaper.

I'm not sure we are on the same page. What I meant is that an immortal Einstein would probably get bored one day of theoretical Physics and simply switch to a plumber - as he mentioned when talking about his childhood dreams.

For the rest, I'm not repeating myself.

No. His brain would eventually wear out and he'd become a venture capitalist.

Huh?! When the bubble burst (bursted? bursteded?), the venture capitalists were the ones that made out like frigging bandits!!!

Nah. The bandits were the investees. The investors were the ones left holding the bag and breathing in all that vaporware.

The stock investors got screwed, but not the venture capitalists.

True, true. So what would Einy do? Run for office?

I once transplanted my head onto a potted plant for a year. Of course, that was purely for tax purposes.

Devo?

why biological transplant , wait for some years may be genetics & electronics will give answers like tranfering information from ones briain to other directly like data transfer in computers or so. may be some people will steal information from your brain and store it in silicon chips and utilise whenever necessary or reprogram your brain you can be a scientist , engineer ,at atime. may be rebirths , mind control will be regular news its already shown in scifi movies , any takers for plastic reconditioned brains!

I used to have a keyboard and a screen. Now I've got an implanted USB port and a bar-code. It won't be long.....

I don't think medicine - surgery is at the point where they can connect severed nerves to function again. The brain stem and the brain control most of the bodily functions. All voluntary nerves for arm - leg movement etc have to pass thru the brain or brainstem. Unless they find a way to "re-connect" severed nerves, this won't be possible. However, the Buffalo Bill player who was "paralyzed" last Sunday is at the point where he has sensation and motion of all his extremities, thanks to a doctor on the scene. The doctor was part of the Miami Project to Prevent Paralysis, and he gave the player a shot of very cold saline in his blood stream, lowering the body temperature (much like a hibernating animal), preventing death of a lot of cells that might have otherwise died. The player is now expected to walk again.

Would love to have politicians have brain transplants.

First they would have to have a brain. I think all some of them demonstrate is the presence of a brain stem. Reptilicians.

It's a question of definitions:

If the 'soul' and the 'personality' lie wholly within the brain, would 'body transplant' be a better description of the procedure?

Think about this... Every cell in your body is replaced about every 7 years. That is, except brain cells! They do not replace themselves, and (basically) your brain is the same one, except with a few upgrades, that you were born with!!!

That explains everything.

The brain is not just formed as per our DNA but also shows plasticity.

You cannot live forever even tho your brain manages to. Each cell in our body has a built in timer that is ticking inside our DNA. It tells the cell to die. So you may end up keeping the brain alive but the body will give way.

Also like chtank and hottech already mentioned, the body and brain will reject each other. The brain is like the CPU and the body is like the hardware of a computer. They must be mutually compatible.

If such a transplant is done, after doping the body enough with immuno-suppressants, it will almost be like a prosthetic body. Each part will give trouble.

I will not say that this is impossible but it is too much work than say, simply developing machines to support a good living brain.

Regarding the data transfer.... I think it is called learning!

may be strong man from wwf get new brain from physically disabled or parlysed

braindead hmm

Cell Immortality is already a done deal. It is called cancer. The problem is controlling the over growth and metastisis, thereby invaduing the territory of other necessary cells. We use cell immortality in Biotech to make protein based therapeutics. One small 1ml vial of cells is grown to up to 20,000L and the product is then harvested and the remaining cellls destroyed. This is how EPO, HGH, insulin and many other Biotech generated drugs are made.

There is one I worked on years ago that prvents organ rejection. that drug iss currently in clinical trials for Rheumatoid Arthritis (autoimmune disease). I have seen it successfully tested by grafting mouse hearts to rats without the use of immunosuppresants.

The only problem reminng is getting the immortality to work in our favor and control over growth and the reconnecting of the severed tissue to the new body (especially nerve tissue). Could you imagine how long a head transplant would take? Maybe nanorobots could do it in under anhour as outpatient surgery so the insurance companies wouldn't ge upset about the overnight stay.

