By Gary Michael Church
The famous poem considers whether the world will end with fire or ice. A more promising approach is to ask when a new world will begin with fire and ice. This is a matter of two technologies; nuclear fusion and cryopreservation. The most powerful device ever created by humankind holds the key to exploiting the limitless energy of solar energy while mastering the technique of freezing tissues without damage unlocks the potential of humankind to travel to the stars. Compared to creating an artificial sun, simply lowering the the temperature of a complex form of matter without disruption should be practical. Yet the incredible power these technologies represent is ignored and invisible to the public eye. Why, in this new century does the human race seem to be falling into stagnation and ever greater disorder when the future holds such bright promise? At the time of this writing, Christmas day 2014, the state of human civilization on this planet is one of slow deterioration.
The problem that faces humankind has been with us from the beginning of civilization when those first few with leisure time available philosophized about the meaning of existence. Our ephemeral lifespan has always controlled history in a profound way by dictating fundamental behaviors. It is incontrovertible that if human beings had an indefinite lifespan we would act much differently. A strange psychic denial turns minds away from this subject of making indefinite lifespans a reality. I will not presume to take this mechanism apart and examine it; I do not think anyone can. It is enough to recognize and seek to overcome this obstacle at this perfect moment in human history. A simple medical procedure could be the beginning of a new age, a second coming of the promise of salvation from certain death and a new hope for the future.
It is clear these technologies are potentially disruptive to the same extant they can empower and join the human race together in a single great project. The world would completely change when the over riding priority would become first the rescue of all those in mortal danger from sickness and old age and what follows. After that initial emergency was dealt with the unavoidable challenge of curing these survivors would be next. As the bodies pile up in cold storage the need for a great awakening to follow the great rescue would be the single concern of civilization. Travel to alien planets would be part of this new world. The H-bomb, that fearsome destroyer of worlds so abhorred and demonized, is also the only practical method of travel through interplanetary space. With a working method of freezing and reviving human beings these bomb propelled spaceships become starships. Most likely beam propulsion will accelerate very large habitats and bombs will slow it down centuries later upon arrival.
The circumstance of a limited lifespan endangers the entire species. Few give any consideration to the consequences of their actions to future generations, they will be dead and it just does not matter to them. This can be seen in the immense fortunes poured into the for-profit defense industry while a simple satellite costing a comparative pittance for detecting possible asteroid or comet impact threats is considered a waste of money. Because of the small chance of an impact in anyone’s lifetime the threat is ignored. The fact the Earth has suffered several extinction level events over the course of geological history is meaningless to beings that exist for the tiniest moment of that history. Whether from impacts, volcanic epics, climate change, plagues, or other events, individuals are not willing to sacrifice any percentage of time out of their short lifespans protecting others who have yet to be born. We become our species worst enemy because our individual bodies are already our enemies and eventual executioners.
Humankind has, at this moment, the technology to launch giant rockets to establish bases on the Moon in likely immense lava tubes. Using lunar resources these factories under the surface of the Moon can build the millions of tons of Solar Power Satellites (patented decades ago) to power civilization. These satellites can be lifted from the lunar surface using bomb propulsion. The solar energy beamed down from outside the ecosystem would not only mean the end of our present fossil fuel binge, it would enable beam propulsion. In this system a true airline to orbit can transport millions of human beings every year into outer space. Eventually the Earth would depopulate and attain the status of a nature preserve to be visited. The reasons for people leaving Earth to live in hollow artificial moons are easy to understand. These moons are ready made starships and by freezing the occupants multi-century journeys to new worlds become feasible. These would be young worlds where life has yet to evolve and each one is a potential new Earth. The religious aspects of this eventual migration are difficult to overlook. The parallels to resurrection and creation stories are unmistakable.
Ice on the Moon 