What Is... The Lifegem? Youre not gonna believe this...

[bmxpunker2005 0]

I'd rather donate my organs, be burned, and turned into a diamond than be buried six feet under. A diamond lasts forever right. And at least I could still look pretty lol. Being a diamond gives you some signifigance even in death, rather than being some silly ashes above a fireplace. I think it's a great idea, thanks for sharing.

[baseballkid781 0]

It is jewel that is created from the ashes of a deceased person, to help remember them. I'm not sure how I feel about this. I just read about it today & thought I'd share it.

 

Here is a link to the website: http://lifegem.com/

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LifeGem is a company offering to synthesize diamonds from the carbonized remains of people or pets. The company was founded in 2001 by Greg Herro, Mike Herro, and Rusty VandenBiesen, and was first based in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. It is now headquartered in Chicago and a second office, under the name LifeGem UK, was recently opened in Hove, England. It is important to note that, at present, there is no nondestructive method of testing the origin of carbon used in diamond synthesis: It has yet to be independently verified that LifeGem products (patent pending) are indeed composed�either in part or in whole�of human remains, or if the carbon is from another source.

 

The gems

 

These synthetic diamonds�distinct from diamond imitations like cubic zirconia, as they precisely duplicate natural diamonds in both optical and physical properties�are touted as "memorial diamonds" and range in price from USD $2,500 for 0.20�0.29 carat (40 to 59 mg) stones to $14,000 for stones weighing 0.90�0.99 carats (180�199 mg). The company claims it can extract enough purified carbon from one human body to synthesize up to 50 gems weighing one carat (0.2 g) each. As little as 227 g of cremains are needed to make one diamond. Diamonds made from the cremains of pets are priced the same as those made from human cremains, but the size of the animal may be a limiting factor. As of March 2005, LifeGem says it has served 1,000 families since the company's founding.

 

The process

 

Interested customers are directed to affiliated funeral homes equipped with the necessary tools; LifeGem claims to use a "carbon curing" container to collect the human remains halfway through the cremation process. The carbon is supposedly converted to graphite after purification, from which point it is sent to a diamond synthesis facility. As of spring 2003 the task of synthesis was given exclusively to Lucent Diamonds of Colorado. The diamonds were made via the thermal gradient method by a team of Russian scientists using iron alloys as a flux at pressures of 5.0�6.0 GPa and temperatures of 1,600�2,000 �C. The entire process, from cremation to finished stone, is said to take about six months.

Due to boron impurities present in the carbon, most LifeGem synthetic diamonds produced up to 2003 were Type IIb and were a light to medium blue in colour. Iron flux inclusions within the stones also rendered them magnetic. Apparently, the synthesis process has since been modified: Current production consists of strong yellow to golden yellow and brownish yellow material, probably Type Ib with evenly distributed substitutional nitrogen responsible for the colours. This newer material may or may not be magnetic.

Three standard diamond cuts are offered to customers: Round brilliant, radiant, and princess (the latter two cuts are rectangular and square in outline, respectively). The company will also take requests for custom cuts. The finished stones are laser inscribed with an identifier (and a tribute for an extra fee), graded by gemmologists, and are given a certificate.

 

References

 

Gallegos, D., Wolfe, R. (2005). Sparkling in memory. DenverPost.com. Retrieved 12 April, 2005 from http://forums.xisto.com/no_longer_exists/.

Laurs, B. M., Overton, T. W. (2003). LifeGem synthetic diamonds. Gems & Gemology, Vol. 39 No. 1., p. 62. Gemological Institute of America.

Novotny, M. (2005). The ultimate family jewel. MSNBC News: Countdown with Keith Olbermann. Retrieved 12 April, 2005 from http://www.nbcnews.com/id/4751684.

 

External links

 

Lifegem Website

 

Notice from BuffaloHELP:

You were ranting about you getting a warning and unable to post yet you decided not to follow our board rules by copying and pasting from source http://forums.xisto.com/no_longer_exists/ and never used a single QUOTE tag...this is SPAM!

Edited November 3, 2016 by OpaQue (see edit history)

[Fimm 0]

Dead bodies are just empty shells, so i can't even care less about them. But, even so, this idea... is disgusting. If you want to remember the dead person - you can do it without the "tokens". More, this diamonds are syntetical - and are not worth the price.Actually... I don't think I have the psychical strenght to write about the immorallity of this kind of act.

[rsf 0]

It's kindof sad how death is being turned into a business venture, but than again, if people are willing to pay for this service then who's to stop a company from offering it?

[icemarle 0]

Bah, I'd call it the Deathgem. You're walking around wearing the remains of a dead person as jewelry. I can't find a more fitting name. Anyway, I must say that I'm a little um... "iffy" about this concept. Do you actually need to carry around the remains of a dead person? I think they should stay where they should... in the graves or something. I doubt you'll ever see your loved one in that jewel. You're better off with pictures. Honestly... I never see the point in this stuff. Corpses need a little respect.

