Experience In Virtual Reality What It Feels Like To Die In World’s First “Suicide Machine”
You can try it out for yourself – at least, in virtual reality – by stepping inside a full-size depiction of the euthanasia capsule. VR glasses give the user a glimpse into how the death machine operates.
The Sarco will sit on a generator that uses liquid nitrogen that, when released, will bring down the level of oxygen in the capsule to induce hypoxia. The brain relies on oxygen to function. When put in environments with low levels of oxygen, the body slowly begins to shut down, resulting in confusion, increased heart rate, rapid breathing, shortness of breath, sweating, and wheezing. In the Sarco, however, Nitschke says death will have “style and elegance” – within one minute, the user loses consciousness. Death shortly follows.
To activate the process, a person simply steps inside, lies down and, when ready, presses a button.
“A Sarco death is painless. There’s no suffocation, choking sensation or 'air hunger' as the user breathes easily in a low-oxygen environment. The sensation is one of well-being and intoxication,” wrote the company’s founder Philip Nitschke for Huffington Post.
The Sarco made headlines last year after the state of Victoria in Australia voted to legalize euthanasia. Media outlets deemed Nitschke the “Elon Musk of assisted suicide” and his death machine his “Tesla”.
See the full story here: http://www.iflscience.com/technology/experience-in-virtual-reality-what-it-feels-like-to-die-in-worlds-first-suicide-machine/