18 Experiments That Crossed Every Line, Ranked By Cruelty

During the Cold War, the CIA launched MKUltra, a secret program exploring whether drugs, hypnosis, and psychological techniques could influence human behavior. Led by Sidney Gottlieb, it included hundreds of experiments, some involving people who never knew they were subjects. Many records were destroyed, but surviving documents exposed the program years later. MKUltra failed to create mind control technology but left behind a major breach of public trust.