paulp (06/14/82)
With the renewed interest in this newsgroup, I thought the following might prove useful to someone. . . Methods: 1. DiMethyl SulfOxide mixed with any one of a number nerve toxins e.g. rattlesnake venom. The DMSO transports the poison through the skin. 2. Lilies of the Valley: Cover with vodka (ethanol and water), heat over a burner. Strain off liquid and simmer to a thick paste. Result is a quickly fatal nerve toxin. 3. Mountail laurel (Kalmia latifolia): Put into a glass jar and set out in the sun for a day. Result is a jar full of sodium cyanide gas. 4. No-Pest strips: Contain the poison dichlorovinyl dimethyl phosphate. Extract by setting several strips in paint thinner and dissolving. Allow 12-18 hours to evaporate to an oily sludge. Vacuum evaporation will speed this considerably.
rtm (06/16/82)
Publishing lists of easy to make deadly poisons is worse than just telling people convenient ways to kill themselves. If neurotoxins are acceptable topics of widely distributed pieces of information, pretty soon explosives made of household chemicals will be, and then maybe interesting tidbits like how to take out the Golden Gate Bridge for fifty dollars and and evening's work. Just because something is true doesn't mean you have to say it.
sjb (06/16/82)
This may be true, but there are those who seriously believe that if a person wants to commit suicide, he/she has every right to, and the person should be guided to ways that are not painful. Now, understand that I am neither advocating nor condemning this; it's just a train of thought. "60 Minutes" did a spot a while ago on a husband/wife team that publishes booklets, etc. informing people of painless ways to commit suicide. They supposedly believe that a person has the right to die when he/she wants to (the above stated ideal) and have gone so far as to agree with each other that if ever one reaches the point where he/she has to be kept alive by machines or the like, the other should kill him/her.
soreff@sri-unix (06/28/82)
This message is empty.
ark (01/09/83)
...then there was the fellow who bored himself to death one summer... watching Johnny Carson re-runs, selling insurance, and studying for the bar exam...
jim (01/13/83)
If you opt for the light-socket-and-tiolet method there are a few things you should know. Death is from fibrillation, at the low voltages found in light sockets (at higher voltages, death is from burns, which is more painful). The best path for the current to flow is between right foot and left hand. Left foot to right hand would be OK, but don't use a foot and hand on the same side or most of the current will bypass the heart. You should probably start by completely immersing your foot in the toilet, then put your finger in the socket. You should try to touch only the small piece of metal in the bottom of the socket, not the larger metal threads, or most of the current will go through your finger rather than your heart, which will be uncomfortable but not fatal.
ignatz (01/17/83)
"...not only will a handful of cigarette butts (stripped of paper for the fastidious) do you in quite nicely, but as the nicotine is an alkaloid, you should get quite a high before you go. Give it a try sometime..." Paraphrased (i.e., from memory) from a truly dangerous book, "The Poor Man's James Bond"
silver (03/22/83)
I believe that is the conventional wisdom; it also explains why people pass out painlessly in oxygen-poor atmospheres (such as pure nitrogen). They feel no distress because they expire all their CO2.
avsdS:avsdT:wcl (03/29/83)
As crimson!tombl asked: ...it is possible for one to pass out from lack of oxygen without feeling the need to breathe. This, of course, is a textbook explanation. If anyone is kind enough to conduct some empirical research, please post your results to the net. The easiest way to perform this research is in a pressure chamber. At high altitudes, where the ratio of O2 to CO2 remains the same, but the partial pressure of O2 is reduced, many pilots have become grossly incapable of flying, or have passed out, without being aware of the onset of anoxia. The Air Force has such pressure chambers, which are available to any private pilot. (I don't know whether they let non-pilots in.) Anyway, part of this training is to run the subjects up through higher and higher altitudes, having them sign their name at each stage, and state how they feel. Generally, they report no subjective changes, but when brought back to sea level the successive signatures are progressively worse until they deteriorate to an illegible scrawl. Bill Lindemann ...!ucbvax!atd!avsdt:wcl
bep (03/30/83)
My colleagues and I have a sugestion for the person who wanted to commit suicide and leave their body to science. This sugestion would allow the beneficiaries to collect and party for a long time. Take a nice hot bath and blow dry your hair at the same time. Its gotta look lie an accident. (not afraid to short my name) Bruce Pace Western Electric
billw (04/04/83)
#R:avsdT:-40200:sri-unix:2200009:000:92 sri-unix!billw Apr 1 12:47:00 1983 thats not fair. I know many people whoose signatures start out as an illedgible scraw....