Does carrying a gun protect you from physical harm? Research by epidemiologists at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine suggests that carrying a gun makes one 4.5 times more likely to be shot in an assault, than someone not possessing a gun. Resisting increases one's odds of suffering harm even greater. [more inside]
posted by Blazecock Pileon on Oct 20, 2009 - 290 comments

Fear of Cycling, an essay in five parts: introduction, constructing fear of cycling, helmet promotion campaigns, new cycling spaces, making cycling strange.
posted by parudox on Oct 5, 2009 - 204 comments

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently had their 50th anniversary, and to taut the progress of car safety design, they've set a 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air versus a 2009 Chevrolet Malibu, and shared the crash test videos on YouTube. [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief on Sep 28, 2009 - 85 comments

In light of the recent tragic death of a cyclist in Toronto, even normally well-balanced MeFites have polarized in the bikes vs. cars “war”. But according to Guillermo Penalosa, the fight is really about better urban design. He helped to radically reinvent the transit and parks infrastructure of Bogata, making it of the best cycling cities in the world. The recent changes to Broadway in New York were influenced by Bogota's success. Gil now advises the Project for Public Spaces and is Executive Director of Walk & Bike for Life. Their solution to the pedestrians vs. cars vs. bikes battle is simple: better urban planning (previously on MeFi) that gives everyone their own safe space. Not sure if your city's infrastructure is up-to-snuff? Apply the 8/80 rule. In the meantime, keep safe out there.
posted by nometa on Sep 3, 2009 - 175 comments

The Deadly Cost of Swooping In to Save a Life (single-page version): Deregulation and America's health care system combine to make medical helicopters increasingly dangerous.
posted by parudox on Aug 20, 2009 - 28 comments

Many TV-savvy Canadians will be familiar with the distinctive painted exclamation mark of the Concerned Children's Advertisers. For nearly 20 years, the CCA has partnered with broadcasters across the country in order to produce and air PSAs aimed at kids. This has resulted in some classic spots on such topics as drug use prevention, media literacy, and more recently a series on the importance of fitness. A personal favorite: the alternately endearing and terribly creepy Don't You Put It In Your Mouth (feat. Scary, Anemic Lion). [more inside]
posted by Monster_Zero on Aug 19, 2009 - 13 comments

Molds On Foods: Are They Dangerous? Finally a US government agency tells us all what's OK to eat after it's gotten moldy.
posted by GuyZero on Aug 14, 2009 - 53 comments

The UK government has decided to buy into the blythe doll/manga trend when frightening kiddies into being safe. [more inside]
posted by Megami on Aug 14, 2009 - 40 comments

Thinking about becoming a parent? You might find the US Consumer Product Safety Commission's list of recalled items fun! It looks like there's just under a zillion things out there that might harm your new tot. And that doesn't include ... y'know ... toys.
posted by GatorDavid on Aug 6, 2009 - 23 comments

Bleeding billboard. Yeah, that's what I said.
posted by miss lynnster on Jul 7, 2009 - 38 comments

Lightlane builds lasers that shoot out from your bike onto the road, displaying a bike lane wherever you ride. Written about here and here.
posted by erikvan on Jun 24, 2009 - 92 comments

Do you still have some leftovers from Christmas hiding in the back of your fridge? Are you wondering if you should eat it? This is a site dedicated to that very important question. [more inside]
posted by ArgentCorvid on Feb 19, 2009 - 27 comments

A Review of Criticality Accidents (3.7 MB pdf) Do you like reading comp.risks, or CVR transcripts from famous plane crashes? Then you may enjoy this technical analysis of 60 accidents where improper handling of fissile materials led to unexpected critical mass. [more inside]
posted by ikkyu2 on Dec 10, 2008 - 36 comments

A cornucopia of 'pictorial representations' of safety messages for industry. All images freely available in EPS and and DXF format. My personal favorite is this rather unfortunate situation.
posted by sp160n on Nov 4, 2008 - 47 comments

From the dryly professional US National Fire Protection Agency (who write the US national electrical code among other things), to the 1998-ish web stylings of The 911 Site portal page, there's a lot of fire/firefighter related content on the web. [more inside]
posted by rmd1023 on Jun 27, 2008 - 8 comments

