Adriano Taylor writes in a review of the sedative hypnotic Sodium Pentothal:
Sodium Thiopental (also called Sodium Pentothal) has the formula: C11H17NaO2S. This molecule is a trademark of Abbott Laboratories. Sodium Thiopental was discovered in the 1930s by Ernest H. Volwiler and Donalee L. Tabern while working for Abbott Laboratories. Dr. Ralph M. Waters first used it in human beings on March 8, 1934. The investigation centred on its properties, which were discovered to be short-term anesthesia, but surprisingly little analgesia. Its IUPAC name is Sodium 5-ethyl-6-oxo-5-pentan-2-yl-sulfanyl-pyrimidin-4-olate and it has a molecular weight of
264.32.1
During the 1950s Cold War paranoia, a reliable means of coercing prisoners into telling secrets was of upmost priority. In addition to painful tortures, “sodium thiopental was used by the CIA for many years, and
Username “cameron_05” comments at the ojar.com website that “sodium pentathol [sic] is truth serum and the brand name is Thiopental
Source: Adriano Taylor A milder form of psychological abuse includes exposing subjects (intravenously or orally) to sodium pentathol.… Sodium pentathol [sic] is an ultra-short-acting barbiturate that depresses the central nervous system, slows heart rate, and lowers blood pressure. In the relaxed state produced by the drug, subjects are more susceptible to suggestion and are therefore easier to interrogate. The drug does not actually guarantee that prisoners will tell the truth, however. Often, it makes subjects “gabby” without revealing any important
information.i, ii This substance has been tested in accomplis to LSD, which proved to be a most efficient means of inducing short term amnesia. Many tests were done by the CIA for thisreason.4
Large doses of Ritalin and Sodium Pentothal have been used in narcoanalysis. (Ritalin is used to counteract the powerful effects of the Sodium Pentathol.) During this drug-induced state, the subject becomes highly relaxed, easily suggestible, and more freely shares information.
Sodium Pentothal was also used as an ingredient in lethal injections, though now that the drug is no longer manufactured in the United States, prisons are switching to Pentobarbitol, a move that displeases its manufacturer,
Notes
i [A] judge has ruled that [James Holmes] may have to undergo an interview under the influence of drugs – dubbed a ‘truth serum’ – in order to evaluate his mental state. The process is designed to lower a patient’s inhibition, and is decades old. Judge William Blair Sylvester has also ruled that he may be given a lie detector test.
– “Aurora cinema shooting: Judge approves
