MetaFilter posts tagged with safety

In Defense of Jaywalking

aerotive — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:32:05 -0800

Interesting article at Slate, In Defense of Jaywalking, where the author describes how the media and others often slant coverage of pedestrian vs auto accidents--examples include San Francisco Chronicle, Boston Globe , and New York Post columns. Police, who are typically car-bound, are often biased in favor of other drivers. Not unexpectedly the Federal Highway Administration has curious language regarding walkers--"Still, almost no one can avoid occasional pedestrian status". Even the term jaywalking is commonly misused. Solutions? More money towards safer walking (including a reversal of funding policies that favor cars), better places to walk, pedestrian-friendly engineering, lower urban speed limits, harsher penalties for drivers that violate pedestrian's rights, and critical reading of the often selective and sensationalized media coverage of traffic crashes.

Getting burned by packing heat

Blazecock Pileon — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:11:52 -0800

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. "On average, guns did not protect those who possessed them from being shot in an assault. Although successful defensive gun uses are possible and do occur each year, the probability of success may be low for civilian gun users in urban areas."

Fear of Cycling

parudox — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:25:24 -0800

Fear of Cycling, an essay in five parts: introduction, constructing fear of cycling, helmet promotion campaigns, new cycling spaces, making cycling strange.

Collision Tests: Old versus New, rounds 1 and 2

filthy light thief — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:46:05 -0800

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. Spoiler: the dummy in the Malibu suffered only minor leg damage while the dummy in the Bel Air suffered damages that would have killed a person instantly. A few years ago, a similar test was run between two editions of Renault Espace as part of an episode of the UK series Fifth Gear. The result was similar, except there were only nine years between models (higher quality clip of the crash segment). In the segment, crash engineering research chief, Richard Morris, noted that if the older Espace hit a similarly constructed model, the damage would have been less drastic, and the driver may have survived.

Bike vs. Cars War

nometa — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 06:39:24 -0800

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.

He says every patient is a golden trout. We need to go get those trout.

parudox — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:53:57 -0800

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.

What am I doing, I don't even LIKE beets!

Monster_Zero — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 06:51:20 -0800

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). (The CCA has a Youtube channel and also provides a great deal of extra material and higher-quality video at their website. The final spot is thanks to the inimitable RetroWinnipeg.)

NO YOU SHOULD NOT EAT IT

GuyZero — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:00:40 -0800

Molds On Foods: Are They Dangerous? Finally a US government agency tells us all what's OK to eat after it's gotten moldy.

What does it take to reach kids these days?

Megami — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 00:27:41 -0800

The UK government has decided to buy into the blythe doll/manga trend when frightening kiddies into being safe. Moving on from the now defunct 'Hedgehogs' campaign, featuring cute simple hedgehogs to spread the road safety message, direct.gov has hired an agency that obviously believes the way to get down with the kids is to buy into the goth/horror/manga look, and scare them into doing the right thing. Be sure to check out the games, like this one, which all seem to feature kids get slammed into by cars and bashed about. (Would be interested if any Mefites know the agency responsible for this campaign)

Buyer Beware

GatorDavid — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 20:50:35 -0800

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.

Huh. Kinda reminds me of that guy in Casino Royale.

miss lynnster — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:36:55 -0800

Bleeding billboard. Yeah, that's what I said.

Portable bike lane projector.

erikvan — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 11:35:01 -0800

Lightlane builds lasers that shoot out from your bike onto the road, displaying a bike lane wherever you ride. Written about here and here.

Should You Eat That?

ArgentCorvid — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 16:59:54 -0800

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. We've been over this before. Several times, in fact.
Apparently, they get their information from the USDA, along with some manufacturers and universities. found via stumbleupon

A Review of Criticality Accidents

ikkyu2 — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 23:34:42 -0800

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. All the famous names are here - Oak Ridge, Los Alamos, the Argonne National Lab - as well as the famous players: the Demon Core that claimed two lives in separate accidents, and later became the heart of the Bikini atoll ABLE nuclear test; Harry Dahglian; Louis Slotin; and even a cameo by Richard Feynman, who comments on the Dragon experiment in a footnote. Watch for the telltale signs of prompt critical - the blue glow, the flash of light, the wave of heat - and look up Roentgen Equivalent Man, and tuballoy in the comprehensive glossary at the end. I can't be the only one who likes this stuff, can I? (Via AskMe.)

How do I Injury Me? Let Me Count the Ways.

sp160n — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 07:31:01 -0800

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.

