How the Richest Man in America Volunteered to Freeze His Body for Over 50 Years, Hoping for Revival in 2017

In the heart of Arizona, hidden away in a plain building, is an unusual experiment in defying death. Inside the Alcor Life Extension Foundation, bodies are preserved in hopes of one day bringing them back to life. Among them is James Bedford, the longest-preserved person in cryonics history.

James Bedford’s body, frozen at -200°C, is kept in liquid nitrogen in a large, insulated pod, along with three other bodies. He has been in this state for over 50 years since his death in 1967. Bedford’s body is part of a group of 146 people who have been cryogenically preserved at the Alcor facility, located in the hot Arizona desert.

Bedford, a World War I veteran and psychology professor, was diagnosed with terminal cancer just before his death. He chose to undergo cryonics, becoming the first person to ever do so. Since then, many others have followed in his footsteps, with some choosing to preserve just their heads, while others, like Bedford, chose to freeze their entire bodies.

Cryonics has faced many setbacks over the years. Improperly frozen bodies have deteriorated, and the technology has had its failures. But over time, cryogenic preservation methods have improved. Now, only a few major facilities around the world—Alcor, the Cryonics Institute, and Krios in Russia—are known for successfully preserving bodies.

In recent years, scientists like Robert McIntyre from MIT have made progress in freezing and reviving animal brains, offering new hope for future human recovery. However, the dream of bringing a human back from the deep freeze is still far from reality.

The journey of James Bedford and others raises important questions about life, death, and the future of science. As cryonics advances, these frozen individuals may one day experience a future they never could have imagined—if the technology ever becomes capable of bringing them back to life.

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