Редактирование: History of cryonics (раздел)

== Ancient times ==
The historical predecessor of cryonics was, of course, the mummification of pharaohs by the ancient Egyptians.

Possibly the oldest reference to the general idea of cryonics can be found in a letter written by Benjamin Franklin:

<blockquote>''To Jacques Dubourg.''<br>

''I wish it were possible... to invent a method of embalming drowned persons, in such a manner that they might be recalled to life at any period, however distant; for having a very ardent desire to see and observe the state of America a hundred years hence, I should prefer to an ordinary death, being immersed with a few friends in a cask of Madeira, until that time, then to be recalled to life by the solar warmth of my dear country! But... in all probability, we live in a century too little advanced, and too near the infancy of science, to see such an art brought in our time to its perfection...''<br>

''I am, etc.''<br>

''- B. FRANKLIN.''</blockquote>

The cryonics movement began in 1962 with the publication of two books: [[#Books|The Prospect of Immortality]] by [[Robert Ettinger]]; the first non-fiction book to seriously consider and advocate cryonics, and the privately-published [[#Books|Immortality: Physically, Scientifically, Now]] by [[Evan Cooper]], which also advocated cryonics, under the name of a "freezing program". The former reached the masses in 1964 when reprinted and distributed by Doubleday following a suggestion by science-fiction author Isaac Asimov.

It was Cooper who founded the world's first cryonics and [[Immortalism]] organization, the [[Life Extension Society]]; whose purpose was to create a world-wide network of Cryonics organizations. Believing it would not be a plausible option in his lifetime, Cooper ended his involvement in cryonics in 1970. He was a boat carpenter and sailor for the next 13 years of his life until being lost at sea.