I will eschew Wittgenstein's advice and take the bait- I don't think the techno-religion claim is too far off the mark. Of course, the entirety of our argument

I will eschew Wittgenstein's advice and take the bait- I don't think the techno-religion claim is too far off the mark. Of course, the entirety of our argument is over the definition of religion. | Unlike religions, cryonics is not exclusive. I think we'd both agree that exclusivity isn't the principle quality of religion, though many religions are exclusive. Religions typically have some core set of beliefs - some of which may be untestable, ceremony, dress, and often attempt to explain the mysteries of the universe. I'd also throw in the quality that religions advocate their followers either do something they wouldn't otherwise do or abstain from something they would otherwise enjoy. Its possible some religion lacks proscriptions for life, but I certainly haven't met it. Cyronics certainly has a core set of beliefs (faith!?) that lead to action. I very much doubt that even if we were to develop sufficient technology to unfreeze all those heads, future humans would do so. Perhaps we'd unfreeze some heads for science and then a few more for the novelty. We both agree cyronics is unlikely to work and that there is no way to run this experiment within our lifetime - cryonics requires faith (by any other name) in humanity and technology. |In contrast, cryonicists rarely assign high probability to being revived. Most think of it like an experimental cancer treatment: Unlikely to work, but better than the alternative. I know Christians that would describe their experience in similar terms. | The most important difference between cryonics and religions is that religious people are typically convinced of the afterlife. Christians believe in an afterlife, but not all religions do, or even weigh in on the matter - Judaism immediately comes to mind. Apropos, cryonics proposes its own cycle of rebirth! Well, possible rebirth until the great robot wars, the sun explodes, or the heat death of our local cluster. As for the other attributes I mentioned - dress, ceremony, and the like, cryonics offers bracelets, (non)ceremonial decapitation with ensuing vitrification, and requires its devotees to die somewhere convenient! OK, I agree, this doesn't exactly fit the bill. Precisely defining religion and faith is tricky. At the very least, I would say cyronics is uncomfortably close to a religion.