Futurist Ian Pearson believes that by mid-century we'll have "downloadable brains" that will make us immortal. Though, the service will likely be expensive, and only the very rich will be able to afford it for the first two decades of its existence.

This reminds me of Altered Carbon, by Richard K. Morgan, an intriguing sci-fi novel about "cortical stacks" (a person's consciousness loaded into the base of the brain) loaded in to new "sleeves" (human bodies).

Tom,

Wonderful stuff, being able to download knowledge - hopefully we'll all be healthy and vibrant by 2050 to realize it.

I'd love to invite your readers to the Methuselah Prize (www.mprize.org) - we're making a special effort to outreach to the transhumanist and futurist communities. By adding new voices to the discussion everyone can benefit.

Aubrey de Grey will be in Stanford today - we look forward to meeting everyone!
Details:
http://www.stanford.edu/group/transhumanism/blog/