by Stephanie Shu

Created on: April 05, 2009

The experiments performed on Jews during the Holocaust was a way to prove that the Germans held the superior power over Jews. They often happened for no particular reason and were carried out in the gruesomest of manners. The most documented experiment is one in which Jews were tested to see how long it took for them to freeze. The German army was loosing soldiers rapidly due to the cold on the eastern front and scientists scrambled to find a solution, paying no heed to human rights.

Dr. Sigmund Rascher set up the experiment by forcing Jewish, healthy young men to strip and allow a thermometer to be inserted into their rectum. They were then dropped into a vat of freezing water orplaced outdoors in sub-zero temperatures. Because it was more efficient, the vat was used more often and the victims lost consciousness at around 25 Celsius. Most died from hypothermia, but the few that lived had to continue on to the second round of experimentation.

The scientist conducting this experiment was also very interested in how the body could function after being thawed. A method he used was with sunlamps so scorching that the victim's skin was burned off. Not many lived through this method, but even less survived the type of warming called, "Internal Irrigation," where sizzling hot water was pressed into the stomach, bladder, and intestines.

The category with the highest survival rate came from the hot water method - basically a cold bath growing warmer and warmer until the victim is thawed. Sometimes, though, the water was heated to fast and the Jews died from the sudden change of temperature.

Dr. Josef Mengele, also labeled the "Angel of Death", is by far the most infamous experiment-conductor in history. With every shipment of new prisoners, he sorted through them to see if any of their traits could be mutilated for genetic experiments. Twins and dwarves were among his favorites. Many say that the gaschambers proved to be a much more likable environment than being operated on.

Every square centimeter on each twin's body as measured exactly, otherwise the staff would be punished. Photographs were snapped and a small fluid sample was extracted from the lungs. The Nazi's removed hair by throwing Jews into steaming vats of water and waiting for heatstroke get to them before plucking our hairs.

It is said that a pair of Hungarian twins were forced to be cut open to remove sellable organs with no numbing medication whatsoever. They screamed and cried so much that the "Angel of Death" ordered them to be gagged to give him some quiet.

Other attempts to change eye color through injections failed miserably. The Jews were viewed as animals and many died a uneccessary death.

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