I believe that the research is not to immortality, but rather, to extending one's lifespan. After all, if our life span is only 100 years or less, there is no way we can send a person or probe to our nearest star and expect to have the data returned in our lifetime. That would require a lifespan in excess of 2,000 years which is predicted by at least one researcher. After all, guys and dolls, the cell life is recorded in the DNA punch card at end of the chromosome. All we have to do is make a new punch card, hehehehehe.

I've down loaded everything that I am from my brain over the years to floppy disk! My clone was just about ready to receive the up load of my info when my dog decided to chew on the bunch of floppies. Now there are teeth marks, tears and punctures in the floppies. Then my great great grand kids (I am 127 years old) decided to lay their black and white dog magnetic dogs ( that I bought in 1949) on the pile and I'm sure it corrupted some of the data.

My questions is! Do you think there could be any information lost and the up load would be incomplete! And if there so, does anyone know of a "brain" info data retrieval service I can use.

The is really a dilemma and I'm not sure how to handle this since my cyrogenic cylinder is losing temperature rapidly since its been unplugged in anticpation of the upload! Oh My! Maybe that Russia scientist guy knows what to do! Yeah thats the ticket!

Respectully yours?

LOST IN SPACE...AGAIN?

How were you able to fill more than one floppy? As far as I know, one floppy will hold all the data of all the living humans on earth. We Ghotians are just now starting our second floppy.

Damn! I've been found out! OK it was just one floppy and that had room left over for a few loose KB and the dog didn't chew on it...I did! Drates I say...just drates But I ain't lyin about the magnets!

that reminds me of the movie Vanilla Sky

Or you could always use this as a primer...

They are coming to take me away, haha, they are coming to take me away!

Bye, Bye chtank, bye, bye!

Been there done that.

They will NEVER catch me again.

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha

I glad we are comming up on All Hallows Eve. That gives you all an excuse for FREAKING everbody out!

what if some day people figure out a way to keep an isolated brain alive in some artficial medium. and then if we transplant it into some other person wud that person GET and KNOW all that the first person knew...all his memories and information.??!

If you're talking two brains in one skull, I think both would know the thoughts of the other. If you're talking about transplanting the brain into an empty skull, I would think that that body would become the body of the transplanted brain, and he would learn nothing about it's previous occupant...

By the way, the rent is due!!!

As a child I recall wishing I were someone else until it occurred to me, even as a child, that I would then be that person and perhaps someone else would be me and it wouldn't change a thing since as that other person I would not know I had once been someone else. Then I just started wishing I had that other person's toys.

Now that is is clear we can clone eve humans, consider this:

If one was cloned, the brains would be identical at the time of birth of the clone. However, during the gestation period, the environment would have been different, different mother perhaps or at least the mother would be older than when you were in her womb. The birth would be in a different time and, perhaps, a different location, or both. from birth onward, nothing would be the same and so, the clone would have different learning experiences which means the original and the clone cannot in any way be the same. Now, one who believes in a soul could extend this to the soul. Does this mean that the soul of the original is also the soul of of the clone, too, or is the clone soulless? Maybe the clone's soul becomes individual, too and, like the brain, develops totally separate from the soul of the original. This is something you can contemplate in your philosophical discussions.

Even beyond the deterministic yet practically speaking, uncontrollable differences you mention, there would most assuredly be quantum indeterminance that would be beyond theoretical control that would ultimately differentiate in some way.

One soul in two bodies, hmm, could be the answer to my lifelong dream of being in two places at once!

Nothing more than food............................for thought!

Want to buy a soul?

Get one here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/one-HUMAN-SOUL_W0QQitemZ230213317698QQihZ013QQcategoryZ1469QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I'm telling you, if it exists you can buy it on ebay.

Hey the current bid is only $5.50USD. I'll pitch in for 1/2. wanna split it?

I must admit it is tempting and the price is right. But I've been doing ok without one and it would probably just complicate my life. I think I'll pass.

The sad part is it's only received 2 bids!!!

The laser etched Elvis graham cracker went for more than that!!!

I have no idea to what you are referring to. A name is a name... What happens to it over the years is the fault of history.