Actually the true question would not be whether we could preserve somebody, but how to reverse the measures that you did to preserve him. But yes, that is it.
Someone that has written it better than I did about brain n stuff:
Someone that has written it better than I did about brain n stuff:
It's because the cells of the brain are much more fragile, and take much more energy to run than most other cells in the body. Most cells can convert nutrients into energy using anaerobic (without oxygen) and aerobic (with oxygen) respiration. Aerobic respiration is much more efficient, and produces fewer waste products. Anaerobic respiration is not very efficient at all, but it's usually just enough to keep a cell barely alive for a short period of time. The problem is that brain cells can't function anaerobically - without oxygen they simply die.
This is coupled with the fact that our brain processes information by shuttling electrical impulses around in an incredibly complex network. Once neurons start to die, that network begins to collapse and the brain ceases to function. The brain doesn't physically decompose any faster or slower than the rest of the body (well, maybe a little faster, because there isn't much connective tissue), but it's these two factors that mean it will cease to function as a brain very quickly without an oxygen supply.
This is coupled with the fact that our brain processes information by shuttling electrical impulses around in an incredibly complex network. Once neurons start to die, that network begins to collapse and the brain ceases to function. The brain doesn't physically decompose any faster or slower than the rest of the body (well, maybe a little faster, because there isn't much connective tissue), but it's these two factors that mean it will cease to function as a brain very quickly without an oxygen supply.
