OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma plans to use nitrogen gas in dealing with prisoners scheduled to leave this world, though the details of the procedure have yet to be finalized.<br /><br />The state plans to use the gas to induce nitrogen hypoxia, a fatal state where the brain and body are deprived of oxygen.<br /><br />According to the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, 78% of the air humans breathe contain nitrogen. The lower the oxygen content, the deadlier nitrogen becomes. As the oxygen content lowers to 16%, the brain tells the body to breathe faster and deeper. Anything below 10% oxygen content can be fatal.<br /><br />Speaking to Reuters, the Death Penalty Information Center said it would take 7 minutes for a 32-kg pig to die from nitrogen hypoxia. Other countries known to use gas during executions were Nazi Germany, North Korea and the USSR.
