This browser does not support the Video element.
PROVO, Utah -- It was a classroom prank that some Brigham Young University students say crossed the line. And now the professor has been told to knock it off.
A student drank what she thought was her professor's urine as part of a lesson on kidney function. The student got extra credit for slugging back a small vial.
"I think that's asking too much of students and it has nothing to do with how well we study or how well we actually know physiology," said a student in the class who filmed the incident.
Professor Jason Hansen teaches the class. He posted a note to his students three days after it happened. It reads in part: "Please rest assured that it was not really urine but rather food coloring and diluted vinegar."
In a statement sent to FOX 13 News, Hansen wrote that he has done this in the past with other classes, usually letting everyone in on the gag when the class next meets. He notes, part of the lesson is discussing how doctor's once tasted the urine of their patients to screen for things like diabetes.
While all of the students who discussed the prank with FOX 13 News wanted to remain anonymous, many expressed their doubts. Hansen's explanation came after FOX 13 News contacted him.
A noted posted by a teaching assistant posted the day after the class reads, "I didn't catch the name of the person that volunteered yesterday to drink Dr. Hansen's pee."
"She could have said no but at the same time, I feel like that was a disadvantage to me and the rest of the students who didn't want to drink his urine," said one student.
BYU's administration declined to comment. Hansen gave us this statement about the class lesson: