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buybuydandavis comments on Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality discussion thread, part 27, chapter 98 - Less Wrong
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I would guess >90% of whiz kids haven't.
Let's even grant that.
How about factoring in "plans to live forever through science"? That's probably the most relevant prior information.
Estimate P(never heard of cryonics | read tons of science and scifi books and researches interests and plans on living forever through science). Isn't that basically Harry before magic came along? He somehow missed mention of cryonics when he looked into means to live forever?
I missed it completely and was doing much the same thing at that age. I actually ran right over cryonics - it showed up in Artemis Fowl and my absurdity heuristic/Colfer's tone tossed it aside.
Space Seed? Several 1970s sci-fi novels feature it.
2001: A Space Odyssey comes close, as does Planet of the Apes. Alien, too (though I wouldn't expect him to have seen that)
HP is set in 1991, so we're too early for Babylon 5 ("The Long Dark") or especially Futurama.
You might have dismissed it, but I doubt he would have. Maaybe if his father dismissed it as rubbish.
KHAAAAAAAANNN!
How could a nerd not know that?
Harry's also interested in space travel and a human diaspora. Cryogenic hibernation is the standard way to travel to other planets, barring warp drive.
Yeah, but to be fair, usually in those stories they're sending live people.
Except for legal issues, there's little reason to wait until someone is dead to preserve them.