The Unofficial Guide to the DMV ― This web site was created to provide easy-to-access information and resources for all your Department of Motor Vehicles needs for all 50 states. Details about driver’s licenses, driving records and ID cards, as well as vehicle registrations, title transfers, bills of sale and smog checks are available here. [more inside]
posted by netbros on May 11, 2008 - 12 comments

Absolutely horrifying, not for the squeamish, you've been warned Canadian public service announcements. Also, the only slightly less gory German educational film "Forklift driver Klaus". An unaired and disturbingly violent Canadian PSA on domestic violence. Graphically violent Irish PSAs warning against speeding, terrorism and Harry Chapin. A French Canadian worker slowly and gruesomely loses his arm. An Australian PSA featuring a blood-covered baby. Finally, an essay (with linked video examples) by a marketing consultant on "Turn-off Tactics" in public service advertisements.
posted by orthogonality on Apr 14, 2008 - 65 comments

SafetyTat- Temporary tattoos designed designed to be used as identification devices for children. Includes several designs for non-verbal and autistic children. Via That's Fit.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero on Apr 12, 2008 - 48 comments

Dogs , are they gettingenough doggie ice cream? Some brands and flavors are better reviewed than others, but it seems to work well as an aid to training and as a distraction for new puppies. Just lay off the real ice cream (and grapes, raisins, Easter lillies , cat poop, chocolate , etc.)
posted by Smedleyman on Mar 25, 2008 - 25 comments

The new video, "Run", from R&B group Gnarls Barkley (best known for their ultra-popular and painfully ubitquitous 2006 hit song "Crazy") has been banned from MTV for failing the Harding Test, a set of criteria determining the likelihood of video material triggering seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy (PSE), approximately 1 in 6000 people^*. The video is now circulating online. [Watch at your own risk. May cause seizures.] [more inside]
posted by loiseau on Mar 8, 2008 - 88 comments

Where does recalled beef go? Last month, the largest beef recall in U.S. history (143 million pounds) occured after the Humane Society released footage of sick cows at a meat processing plant in California. Before it was recalled, most of the beef had already been sent to school lunch programs and other public nutrition programs.
posted by amyms on Mar 3, 2008 - 59 comments

Nearly 60,000* American children (mostly girls) are abducted by strangers each year. After seeing a security video documenting a young girl's abduction, 15-year-old Dallas Jessup convinced her Filipino street fighting instructor to work with her on a school project and together they developed a method intended to teach young girls how to avoid Carla Brucia's fate. The resulting 47 minute video, Just Yell Fire, is viewable free of charge and teaches easy self defense moves created to help a potential victim avoid abduction or date rape. If there's a girl you love and want to protect from harm, the tips in this video may just save her life someday. [more inside]
posted by miss lynnster on Jan 7, 2008 - 177 comments

As two women were molested by a mob of 70 to 80 men on New Year’s Eve in Mumbai, all Mumbai’s top cop has to say is—it happens everywhere, and admonishes the media for making a mountain out of a molehill. This, after a similar incident had taken place at the Gateway of India, exactly one year ago.
posted by hadjiboy on Jan 2, 2008 - 65 comments

Coloring is fun! Engage kids and get your message across with soothing, simple style!

Print these .pdfs for the little ones in your life to color. Together, learn a little grown-up wisdom about Being a Witness in Federal Court, Disaster Preparedness, Food Safety with Thermy™, Why Elephants Cry, Biomedical Research with the Lucky Puppy, or how the United Nations is a very bad organization made up of foreign countries who do not want you to be free, with Brasco!
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur on Dec 3, 2007 - 43 comments

Train runs through bangkok market. (via)
posted by phrontist on Dec 1, 2007 - 35 comments

Respect speed limit, get free music from...asphalt ? When driving in Japan remember to respect the speed limits , you may be instantly rewarded by hearing a tune as played by...your car and the road.
posted by elpapacito on Nov 13, 2007 - 25 comments

“Our intentions are to be as sustainable a city as possible,” said Mr. Adams, Portland's city commissioner in charge of transportation. “That means socially, that means environmentally and that means economically. The bike is great on all three of those factors. You just can’t get a better transportation return on your investment than you get with promoting bicycling.” Many city planners agree that bikes make sense, but after two riders recently lost their lives in Portland one must wonder, is there a better way?
posted by Toekneesan on Nov 5, 2007 - 69 comments

