When I die, I want to become a diamond

  • Thread starter Thread starter Math Is Hard
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Diamond
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the process of transforming cremated human remains into synthetic diamonds, a service offered by companies like Lifegem. The process involves heating carbon from the remains, converting it into graphite, and then applying heat and pressure in a diamond press, resulting in a diamond within five months. Prices for this service range from $1,000 to $5,300, depending on the specifics of the service. Participants also explore alternative post-mortem options, including body donation and space launches, highlighting a mix of humor and ethical considerations surrounding death and remembrance.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of cremation processes and carbon composition
  • Familiarity with synthetic diamond creation techniques
  • Knowledge of ethical considerations in post-mortem practices
  • Awareness of memorialization options and their costs
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the process of synthetic diamond creation from cremated remains
  • Explore ethical implications of memorialization practices
  • Investigate body donation programs and their benefits
  • Learn about space burial services and their pricing structures
USEFUL FOR

This discussion is beneficial for funeral service professionals, individuals considering unique memorial options, and anyone interested in the intersection of science, ethics, and personal legacy.

Math Is Hard
Staff Emeritus
Science Advisor
Gold Member
Messages
4,650
Reaction score
36
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4751684/
With just eight ounces of cremated remains and a few thousand dollars, anyone can turn deceased loved ones into colorful carats. The first step is the cremation -- cremated remains contain the carbon needed to produce a synthetic diamond. These are not the first man-made diamonds, but the founders of Lifegem say they are the first to create them from the carbon from human remains. The process is straightforward: The carbon is heated, turned into graphite, and placed into a diamond press, where it is subjected to heat and pressure. Five months later... Grandma’s a gem!
http://www.lifegem.com/secondary/gallery2006/Pic6S.jpg
see also http://www.lifegem.com/
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Chemistry news on Phys.org
I could do that and the Evo child could wear me around her neck and when people ask her what it is, she can say "my mom". :approve:
 
I think that's terrible
 
nah, I've already got a special place for grandma's bones; I've been needing an ottoman for a while now...
http://www.sanctuaryofshadows.org/html/images/vault4/bonehouse_chandalier.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:
OH mY GOD, SWERVE! :eek: :eek:
 
Evo said:
I could do that and the Evo child could wear me around her neck and when people ask her what it is, she can say "my mom". :approve:
I was thinking I would like to do this for both of my dear departed cats (they were cremated and I have their ashes) but it looks to be very, very expensive.
 
yes, but you can just call me Swerve:biggrin:
 
My grandma always says that she wants to be cremated and buried in a shoebox, no point in wasting money on the dead as she sees it. Maybe I could mix the ashes in some paint and plaster her on my wall...forever...and ever...and ever...

or maybe use use her as snuff!
 
I've always wondered, is it possible to use diamond flecks in a tattoo? Then you'd be one flesh:cool:
 
  • #10
yomamma said:
I think that's terrible
Yomamma, you're a gem!:smile:

I was just about to ask if anyone'd considered the ethical implications of this. I love the younger generations, such pure minds, not yet corrupted by the consumer culture of "silk and diamonds".
 
  • #11
0TheSwerve0 said:
I've always wondered, is it possible to use diamond flecks in a tattoo? Then you'd be one flesh:cool:
Now there's an idea!

You know, since my family doesn't have the bucks to make me into a giant diamond when I shuffle off this mortal coil, perhaps I could settle for just being converted into graphite. I could enjoy a reincarnation as a #2 pencil. :biggrin:
 
  • #12
Well, if I can't afford to be made into a gem, my second option is being stuffed.
 
  • #13
Math Is Hard said:
Now there's an idea!
You know, since my family doesn't have the bucks to make me into a giant diamond when I shuffle off this mortal coil, perhaps I could settle for just being converted into graphite. I could enjoy a reincarnation as a #2 pencil. :biggrin:
Then I could use the pencil to draw a pichur of you!
 
  • #14
MIH, you already are a beautiful gem.:-p
 
  • #15
juvenal said:
MIH, you already are a beautiful gem.:-p
This is true, and her new Borg implants only add to the allure. Perhaps she should rename herself Seven Of Math.
 
  • #16
I want to be either a Kingsford Briquette or a can of graphite lube.
 
