Table 1.

Differences between verifiable and experimental brain preservation procedures.

Aspect	Verifiable brain preservation	Experimental brain preservation
Definition	A procedure that demonstrably preserves a person's psychological properties	A procedure that attempts to preserve valued aspects of psychological information, but without guaranteed success
Certainty of preservation	High—preservation of psychological properties can be verified	Uncertain but possible—unable to verify whether the procedure retains critical information, but attempts to do so consistent with our best current understanding
Basis of preservation	Known and verified structural correlates of psychological properties	Best current estimates of necessary structural components
Current availability	Not yet possible with current knowledge and technology	Available with current technology
Imaging requirements for verification	Relies on contemporary imaging methods for verification	May benefit from future improvements in imaging technology
Threshold for implementation	Strict—must meet verifiable criteria	More flexible—allows for attempts even with uncertainty
Potential for future recovery	High certainty of potential recovery	Uncertain, but provides a possible bridge to future medical capabilities
Accessibility	Limited due to strict inclusion criteria	Accessible to a wider group of individuals