Scientists Have Discovered That Humans Can Indeed Be Put In Suspended Animation
Any fan of science fiction can recognize the need for suspended animation to travel long distances during space travel. If the ships in the films or television shows don’t have advanced warp drives, the crew will have to hibernate in some capsule to survive the 1,000 year journey to a new star system that can support life. The problem is finding out how to do that in real-life.
There have been instances of suspended animation by people who have been under the ice for 15 minutes and happened to survive without losing any higher brain function because of lack of oxygen. All that was needed was cold and a lot of luck.
As reported in Newsweek, “extremely cold temperatures can either cause death or prevent it, depending on the timing. While a person can only survive up to three minutes underwater in normal temperatures, in frozen water a person can survive being deprived of oxygen for upward of 40 minutes. The cold puts the body into suspended animation, prolonging death.”
Now, how can we turn that into 40 years, 140 years, 1,400 years, or even 140,000 years? The video below tries to explain how humans are similar to other animals that have the ability to hibernate for long periods of time, but there is still a lot more work to be done before we hop on a flight to Alpha Centauri. Also, you may need to bring a winter coat, because the ride could be a little chilly.
Feature Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc
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Jeff Sorensen is an author, writer and occasional comedian living in Detroit, Michigan. You can look for more of his work on The Huffington Post, UPROXX, BGR and by just looking up his name.
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