Save your life forever?
The Swiss bank will preserve forever the memories and the code of the client's lifeMembrane
"Save your life forever" is a slogan that makes you grab your head. Is this a hoax, a joke or an original business? The Swiss explain: this is a unique opportunity to remain imprinted for posterity. And, in a sense, a chance to be reproduced later. An intriguing undertaking. Even though they do not offer to save life literally.
On September 1, 2009, the Swiss DNA Bank officially started its work, celebrating the successful completion of two years of preparatory work. "Our mission is to preserve your digital and biological footprint on this planet with high reliability and forever," says Swissdnabank, a company registered in Lugano.
The word "forever" immediately cuts the ear. But we will say more about this later. In the meantime, let's see what exactly the new Swiss bank offers to save. And these are photos, videos, audio and documents in almost all currently common digital formats. Plus, a sample of your DNA.
Data storage in the DNA bank system is arranged in a two-layer way. Via the Internet, the client himself, or his descendants, can communicate with an external hacking-protected server. And he, in turn, receives copies of data from the "eternal" server, hidden in the mountain from all cataclysms.
In the figure: 1 – client, 2 – account "Forever", 3 – secure server, 4 – server "Forever", 5 – daughter and granddaughter.
This combination, according to the authors of the project, is the most complete (of the really possible) "impression" of the client. They say that DNA is an instruction for the reproduction of your body, and any recordings you choose, memories, reports on vivid events give an idea of you as a person and about the life you have lived.
The Swiss DNA Bank vault is located in an underground military bunker in the Swiss Alps. This is one of the safest places on the planet. And it is designed to protect the stored data, as well as DNA, not only from natural disasters (sea level rise, for example), but also from man–made ones. The thickness of the rocks will cover the DNA bank servers from the electromagnetic and shock waves of a nuclear explosion, and from terrorist attacks, and from the fall of an airliner…
Swiss DNA Bank's partner in this project is Swiss Fort Knox, one of the most reliable data centers located in a "retired" military atomic bomb shelter hidden under a mountain near the Gstaad ski resort. It was on its squares that DNA Bank launched its own enterprise. And it is the Swiss Fort Knox specialists who ensure the actual functioning and protection of the storage," Swissdnabank assures.
Swiss Fort Knox scheme. Green shows rooms for technicians and other IT personnel; below are five sequentially located security zones with a strict ("military-style") access system; in the center of the mountain are visible halls with servers, just below – a mini-hotel, in fact – a bomb shelter and a recreation area for service personnel, below and to the right – an air conditioning unit, using the cold of glacial water, batteries, transformers and diesel generators, as well as a large tank with drinking water.
The following consideration should also add peace of mind to potential buyers of a storage unit: Switzerland is perhaps one of the most politically and economically stable countries in the world over the past few centuries. And, as DNA Bank reminds, the headquarters of 25 international organizations are located on Swiss soil. Well, the shelter infrastructure contributes to stability in many senses at once. So it's worth getting to know the Swiss service better.
With digital materials of clients, everything seems to be clear. They are sent over the Internet and sent for storage in modern servers with multiple backups. What about DNA?
Who bought the contract (the client must be "18 and older") the company sends a sealed tube with a sterile swab to take a saliva sample (more precisely, a smear from the oral cavity). It is sealed and sent back in an already paid envelope. DNA is one of the most stable biopolymers, the Swiss explain. And the storage conditions in a former military bunker are just a sight to behold.
Swiss Fort Knox servers are fenced off from the outside world not only by a mountain. The entire bomb shelter system is designed for long-term autonomous operation in an "unstable situation" above.
You may also need your DNA when technologies for growing and cloning replacement organs develop. It can be useful to doctors who will treat your grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Future scientists may also need it (if you allow such access yourself) for research. And in general – who knows what they will be able to do with your DNA in a hundred or two hundred years?
In combination with virtual "memories", this suggests a possible copying of a person. But, firstly, even in this case, assuming a hypothetical introduction of the deceased's way of thinking into a new brain, the "copy" will not be the same person who passed away. And secondly, talking about cloning can take us too far.
Swiss Fort Knox security and maintenance personnel are civilians. But they work "according to the military model."
But if you don't get off the ground, you can be happy for the appearance of a spectacular way to record everything important in your life so that it is guaranteed to remain untouched for posterity. As literal descendants (children, grandchildren), and in general – for humanity. "Don't let your experience go to waste!" – the Swiss attract potential buyers of the service.
They remind you that the information on the DVD risks being corrupted after 5 years of storage, on the hard disk in the home computer – after 15, but with them, taking into account the constant updating of servers, the storage period is unlimited.
While a person is alive, he can replenish and adjust his life "card file" himself, for which the company has developed a convenient web interface "Life Browser" (Life Browser). Well, after the death of the client, access to his personal data can be obtained by the persons indicated by him (relatives, for example).
The Browser of Life is a visual tool for laying out any digital documents on shelves and quick access to personal records.
For each session of data access via the network, it is required not only to enter a username and a permanent password, but also a one-time password generated by a special digital card (similar to a credit card). The electronic access card – Swiss DNA Card – generates a new password whenever the client intends to access the DNA Bank servers.
"We use the most advanced technologies of cryptography and secure access via the Internet," DNA Bank boasts. The most secure access to data is also supported at the physical level – getting into the storage itself is not so easy.
But is it possible to guarantee the client infinite storage? Who can say what will happen to this enterprise itself at least in half a century or a century? Business organizers also have an answer to this question. The management of the company is arranged in such a way that no single person will ever be able to gain full control over it.
The Board includes leading representatives of the banking sector, legal and scientific communities in Europe. In 2010, Swiss DNA Bank will hold the first official elections of board members, at which all registered customers of the bank will be able to vote. The elections will be annual. The Swiss hope that the descendants of the current founders of the company will continue what they started in the next generations.
And here we come to the most burning. How much does it cost to "preserve yourself forever". If you want to leave only information, you can pay $299 for 1 GB, or, for example, $598 for 4 GB. If you choose a combined order (preservation of a biological sample plus a personal archive), then you will have to part with $399 (DNA + 1 GB of data) or $698 (DNA + 4 GB). Moreover, this money is paid only once. And everything. No further contributions.
The entrance to the "Swiss Fort Knox" and its interiors.
Agree, immediately confused by the ratio of fairly low prices for the service with the majestic promise to store data and DNA "always". But here the Swiss reveal some details of the business: the financial invincibility of the enterprise, in theory, is designed to provide a "Perpetual Financial Engine" (Perpetual Financial Engine), in which customers' money is invested.
Behind the beautiful name are conservative fiduciary accounts in the Swiss banking system, as well as Swiss government bonds that can generate not the largest, but extremely stable income for many, many years. This money, according to the creators of Swiss DNA Bank, is just enough for the operation of the vault for an indefinitely long time.
Perhaps in centuries its technical stuffing will change, but biological samples and digital files of clients will continue to exist under the Alps. And if you personally can't check whether everything will be like this or not, you can buy a piece of faith in your "immortality" from the Swiss. Perhaps one hope is already worth it.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru02.09.2009