  • #17
zoobyshoe said:
Then I could use the pencil to draw a pichur of you!
I pitchur of you!

juvenal said:
MIH, you already are a beautiful gem.:-p
Smooooooth... but I would revise it to something like:

MIH, you are a beautiful gem. :wink:
 
  • #18
Evo: I think it is only fitting that we send you out King Tut style.:smile: The Evo exhibit could tour the world!

juvenal and Mk:awrrr!:!) :!) :!) you made my day happy! thank you!

Zooby: if you drew my picture with a pencil made out of me - whoa:eek: - that would be so unique and um..circular! Hey, that gives me a business idea - PM me! :smile:

Ivan: A briquette? We could have one last great BBQ!:biggrin:
 
  • #19
When I die, I want to have my remains launched into space (http://www.memorialspaceflights.com/intro.asp . It's cheaper than becoming a diamond.

Prices range from $1000 to $5300 dollars for having a portion of your remains launched into low Earth orbit. Objects in low Earth orbit are often visible just before sunrise or after sunset, so your relatives could check out heavens-above and watch you fly over once in a while. Of course, objects in a low Earth orbit eventually re-enter the atmosphere, giving one last fiery tribute before returning to Earth one last time.

Or, for about $12500, you could have your remains launched to the Moon or into deep space.

They even plan for contingencies. They only launch a tiny portion of your remains (1 gram to 7 grams) and keep a portion in reserve... just in case the rocket carrying your remains blows up on the pad, you know.

Edit: This is the same service launching "Scotty" (James Doohan) into Earth orbit in December.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #20
I dunno, I always thought I would definitely not want to be shot up into space. Just in case your spirit lingers around your ashes... I would not like to be in space. Like being an astronaut on a spacewalk without a suit.

Ouch! :bugeye:
...^^
You'd look like that
 
Last edited:
  • #21
BobG said:
They even plan for contingencies. They only launch a tiny portion of your remains (1 gram to 7 grams) and keep a portion in reserve... just in case the rocket carrying your remains blows up on the pad, you know.
To be honest, I'd rather have my remains re-cremated by 8 tonnes of rocket fuel than sent into space.
 
  • #22
I'd like to have my carcass left out for the animals to eat. I've eaten a lot of them.
 
  • #23
jimmysnyder said:
I'd like to have my carcass left out for the animals to eat. I've eaten a lot of them.
You should donate your body to the http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cup/publicity/questbenecke.pdf . They lay your dead body out in the woods, or in the water, or in the mud, etc and then research how long after death each type of bug arrives to feed and live. You'll be contributing to law enforcement, making it easier to determine the time (or day) of death of a crime victim.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #24
I'm an organ donor (if any of them still work). After harvesting, my ashes should be compressed with a binding agent and used to make a dildo. I then want to be reincarnated as the brass pole in a strip club. That should about cover all eventualities.
 
  • #25
You could also donate your body to science or even to this unusual art exhibition, http://www.bodyworlds.com/en/pages/koerperspende.asp" . My biology teacher says she knows someone who signed up for the Bodyworlds body donation program because the exhibit tours all over the world and she "always wanted to travel". :smile:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #26
zoobyshoe said:
This is true, and her new Borg implants only add to the allure. Perhaps she should rename herself Seven Of Math.
Actually, I am from the discontinued line of bad-at-math Borgs. I am called Seven of Three. :biggrin:
 
  • #27
iv read that no sizable dimonds are naturaly 'perfect', they all have little particles in them and to make the gem look perfect they drill or laser out the little bit of whatever is there and fill in the wholes with liquid glass. i think it would be fun to get a jurnal and medical history recorded on a microscopic surface and put it in the whole with a couple cell's worth of DNA before they fill it in. instead of having an inscription on a head stone, just have something written on the surface of the diamond
 
  • #28
Math Is Hard said:
Actually, I am from the discontinued line of bad-at-math Borgs. I am called Seven of Three. :biggrin:
That'll teach the Borg to assimilate Barbies.
 
  • #29
I want my corpes to be launched out of a cannon at little children.:devil: Do anything with my body as long as it scares little kids! Oh! I HAVE A PLAN! If I die before the 31st we can hang my body from a tree in the PF lawn and scare trick-or-treaters from other forums! Then we can preserve my body so we can do it each Halloween!
 
  • #30
i don't care what happens to me when i die
 

Similar threads

LifeGem: Diamonds from Human Ashes
  • · Replies 29 ·
Replies
29
Views
4K
Mathematica This Week's Finds in Mathematical Physics (Week 262)
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
3K
News Bush Honest & Trustworthy Until How Many Lies?
  • · Replies 65 ·
3
Replies
65
Views
11K