# Could cryogenic stasis theoretically work? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 8, 2022, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446 "2022-01-08T19:46:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/21 "2022-01-10T17:18:22Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > My understanding of biochemistry and computer science make me think that the second is actually more likely to happen first Not really. Over the last few decades we have seen computers go from gigantic vacuum-tube based machines to relatively complex nanotechnology. But brains are profoundly complex nanotechnology. The brain isn’t a supercomputer, _each neuron is a supercomputer_, the brain is millions of supercomputers networked together. The most powerful and sophisticated human supercomputer on Earth isn’t even remotely close to beginning to be as sophisticated as a brain. Give this article a read. > **[How Many Supercomputers Would Fit Inside Your Brain? - The Fountain Magazine](https://fountainmagazine.com/2016/issue-111-may-june-2016/how-many-supercomputers-would-fit-inside-your-brain)** > > The complexity and potential of the human brain are astonishing. The brain is capable of performing millions of complex formulations in milliseconds. And yet, despite this power, humans are barely tapping the brain’s potential. ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/22 "2022-01-10T17:27:46Z")
Yes, this is a real thing. For example: > **[How Alligators Survive in a Frozen Pond: They 'Snorkel'](https://www.livescience.com/64592-alligators-weird-snout-behavior-winter.html)** > > Alligators in an icy pond in North Carolina have taken up "snorkeling" to survive the cold winter. Note that this only works with a relatively thin freeze, such that just part of the snout is encased in ice. Which isn’t the same thing as cryogenic stasis. Alligators enter a state known as “brumation”, which is similar to hibernation. But it only works if the rest of their bodies stay relatively warm, in liquid water under the ice sheet. They can apparently tolerate water temperatures in the 30s, at least for brief periods, but they can and occasionally do die from the cold. If their core body temperature actually dropped below the freezing point, they’d die. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/23 "2022-01-10T17:28:23Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Are you serious? Yes. Cites: [https://www.star-telegram.com/news/nation-world/national/article249345545.html](https://www.star-telegram.com/news/nation-world/national/article249345545.html) > **[People are freaked out by these 'frozen' alligators who appear to be dead,...](https://www.businessinsider.com/frozen-alligators-that-look-dead-is-really-just-a-survival-technique-2019-1)** > > Alligators poke their noses above frozen water so they can breathe while the rest of their body dangles below the surface. From the 2nd link: > [@](#): > > “They poke their noses up and are able to breathe and be perfectly fine. [T]hey’re doing this as a mechanism so that if it freezes over, they can still breath," Howard explained to a [local news outlet](http://www.wect.com/story/37213619/alligators-get-a-nose-up-on-icy-conditions/). "[It’s] just an absolute amazing survival technique and these guys were built tough millions of years ago and they remain tough today.” ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/24 "2022-01-10T17:29:50Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Not really. Over the last few decades we have seen computers go from gigantic vacuum-tube based machines to relatively complex nanotechnology. But brains are profoundly complex nanotechnology. The brain isn’t a supercomputer, _each neuron is a supercomputer_ , the brain is millions of supercomputers networked together. The rate is what matters, though. If it turns out that the computational power required to simulate the brain is a million times more than what I estimated, that’s just 20 more doublings, or ~30-50 years of progress at current rates. If it’s a billion times more that just adds another decade or two. We _know_ that the computational power to run a human brain can fit inside a liter or two, run off of a few dozen watts, and be built of inexpensive materials. The questions are whether we’ll ever be able to build something comparable and whether we can scan and replicate the features with enough precision to replicate the mind. Obviously we can’t yet, but I don’t see any reason to think that there are fundamental barriers. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/25 "2022-01-10T17:29:58Z")
I am flabbergasted 😮 ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/26 "2022-01-10T17:36:45Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > We _know_ that the computational power to run a human brain can fit inside a liter or two, run off of a few dozen watts, and be built of inexpensive materials. And is _massively_ parallel in its 3D connections. If we _do_ come up with something, it isn’t going to be remotely similar to today’s profoundly simple 2D circuits. I don’t share your enthusiasm in the future of Moore’s Law. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/27 "2022-01-10T22:31:19Z")
A single neuron is certainly more complicated than a single transistor, but it’s much, much less complicated than a supercomputer. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2022, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446/28 "2022-01-10T22:49:53Z")
As long as they don’t turn out to have quantum. > **[Can quantum effects in the brain explain consciousness?](https://www.newscientist.com/article/2288228-can-quantum-effects-in-the-brain-explain-consciousness/)** > > New research reveals hints of quantum states in tiny proteins called microtubules inside brain cells. If the results stand up, the idea that consciousness is quantum might come in from the cold [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-cryogenic-stasis-theoretically-work/957446.md?page=1)