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cremation

Now you can flush your body when you die

What will become of your body when you die? Worm feast? Up in smoke? Cryogenic freezing?

The second option is becoming very popular. By 2025, more than 50 percent of dead Americans will be cremated, according to the Cremation Association of North America. If you've also decided to convert to ashes but don't want your vaporized mercury dental fillings polluting the air, here's a greener method to treat your remains.

Scottish firm Resomation has installed its first commercial body dissolving unit at a Florida funeral home, advertising it as a more environmentally friendly alternative to interment and cremation.

The Resomator s750 is a 7-foot stainless steel tank. It works by immersing the body in a mix of water and potassium hydroxide, which is heated to 356 F. It's also subjected to pressure equivalent to 10 atmospheres during the two- to three-hour process.

The mortal remains are turned into ash and sterile, DNA-free liquid, which gets flushed. Bones are crushed in a separate process, and any implants including mercury fillings are recovered. There are no airborne mercury emissions.

Resomation says its alkaline hydrolysis machines cut greenhouse emissions by a third compared to cremation, and use only one-seventh the energy. … Read more

Man's ashes laid to rest in computer

Updated 7.28am PST Saturday, following requests from readers, with details of the dead man and the full picture of the computer.

I wonder how many of you already know where you would like your ashes to live in perpetuity.

In a Cupertino parking lot, perhaps? Or strewn on the steps of a certain academy of sciences?

I only ask because it seems that a geeky man called Alan seems not to have wondered about this. With the result that his eternally powdered life is now being spent inside a SPARCstation computer.

One assumes this is what they call a SPARC of respect.

A Flickr member called Sam 3.14, who appears to be Alan's brother, explained on the site that it was he who decided to place Alan's ashes inside one of the most precious creations under the Sun.

Sam described it thusly on his Flickr page: "I kept the floppy drive cover but for space reasons removed the floppy drive, hard drive, and most of the power supply. I left behind the motherboard and power switch and plugs to keep all openings covered."

Which seems like a wise and brotherly gesture.

Sam continued: "The case worked quite well at his memorial party. His friends and family were able to leave their final good-byes on post-it notes. Anyone who wanted to keep their words private could just slip their note into the case through the floppy slot."… Read more