Just about everyone knows that you shouldnevertext and drive, and that you should stop, drop, and roll if you catch on fire.
But life can also throw situations at us for which we don’thave a quick, handy response.
Commentersin a recent Quora threadabout life-saving facts offered their best tips, which are easy to remember and could have a huge impact if you ever find yourself in a dangerous situation.
You might want to save these for later.
Safety adviser Murali Krishnan points outthat walking and using your phone both demand large amounts of cognitive effort.
As a result, you can’t fully focus on both at the same time in the same way you canwith walking and gum-chewing, for instance. You’ll suffer “inattention blindness,” where you may see an object but notprocess that it’s a car speeding toward you.
Reuters/Olivia Harris
Blind spots aren’t inevitable inall vehicles, arguesuserKristen Rush.
By adjusting your mirrors so that you barely see the edges of your own car, you can effectively eliminate the blind spots on the sides of the vehicle. The rear-view mirror should be able to locate any car behind yours. It’s worth the few seconds it takes to adjust these when you get in the driver’s seat.
There’s a connection between being wet and getting cold, and vice versa for heat, says engineer Lia Lavoie.
To ensureyour body temperature doesn’t falltoo quicklyin cold environments, invest in clothes made of wool instead of cotton they’ll absorb more moisture so that dampness doesn’t linger on your skin. And, of course, do your best to stay dry.
Lavoie also points out that your body uses a great deal of energy to convert matter from one state to another.
That’s why hesays you should only eat snow as a substitute for water as a last resort.In gaining thatsmall amount of hydration, you’ll give up precious body heat.
User Alvin Yip warnsagainst the impulse to inflate yourlife jacket immediately if a plane is making an emergency landing onwater. The water that could rush into the cabin makes it harder to move if you’re more buoyant.
So swim to an exit, then inflate your jacket to stay afloat.
Wikimedia Commons
Few people realize that theydon’t need someone else to dislodge a piece of food from their throat.
Naman Mitruka explains how to perform the Heimlich on yourself:
- Form a fist with your stronger hand below your rib cage and just above the navel. Place your other palm over the fist to push more firmly.
2. Drive your fist in and up in the diaphragm area (the top of your stomach) forcefully and repeat several times untilthe object that’s stuck in your throat getsdislodged.
Scott Olson / Getty Images
You never know when you’ll encounter something that you didn’t know you’re allergic to, especially when camping or hiking, according to userRyan Borek.
Electrocution instantly causes the muscles in a person’s body to tense up. This is dangerous because it means a person holding a live wire can’t let go.
Ideally, you’ll be able to turn off the source of the electricity in this kind of situation, Alex Elderfield explains. But ifthat’s not possible, you can help the person (without getting electrocuted yourself) by breaking the circuit. The simplest way to do that is to find a long hard object, like a stick, and give the person a firm whack.
Survivalists have a shorthand for knowing their limits, Ruchin Agarwal says.
People can generally go three minutes without air, three hours without shelter in extreme weather environments, three days without water, and three weeks without food.
Ruchin Agarwal also explainsthat people should never use water to put outgrease fires. The water moleculessink to the bottom of the hot pan, evaporate instantly, and shoot the flames even higher.
Instead, you can put an oil fireout bycutting the heat and taking away the oxygen.
HBO
According to Sanket Shah, aviation safety abides by the +3/-8 rule, which encourages people to be vigilant immediately after take off and right before landing 80% of crashes happen during those times.
You can use those short periods of time to stay alert and locate exits rather than gettinglost in a podcast or movie.
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Sharma also notesthe well-studied psychological phenomenon in which crowds of people fail to help somebody because they all think someone elsewill intervene.
If you’re not too hurt to call out for help, pick one person and direct your pleas to them. You’ll be more likely to get the aid you need.
Instead of usingmace or a weapon, an extremely bright flashlight can also effectivelyward off a mugger, user Sanket Shah claims.
“If you have someone approaching you that seems aggressive, in the gravest extreme, a blast of300+ lumen to the eyes (especially at night) will give you the opportunity to get out,” he says. “And suppose you miss-read the situation; no one is really harmed and you can’t get in trouble for it.”
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“The stream always flows downhill and invariably will reach a larger tributary or a body of water,” says user Jon Mixon.
Meanwhile, the fence will almost always lead to a road or a structure.
Condoms are incredibly elastic. As user Janis Butevics points out, you can use that to your advantage if you need a quick way to store large volumes of water. Theyessentially act like bladders and are capable of holding a gallon of water.
“They can also be used to protect against water, as a stretchable cover for valuable items like matches and walkie-talkies,” Butevics says.
Angelo Giampiccolo/Shutterstock
Whenlocal governments send out warnings about natural disasters, many people stay put even when told to evacuate. As John Ewing explains, psychologists call the phenomenon the “normalcy bias.” It refers to people’s tendency to think everything will turn out OK even when they’re clearly in danger.
Ewing says people can break out of their normalcy bias cycle by locating multiple exits whenthey’re out in public, such as at the movies or in a restaurant. Mentally preparing fora dangerous situation will train youto be vigilant.
As Cal DeBouvre explains, the voltage in a downed power line ishigh enough to push electricity through the dirt nearby. “If you spot a downed power line walk the other way and call the police immediately,” he says.
If a line falls near you, keep your feet together and jump or shuffle away. If you take normal steps, you’re at risk of conducting electricity inyour body since the current canflow through both legs separately.
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