Check out NASA's "CALLBACK" publication online. Drawing from the "Aviation Safety Reporting System", a way for pilots to voluntarily report aviation safety incidents while providing some protection from the FAA, CALLBACK recounts some of the most common, and some of the most esoteric, incidents that pilots run in to. It's geared more toward pilots, but others may find it interesting (or terrifying) to read about what can go wrong. [more inside]
posted by Godbert on Nov 2, 2007 - 12 comments

Add this to your back to school shopping list.
posted by The Deej on Aug 11, 2007 - 73 comments

This web site details how to construct a high performance bicycle lighting system. Also contains information on bells, horns, dynamo powered lights, and other safety devices (Warning! This site contains a small fair amount of nudity!)
posted by furtive on Jul 17, 2007 - 19 comments

Danger in Tow - Driving with rented risks. U-Haul International is the nation's largest provider of rental trailers. A Los Angeles Times investigation finds the company's practices raise the risk of accidents on the road.

This in-depth article is the first in a 3 part series. "Times reporters Alan C. Miller and Myron Levin reviewed thousands of pages of court records, police reports and other documents on U-Haul operations and accidents. They interviewed more than 200 people, including about 60 current and former U-Haul employees and dealers. They spoke at length with senior U-Haul executives and toured company facilities in Phoenix." (About this series.)
posted by The Deej on Jun 24, 2007 - 49 comments

It's national internet safety month. Hey, let's be careful out there.
posted by klausness on Jun 7, 2007 - 29 comments

The US Navy Safety office features a new Safety Yikes! Photo every week. Featuring cases such as: 12 foot Sunroof T; Are 20 splices in a 8 splice box too many?; Trust; I don't need a truck; Ladder trouble, 2, 3, 4, 5; Jack Stands; What's the amp rating on a 5/8^ths lug bolt; and the always popular Humans make good tiedowns. Special mention to this nice try.
posted by Mitheral on Apr 27, 2007 - 17 comments

“Oh, I took the roofs road" --just one of the fascinating things at a new Iraq blog--Inside Iraq-- daily life in a war zone through the words of Iraqi journalists in McClatchy's Baghdad Bureau as they risk so much each day to survive. These are unedited first hand accounts of their experiences. Their complete names have been withheld for security reasons.
posted by amberglow on Jan 17, 2007 - 9 comments

VIRTUAL REALITY Hi-tech Being Embraced by Manufacturers & Therapists
Long a darling of the military, aviation and video-game industries, virtual reality is being embraced by more businesses as the falling cost of computer power makes it more affordable. Manufacturers of farm equipment, car seats, mufflers and other products have joined automakers and aircraft manufacturers in using the technology to speed up and improve product design, train workers and configure factories and stores.
THERAPY: Overcoming trauma through virtual reality
posted by Bodyguard on Jan 14, 2007 - 5 comments

Going out of town & worried about burglars? Fret not my friend, just put on a record. Problem solved.
posted by miss lynnster on Jan 10, 2007 - 32 comments

If you've seen the Japanese safety manual for the Wii, you might have thought it was a bit excessive. But it really isn't, if you consider how many safety warnings they left out. Via core77.
posted by hydrophonic on Dec 6, 2006 - 27 comments

Recombinant Activated Factor VII --the Food and Drug Administration said that giving it to patients with normal blood could cause strokes and heart attacks... the Army's faith in the $6,000-a-dose drug is based almost entirely on anecdotal evidence and persists despite public warnings and published research suggesting that Factor VII is not as effective or as safe as military officials say. ...
posted by amberglow on Nov 21, 2006 - 17 comments

Don't let your kids use Easy Erasers or Magic Erasers...
posted by konolia on Nov 11, 2006 - 123 comments

Airsafe.com: more air crash information than you'll ever hope you need. Celebrity Air Crashes Cases. Airlines without Fatal Events. Fatal Events by Airline. How hard is it to fly a 757 or a 767? How to File a Complaint About Your Airline Service.
posted by Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese on Oct 10, 2006 - 9 comments

