Ever since man came into existence millions of years ago, technological innovations have never stood still with man not only looking to dominate each other with innovations in weaponry but continually seeking to make his existence easier by machines.
The results of the efforts channeled at innovations are what we see around us. New technologies emerge every day from the most absurd to the most insane. I came across one of the weirdest technological innovations, in my own opinion, a few days ago while surfing the internet. It is a machine meant to assist people that wish to commit suicide and make their work easier.
There is no doubt that the rate at which people are committing suicide has been on the rise in recent years. Various means are used to carry out the act as long as the aim is achieved so much so that some countries are already debating whether to legalize suicide or otherwise.
Looking from afar, one would think it is a fanciful ride or some space pod to complement one's experience in a visit to mars. In actual fact, the pegasos is a device that aims to make the journey of people who are tired of life and would love to cross to the other side easier and painless. To simplify it, the pegasos is a suiciding assisting machine. What a nice-looking ride to take to the other side!
Basically, the machine consists of 2 major components:
The capsule is mounted on the gas canister.
The machine cannot be accessed by just anyone in order to prevent indiscriminate use and promote a suicide culture. Someone with the machine and needs to access it will undergo a mental stability test online and once passed, will get the access code that is only valid for one hour.
Once the access code is granted, users have an option of choosing between dark or transparent views from the capsule. Once inside, the press of a button, or the blinking of eyes depending on the settings, rapidly decreases the oxygen level in the pod and replaces it with nitrogen without an elevated increase in the ambient carbon dioxide concentration. Within a few minutes, the person slips into unconsciousness and crosses to the other side painlessly. source
In case a person opting to commit suicide changes their mind at the last minute, there is also an emergency exit button. Once death has been confirmed, the capsule is detached from the stand and can be used as a coffin to bury the dead. In actual fact, the pod was primarily designed to be the coffin because it is made up of biodegradable materials.
A closer look at the mechanism of operation shows that the machine kills by hypoxia and hypocapnia. When a sufficient amount of oxygen is lacking for cells and tissues of the body, ATP synthesis in the mitochondrion becomes inadequate and metabolic processes requiring ATP suffer the consequence. If the condition persists for a certain time, cells start dying one after the other until the entire body cell die-off.
I am not the one to debate the morality of a technological invention as no matter or terrible or irrelevant one thinks an invention is, someone somewhere will find them useful.
The pegasos has been an object for debates among lawyers and medical folks. The inventor is optimistic about the launching of the machine in Switzerland early next year simply because analysis shows that the machine will not be breaking any law in the country. It is totally legal to assist people who are bent on committing suicide to do so in Switzerland.
Looking at it closely, issues that can emanate from the use of the machine have been taken care of. First, potential buyers/users are first certified mentally fit to make decisions, the access code has limited (24 hours) validity, and there is an emergency exit button for a last-minute change of mind. From an environmental point of view, the pod is also biodegradable. If assisted suicide is legal anywhere, the use of the pegasos should not be found wanting as well.