Shouting Fire on a Website

rmd1023 — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:02:03 -0800

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. From the National Association for Search and Rescue (NASAR) to a fansite for US Army firefighters and rigs to a site for World fire departments. You might enjoy reading the fire truck crew blog at Vent Enter Search, which includes sections on tips and tools that are fun reading for tool nerds. Find yourself worried about your own tendencies towards clutter? [previously on the blue and green] You can read up a bit on "Collyer mansions" -- a term used by some firefighters to refer to really incredibly densely cluttered homes. Lots of kids (not just boys) want to grow up to be able to pass the firefighter exam and become a brother or sister of the firefighter family. After you pass, you can think about safety-related behaviors so you can avoid making mistakes and make sure everyone goes home. And after everyone comes home alive, put your pictures and videos on the internet for the rest of us to enjoy: http://firefighterclosecalls.com/closecalls.php, http://www.firefighterspot.com/, and http://bestfirefightervideo.com/ are a few to get you started after you poke around on youtube. (ob 9-11/fdny moment of silence: . )

But Officer ...

netbros — Sun, 11 May 2008 21:02:12 -0800

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. DMV.ORG also offers information you wouldn't think of getting from the Department of Motor Vehicles. You’ll find guides to buying a new car, ways to order a vehicle history report, and links to auto insurance. Got a traffic ticket? DMV.ORG teaches you about online traffic schools, as well as driver's ed courses for new drivers. You can also use DMV.ORG for information about lemon laws and important updates on safety recalls. It isn't all legalese, forms and publications though. Don't miss the fun stuff section that includes several links to interesting license plates and cop jokes for example. This is one content rich, useful site. Sorry, U.S. only.

"There really are no accidents"

orthogonality — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 02:05:35 -0800

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.

Give Your Kid A Tattoo For Their Own Good

ThePinkSuperhero — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 13:52:18 -0800

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.

They'll eat lilies?

Smedleyman — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:30:42 -0800

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.)

Warning: this FPP may cause seizures.

loiseau — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 23:06:45 -0800

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.] The HardingFPA Flash and Pattern Analyser, as it's properly known, is a UK-developed computer hardware and software system that analyses video frame-by-frame to ensure that it does not contain [pdf 68k] flickering, patterns, flashes, fast cuts, or other sequences that are known triggers of epileptic seizures. Check out a very unemotionally-narrated Flash screencap video demo of the Harding FPA. Attentive MeFites will remember that a London 2012 Olympics logo promotion, which showed a "diver diving into a pool which had a multi-colour ripple effect", was re-edited after it was aired on television in 2007 and drew complaints after viewers suffered seizures. [Previously] But despite passing the Harding Test, a Dolce & Gabbana television ad received a complaint last summer to the UK's Advertising Standards Authority by an epileptic viewer. The pass/fail system has a number of variables; for example, a cleared clip may surpass standards on flashing amplitude and frequency, but cover a screen area of less than the allowed 25%. Other recent complaints can be found on the "Ofcom" UK broadcast regulator's Web site. An episode of Pokémon was banned worldwide in 1997 after its airing in Japan caused so-called "Pokémon Shock" in at least 600 people, mostly children. "News reports blamed a scene in the cartoon that featured an exploding "vaccine bomb" set off to destroy a computer virus, followed by five seconds of flashing red light in the eyes of "Pikachu," a rat-like creature that is the show's most popular character. Some other children were stricken later, when watching excerpts from the scene in TV news reports on the earlier victims." "PSE compliance" is currently industry-enforced in the UK, with broadcasters, advertising agencies and games studios complying voluntarily, but should be coming to a broadcaster near you soon. Elsewhere on the epilepsy front: previously on Metafilter, Hip-hop artist Sean Paul suspected to cause grand mal seizures in woman.

Where's The Beef?

amyms — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 20:12:20 -0800

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.

Girls have the right to be safe.

miss lynnster — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 22:17:42 -0800

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. Yes, the beginning with the infomercial-esque set-up may seem cheesy, but remember... it was made BY 15 YEAR OLDS (!) for 15 year olds. After about 13 minutes of discussion and advice, they proceed to enact and teach a full series of helpful self defense moves with dos and don'ts to avoid being abducted or attacked in a variety of situations. (It's a Hell of a lot more impressive than any of my school projects were, that's for sure.) Warning: features enactments of teen girls being surprise attacked with good and bad results. Good results for the girl usually meaning bad results for the attacker's groin, ear, and/or eyes. *That statistic was from the "Fire" link.

Mumbai’s Shame

hadjiboy — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 08:31:59 -0800

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.

Propacrayonda

Ambrosia Voyeur — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 21:34:24 -0800

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!