Protecting your privacy on Craig's List. Sex blogger Violet Blue re-assures Craig's List users with a list of tips to protect yourself from the new scammers who harvest your pictures and emails, and then publish them on the web.
posted by destinyland on Oct 5, 2006 - 30 comments

Eject! Eject! Eject! Whether used in the air, on land, at sea (and under it), or on the way to the Moon, ejection seats and capsules have saved thousands of aviators worldwide. The basic concept was first tested in 1912, developed by the Germans in WWII, and became standard safety equipment in high-speed, high-altitude jet and rocket aircraft. (Although ejection seats were in Gemini spacecraft, they were only in early Space Shuttle flights.) Much happens very quickly during ejection, and harrowing accidents and pilot deaths still occur. The decision not to eject right away may be heroic, but even pilots who wait may live while innocent bystanders^{^} die. However, the efforts of dedicated researchers and rocket sled testing by seat manufacturers keep adding new members to the unique club of men and women who survive to fly again.
posted by cenoxo on Aug 28, 2006 - 21 comments

Due to recent fires, Dell is recalling over four million laptop batteries manufactured by Sony and sold worldwide in the past two years. Pictures of computers on fire (as well as their charred remains) circulated widely online, not allowing the company to easily dismiss the problem as an isolated incident. Other companies claim their products aren't affected by the same issues, but the nightmare might not be limited to Dell. The future of laptops on airplanes is not looking so good.
posted by kyleg on Aug 15, 2006 - 50 comments

An official comic book adaptation of the 9/11 commission report is due to hit bookstores this month. The U.S. Army seeks an Arabic-speaking comic book creator. Meanwhile, an Israeli blogger suspects a Kuwaiti company of misusing Marvel and DC comics. These are just the latest incidents in a long-running history of using comic books for propaganda purposes, ranging from Mussolini and Hitler to Captain America vs. the Nazi-affiliated Red Skull to anticommunist comics for Catholic parochial schools to a phony Black Panther comic book created by COINTELPRO to a comic book of the American invasion of Grenada. However, my favorite site of comic book propaganda tends to focus on more innocuous domestic issues such as bicycle safety, USDA nutrition standards, and fighting crack cocaine. (OK, that last issue isn't so innocuous, but comic book propaganda about health & safety issues still generally blows.)
posted by jonp72 on Aug 4, 2006 - 38 comments

A timetable of UK trains carrying nuclear waste. (PDF file). The related Greenpeace UK article. UK nuclear waste train route graphic. Mirror tabloid hack plants fake bomb on nuclear waste train. "The gate was open, there were no security guards. I walked up to the train and planted my bomb". The Guardian's take on the story.
posted by nthdegx on Jul 30, 2006 - 16 comments

US Navy Saftey Center Photos of the Week. Or: A Nearly Comprehensive But Not Entirely Inclusive Manual of Instruction On How to Qualify for a Darwin Award.
posted by loquacious on Jul 26, 2006 - 22 comments

Workplace health and safety dirty dozen (pdf) - profiles of companies that have demonstrated egregious disregard for worker safety. Today is Worker Memorial Day, commemorating workers who die on the job - an average of 16 per day. Workplace deaths are trending up, not down, which, according to an extensive report by the AFL-CIO, is the inevitable Toll of Neglect with this administration's rollback of worker protections. Confined Space offers a daily view of work safety issues in the U.S. for those who would like to learn more.
posted by madamjujujive on Apr 28, 2006 - 13 comments

All those in favor of a mandatory web labeling law, say "ay!"
posted by trinarian on Apr 22, 2006 - 23 comments

Safety of In-Flight Cell Phone Use Airlines are currently preparing to allow use of cell phones for in-flight calling. A Carnegie-Mellon study raises interesting questions about potential interference with critical avionics.
posted by docpops on Mar 14, 2006 - 43 comments

The Chittagong ship-breaking yards in Bangladesh disassemble half of the world's supertankers. Shipbreaking, though profitable, is not particularly safe for either the workers in the shipyard or the surrounding environment. It does, however, make for some spectacular pictures. Also, pinpoint the location of the shipyard and explore via satellite with Google Earth.
posted by monju_bosatsu on Feb 18, 2006 - 54 comments