[salamangkero 0]

Goodness me! Can't people just leave well enough alone?Elsewhere, people are studying to find a cure for AIDS or cancer, solve poverty or feed the hungry and people come up with this... preposterous idea? What on earth will this... invention do, to improve society?Death is usually a well-deserved rest for most people, after having lived their lives out. In other words, they'd probably rather just lay undisturbed than be taken for a walk, worn on your finger, displayed on your noisy foyer or held up ever and anon, whilst people say, "Oh look how shiny/bright/clear he/she is!"Oh well, I expect this to be expensive anyway, which is a good thing. At least, not all people would have the opportunity to be irreverent to the dearly departed. It is a very charming notion, romantic, even, but very much pointless.Hmmn, I wonder if spirits also haunt synthetic crystals?

[Voidless_Shadows 0]

I remember hearing about this (or something like it) a few years back...It seems kind of...tacky to me. I'm just rooted in the old thought of a burial is best, I've never considered cremation or having a loved on cremated. But a diamond made out of this that, if somebody wanted to, be worn on a ring is...

[me_boxer_dude 0]

Geez... I hope this is all a hoax and not true at all. I mean, cmon why would anyone wear his dead around him like some sort of a jewellary and does it really make any sense to do so. I dont even think that the technique itself to convert the remains of a person into a diamond would work, even if it works somehow it would not produce an authentic diamond for sure. What kind of people would come up with such weird idea? I guess some really lonely people who dont have anything better to do. it gives me creeps and makes me feel something is very wrong with people who come out with such ideas like taxidermy and now convert your dead into diamonds scheme.

[quakesand 0]

At first I look at this topic, I say "cool!"But after that I read some of the post and then starting to think different...dead=jewelry=lolI think this is a hoax...because they can just fake it, they can sell you the jewelry and then throw the ashes away..I know this is a really bad idea, but if it's really true, it's still cool..

[Kioku 0]

When I originally read this topic, I thought "That name sounds like some sort of Legend of Zelda item. Good thing I brought my moon pearl.". Back on topic, the fact they can do it with a lock of hair is pretty spiffy aside from the really creepy stuff. If the person doesn't need to be dead, I'd turn my hair into a diamond just because of how awesome that idea is.

[cangor 0]

interesting... and creepy in a sick sort of way. Seriously, though, I'd rather just be cremated and scattered across people's flower beds or whatever. Once I die my spirit won't be with my body, so it's kinda like wearing a dead body. eew.

[hesham 0]

am sure they must have found a technique of making the diamond using the ashes of a deceased person.well this kind of service is good because if you love someone and sadly loose them, you can still be near them with this service.there must be something wrong with the people who thought of this

[jamers 0]

If you think that's sick then what do you think about shrunken heads?orDried up petrified monkey paws or rabbit foot...I just don't believe it's true in the first place. Simply because it would cost too much to do it. More likely the company is selling cheap, second rate or flawed diamonds at inflated costs and telling people they cost more because it costs so much to do this squishing of ashes into diamonds. Come on, do you know how much ashes are required to have enough carbon to create even the smallest diamond? Neither do I, but you can bet it's more than one bodys worth.To prey on people like this in their time of mourning is really sad regardless of how cool it is.I want to be turned into chum and dumped off the side of a tuna boat in the Atlantic so all the Mackerel will eat me and then I'll be on dinner plates all over the world! You can have my body but I'm keeping my mind forever.

[CinnamorollTK 0]

I had heard of this service before and its nice to know its not a rumor. I plan to, when my fiance and I are both dead, to have our ashes turned into one diamond. I find it a rarther nice service. Imagine the heirloom of the family being a collection of rings and pendants of your family's gems. Maybe a bit creepy, but still nice.But bodily fluids? No thank you.And to farrah: I'd rather have the deceased as a diamond that can be handed down in the family than a bucket of ashes. Plus, I'd rather be something beautiful when I'm dead than something gross and icky in a coffin.

[TikiPrincess 0]

It's kindof sad how death is being turned into a business venture, but than again, if people are willing to pay for this service then who's to stop a company from offering it?

Obviously, you've never been involved in a funeral. Caskets alone can cost upwards of 10,000. Cremation is not much cheaper. Unfortunately, funerals and weddings are big business because they're emotional times for people, so they're easily manipulated into spending lots of money. Honestly, you don't need a coffin lined in satin with a stained-glass top when you're not going to be enjoying it. Just like women don't need to spend $5,000 on a wedding dress. But sometimes they do. Thankfully, mine was less than $200, but I'm practical like and got a prom/cocktail dress rather than the "wedding" version.
Anyways, I remember seeing this on Oprah a couple years ago. Some lady had her cat made into earrings. Another had her husband made into a ring with plans to use the rest of the ashes for a matching necklace and earring set when she could afford it. I don't really think that this kind of thing appeals to men very much.
When you really consider it, natural diamonds are just the remains of dinosaurs, and they've been able to recreate the process by pressurizing ash rather than waiting for nature to go through the process. And with the way we're burning through oil, the liquid form of diamonds before they pressurize into their crystallized form, the diamond industry has to do something to maintain the flow of new diamonds.

I'd never do it, personally, because it's a frivolous expense and I'd just as soon feed the earth with my decomposing body, but that's just me.