Category: Transhumanism

  • Interview: CBS Sunday Morning Primetime Special “Forever Young: Searching for the Fountain of Youth”

    Screenshot of CBS Sunday Morning Forever Young: Searching for the Fountain of Youth title screen with stylized fountain of youth graphics (online video)

    I was interviewed for a segment on cryonics that aired in a CBS Sunday Morning primetime special titled “Forever Young: Searching for the Fountain of Youth” in November 2021.

  • h+

    h+ logo with falling leaves in header 2020

    Richard designed, developed, and maintained the original h+ Tucson website as well as the expanded h+ website for multiple chapters and new transhumanist-related content, including a gallery of transhumanist art, links, and other resources.

  • Kickstarter – The Methuselah Generation

    Kickstarter Logo Green

    Trailer for a documentary – filmed in 3D – about longevity. The filmmakers are raising money to finish the film via Kickstarter.

  • Avatar’s Accomplishments

    Avatar promotional wallpaper with floating islands

    Avatar has accomplished more than most movies in recent memory, including the introduction of ideas long popular with transhumanists to a more mainstream audience. Is it also helping to lead to more public acceptance of transhumanism and emerging technologies?

  • Avatar: Transhumanist Perspective

    Promotional wallpaper from Avatar with Jake looking at his alien clone in a tank

    James Cameron’s Avatar is an astonishing and must-see movie. It is also a huge disappointment.

  • Friend of Chris Heward, Friend of Your Own Life Extension

    Life extension researcher Chris Heward was recently diagnosed with cancer. See how you can help.

  • Top Killers Identified By World Health Organization

    Cardiovascular diseases, infectious diseases and cancer remain the world’s top killers of humans according to “The Global Burden of Disease” report from the World Health Organization (WHO).

  • Aging 2008

    On Friday, June 27, 2008 from 4:00 PM through 8:00 PM PDT at UCLA, scientists and other anti-aging luminaries will discuss “Aging: the Disease, the Cure, the Implications,” a Methuselah Foundation co-sponsored event. The ADCI event is open to the public and presents an opportunity for you to hear about the current state of radical…

  • The 2.0 Project on Marblejars

    [Commentary] http://www.marblejars.com/flvplayer.swfMarblejars.com Mark McAllister started The 2.0 Project a couple years ago to bring attention to the plight of those who cannot secure the insurance or funding required for cryonics preservation services due to pre-existing conditions. I interviewed him for a Frontier Channel article about his efforts and he has since become a good friend.…

  • Article Published: “No Graveyard” in Cryonics Volume 29.1

    Magazine cover of Cryonics Volume 29:2 2nd Quarter 2008 with transparent knight chess pieces on a black and white chessboard

    “Alcor is no graveyard.”

  • Alcor Conference – Table of Contents

    [11 August 2021 Statement by Richard Leis about Transhumanism, Life Extension, and Related Organizations and Movements] Frontier Channel liveblogging from the 7th Alcor Conference: Event Announcement Frontier Channel at 7th Alcor Conference Introduction Day 1 Steve Bridges Brian Wowk First Break Stephen Van Sickle Tanya Jones Luncheon Ralph Merkle Michael West Afternoon Break Aubrey de…

  • Rumor: Artificial Life

    Although the following news appears to have been confirmed by Craig Venter, it should be viewed as rumor until there is an official announcement. The Guardian is reporting that Venter and a team of scientists have created artificial life, in the form of an artificial chromosome that can make use of another organism’s cellular machinery…

  • Alcor Conference – Chris Heward

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] [Recap] Chris Heward discussed his work on the “Kronos Longitudinal Aging Study (KLAS)” as a measurement of human aging. KRONOS Science Laboratory is a research institution in Phoenix, AZ, USA. Heward showed a graph of progress in life expectancy at birth and at 65. Life expectancy at birth has…

  • Alcor Conference – Christine Peterson

    [11 August 2021 Statement by Richard Leis about Transhumanism, Life Extension, and Related Organizations and Movements] [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] Christine Peterson presented “Good News, Bad News, Surprising News” about life extension. She now spends about half time studying life extension as an enthusiast. She began by stating that terminology matters. Which terms…

  • Alcor Conference – Calvin Mercer

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] [Recap] Calvin Mercer asked “Cryonics and Religion: Friends or Foes?”  Cryonics, Mercer believes, will require support from more people than just scientists, including religious people.  How should cryogenics supporters present these ideas to religious people? How the discussion will play out, according to Mercer, will include debates between liberal…

  • Alcor Conference – Morning Break

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] Popcorn, cookies, and pretzels. We talked to a couple who are musicians and Alcor members about how art can be used to promote life extension and transhumanism.

  • Alcor Conference – Calvin Mercer

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] [Recap] Calvin Mercer asked “Cryonics and Religion: Friends or Foes?” Cryonics, Mercer believes, will require support from more people than just scientists, including religious people. How should cryogenics supporters present these ideas to religious people? How the discussion will play out, according to Mercer, will include debates between liberal…

  • Alcor Conference – Steven Harris

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] [Recap] Steven Harris is a researcher developing “Rapid Body Cooling for Prevention of Brain Damage.” Rapid body cooling technologies are important to both cryonics and emerging short-term treatments. Hypothermia induced by lowering the body temperature by 4 degrees Celsius in five minutes could allow sufficient time for medical care…

  • Alcor Conference – Morning Panel

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] Day two of the Alcor Conference. The day began with the “Human Cryopreservation and Critical Care Medicine Panel,” including Alcor’s Tanya Jones, critical care physician David Crippen and bioethicist Leslie Whetstine and moderated by Aschwin de Wolf. [Recap] The panelists discussed the various definitions death, including legal and biological,…

  • Alcor Conference – Alcor Board of Directors Panel

    [Alcor Conference – Table of Contents] Stephen Van Sickle, Ralph Merkle, Michael R. Seidl, and Brian Wowk of the Alcor Board of Directors answered questions from the audience for the last session of the day. The Board addressed questions about the current state of Alcor finances. Alcor is financially stable, with the following sources of…