Aschwin de Wolf of Advanced Neural Biosciences and the Institute for Evidence-Based Cryonics (IEBC) is a noted advocate for cryonics as an industry and area of research. He was recently interviewed by the folk over at LongeCity, and as usual it makes for interesting reading. You might also look at a 2013 interview for more of the same, and in addition you'll find many articles at the IEBC site covering a mix of technical and non-technical topics in the the cryonics field. This is one slice of a great deal of technical writing and advocacy for cryonics published over the course of the past few decades, a fair portion of it by people who are now themselves cryopreserved at Alcor or the Cryonics Institute.

The term cryonics covers the technology, community, and practice of placing people into a vitrified state as soon as possible following clinical death. Tissues are perfused with cryoprotectant and cooled to liquid nitrogen temperatures in stages, leading to a glass-like state of minimal ice-crystal formation. Under good conditions, this preserves the fine structures of neural tissue, the synapses, dendrites, and dendritic spines within which the data of the mind is thought to be stored. For so long as that data remains intact, and the vitrified individual in low-temperature storage, there is the possibility of future restoration in an era with more proficient technology than our own. In this age of progress, cryonics is a necessary backup plan for those of who may not live long enough to benefit from the near future of rejuvenation therapies after the SENS model. It is a great pity that it remains a small and marginal undertaking, largely non-profit, and unknown to many who would benefit, even as tens of millions march towards their own personal oblivion each and every year.

While higher animals cannot yet be thawed, cleared of cryoprotectant, and brought back to life, that outcome can be achieved with lower animals such as nematode worms. Thawing and transplantation has also been demonstrated in prototype for mammalian organs in recent years. At present there is the makings of a small industry working on reversible cryopreservation for tissue engineering and organ transplantation, where such a technology would greatly reduce costs and simplify logistics. So when we talk about preserving people for the chance at a future restoration, this isn't done in a vacuum, and isn't a flight of fancy; there is good reason to think that there is a chance of success in this endeavor. It certainly beats the odds of revival from the grave, which is to say zero.

Interview with Aschwin de Wolf (February, 2017)