In a basement room at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine sits a giant squat machine. It is what scientists there call a "tissue digester." To the general public, it is a device for bio-cremation, an alternative to disposing of remains by the standard burning cremation. The process has been legal in Minnesota since 2003. The U of M's animal facility was installed in 2005, as was a human bio-cremation machine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. The Mayo device has been used to dispose of 750 remains of individuals who had donated their bodies for scientific research, according to Clinic officials.

KARE11, by Allen Costantini, 11/19/11

Tags: bio-cremation, Facilities