Started my experiment today!
How Do Bodies Decompose in Jello?
For this experiment I purchased 6 frozen mice from the store (feeder mice), as well as two packets of normal jello, and one of sugar free jello.
The jello was prepared as per instructions, but one of the normal jellos was turned into a jello shot by adding a half cup of vodka and half cup of cold water (in addition to the cup of hot water used to make the jello as per instructions). The jello was allowed to cool to room temperature before adding in the mice, and the mice were thawed before being placed in the jello. For my “control group” I have one mouse in water (maceration), and one in the open air. For fun I also have one soaking in Shock Top ale…just ‘cause we had a spare mouse and have had this ale sitting around for a while with no one wanting to drink it, lol.
The mice and jello/water/ale were all put into glass mason jars with the lids being replaced by cheese cloth (to discourage flies but still allow gas exchange to happen). These jars were then kept in the fridge overnight, and today (Oct 28th) were placed outside in a glass aquarium. The aquarium has a mesh lid that has more cheese cloth taped over the top (because, again, I really don’t feel like attracting flies, but do want air exchange). The entire setup is on my east-facing back porch where it will have exposure to outside temperatures, but not rain or wind. This experiment is taking place in northern Nevada (Reno area), so high desert with very low humidity. We currently have been having warm, sunny weather, though it may start snowing/have freezing temperatures once November hits.
I will be taking pictures daily most likely in the afternoons around 5 (after work) and try to document the progress in writing daily. When I feel enough time has passed to allow for decomposition (most likely judging by the maceration and open-air mice) I will call the experiment “complete” and take the mice out of the jars to inspect. Once the entire thing is finished I will upload a video on my YouTube channel and share the link here. I expect this experiment to last at least until January, maybe longer if the temperatures are consistently freezing this year.
I’m really excited to see what will happen! I might post weekly updates here, or bi-weekly. Let me know if you guys wanna see!