If I try to convince my 105 year old neighbor to sign up for cryonics, will I succeed?
34
56
แน€690
2030
4%
chance

One of my neighbors is turning 105 this Wednesday. He grew up as a jew in the lead-up to Nazi Germany, avoiding getting trapped there, and led a relativly adventurous life for many years after that. He wrote two autobiographies, and was married for over 60 years. He was volunteering to do repair work around the neighborhood and going on regular bike rides up until he was almost 100.

His wife died about 5 years ago. He's nearly blind and deaf now, yet he's have experienced almost no cognitive decline. He regularly plays chess and bridge and is as good as he ever was. He enjoys telling stories about his life and the things he learned abroad.

His children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren have started visiting more and more frequently, and some are living with him now. Nobody talks about it, but it seems they're just waiting for him to die.

I'm on good terms with him and his family. I've been playing chess with him since I was a kid. I don't know if he'd even understand the concept of cryonics if I tried to explain it to him. Given his health, it would likely be more a matter of convincing his family than convincing him. His family isn't super religious, but I doubt they'd be a fan of the idea.

I don't know how much money he has left, but at the very least he owns a large house in an upper middle class neightborhood, which could be sold to pay for it. I doubt his family would be a fan of that idea either.

I don't just want to do nothing and watch him die, but neither do I want to damage my relationship with his family (and all my other neighbors and my parents, who they'd surely tell) if it goes poorly.

Get แน€1,000 play money
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@IsaacKing have you tried?

predicts NO

Cute. Good luck!

I wonder if writing him a letter is more effective if the subject is changed quickly again, idk.
(Chatgpt, write a letter to an old swashbuckler ... ๐Ÿ˜…)

predicts NO

@GeorgeVii Hmm, interesting idea. But someone would have to read it out to him, and that might go poorly.

predicts NO

I attempted to lightly bring up the subject, but he either misheard me or didn't understand what I was talking about, and launched into the details of his various health issues, along with an explanation of the importance of not gambling. (๐Ÿ˜•)

I don't think I should count that as an attempt for the purposes of this market, since I barely said a few words on the subject before the subject got changed, and he probably had no idea what I was talking about. (Open to having my mind changed on that, the market title is quite vague.)

I've left town, so I can't try again for a few months. If he's still alive by the time I get back, I'll probably try again a little harder.

bought แน€10 of YES

I believe in you.

My grandmother seemed to be surprisingly familiar with the idea when I tried thisโ€”she declined, but in a friendly and fairly rational way iirc.

predicts NO

@KatjaGrace Do you remember what it was?

predicts YES

@IsaacKing Looking at our emails again, a combination of 'not worth $200k for a gamble of coming back to a world that is headed toward looking like Mars' and 'pretty selfish to use your money that way when you could give it to a good cause', the latter of which I'm sympathetic to, though likely to sign up myself nonetheless. There were other less on-topic bits, but also some epistemic humility!

If I try to convince my 105 year old neighbor to sign up for cryonics, will I succeed?, 8k, beautiful, illustration, trending on art station, picture of the day, epic composition

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