Situations
25 questions in the situations category.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Can you survive a plane crash? | Usually — across all US airline accidents studied, more than 95 per cent of occupants survived. |
| How long do you have to escape a sinking car? | Usually 30 seconds to a couple of minutes of floating — and the window is the way out, not the door. |
| Can quicksand pull you under? | No. Quicksand is roughly twice as dense as a human body, so you float — you sink to about waist depth and stop. |
| How far from a nuclear blast do you have to be to survive? | It scales with yield: for a one-megaton airburst, survival is unlikely within about 5 km and likely beyond about 10-12 km. |
| How long can you survive in a hot car? | Under an hour on a warm day for a child — the interior gains about 20 °C in the first ten minutes. |
| How long does it take to drown? | Under a minute to lose consciousness — and it is almost silent, which is why so many drownings happen in sight of others. |
| What happens if a lift cable snaps? | Essentially nothing — lifts hang from multiple ropes and have a speed-triggered brake that grips the rails. |
| What height can you survive falling from? | Survival is common below about 6 metres and rare above 20 — but people have survived falls from thousands. |
| How likely are you to survive a shark attack? | Very likely — of roughly 60 to 80 unprovoked bites worldwide each year, fewer than ten are fatal. |
| What happens if you fall into lava? | You would not sink — lava is about three times denser than a body — but you would not survive the heat either. |
| What should you do if you are caught in a rip current? | Rips pull you out, not under. Swim parallel to the beach until you are out of the flow, then come in. |
| Could you survive inside a whale? | You cannot be swallowed by almost any whale — their throats are too narrow — and a stomach offers no air. |
| How long do you have to escape a burning house? | Around three minutes from the alarm sounding in a modern furnished home. |
| Can you survive a tsunami? | Yes, by moving inland and uphill immediately — 30 centimetres of moving water can knock an adult off their feet. |
| How long can you survive in a sealed container? | Carbon dioxide becomes dangerous long before oxygen runs out — a few hours in a cubic metre of air. |
| How long can you survive buried in an avalanche? | Around 90 per cent survive if dug out within 15 minutes; by 35 minutes it has fallen to roughly 30 per cent. |
| How long can you survive falling through ice? | The first minute of cold shock is the dangerous part; roughly ten minutes of useful movement follow, then up to an hour. |
| How do you survive a tornado? | Get to the lowest interior room with the most walls between you and outside — most injuries are from flying debris. |
| What speed of car crash can you survive? | Modern cars are designed around a 64 km/h frontal impact — and for a pedestrian, 30 km/h versus 50 km/h changes almost everything. |
| How long could someone survive buried alive? | One to a few hours in a sealed coffin, limited by carbon dioxide rather than oxygen. |
| How long can you survive lost in the woods? | Days to weeks in temperate forest with water — exposure, not hunger, is what ends most cases. |
| How long can someone survive trapped under rubble? | Most live rescues happen in the first 24 hours, but people have been pulled out alive after two weeks. |
| Can you survive a bear attack? | Almost always — fatal bear attacks in North America run to a handful a year across the whole continent. |
| How long can you survive locked in a walk-in freezer? | A few hours in ordinary clothing at -20 °C, and longer with insulation from the floor. |
| How long can you survive trapped in a mine? | With air and water, months — thirty-three Chilean miners survived 69 days underground in 2010. |
- Can you survive a plane crash? Usually — across all US airline accidents studied, more than 95 per cent of occupants survived.
- How long do you have to escape a sinking car? Usually 30 seconds to a couple of minutes of floating — and the window is the way out, not the door.
- Can quicksand pull you under? No. Quicksand is roughly twice as dense as a human body, so you float — you sink to about waist depth and stop.
- How far from a nuclear blast do you have to be to survive? It scales with yield: for a one-megaton airburst, survival is unlikely within about 5 km and likely beyond about 10-12 km.
- How long can you survive in a hot car? Under an hour on a warm day for a child — the interior gains about 20 °C in the first ten minutes.
- How long does it take to drown? Under a minute to lose consciousness — and it is almost silent, which is why so many drownings happen in sight of others.
- What happens if a lift cable snaps? Essentially nothing — lifts hang from multiple ropes and have a speed-triggered brake that grips the rails.
- What height can you survive falling from? Survival is common below about 6 metres and rare above 20 — but people have survived falls from thousands.
- How likely are you to survive a shark attack? Very likely — of roughly 60 to 80 unprovoked bites worldwide each year, fewer than ten are fatal.
- What happens if you fall into lava? You would not sink — lava is about three times denser than a body — but you would not survive the heat either.
- What should you do if you are caught in a rip current? Rips pull you out, not under. Swim parallel to the beach until you are out of the flow, then come in.
- Could you survive inside a whale? You cannot be swallowed by almost any whale — their throats are too narrow — and a stomach offers no air.
- How long do you have to escape a burning house? Around three minutes from the alarm sounding in a modern furnished home.
- Can you survive a tsunami? Yes, by moving inland and uphill immediately — 30 centimetres of moving water can knock an adult off their feet.
- How long can you survive in a sealed container? Carbon dioxide becomes dangerous long before oxygen runs out — a few hours in a cubic metre of air.
- How long can you survive buried in an avalanche? Around 90 per cent survive if dug out within 15 minutes; by 35 minutes it has fallen to roughly 30 per cent.
- How long can you survive falling through ice? The first minute of cold shock is the dangerous part; roughly ten minutes of useful movement follow, then up to an hour.
- How do you survive a tornado? Get to the lowest interior room with the most walls between you and outside — most injuries are from flying debris.
- What speed of car crash can you survive? Modern cars are designed around a 64 km/h frontal impact — and for a pedestrian, 30 km/h versus 50 km/h changes almost everything.
- How long could someone survive buried alive? One to a few hours in a sealed coffin, limited by carbon dioxide rather than oxygen.
- How long can you survive lost in the woods? Days to weeks in temperate forest with water — exposure, not hunger, is what ends most cases.
- How long can someone survive trapped under rubble? Most live rescues happen in the first 24 hours, but people have been pulled out alive after two weeks.
- Can you survive a bear attack? Almost always — fatal bear attacks in North America run to a handful a year across the whole continent.
- How long can you survive locked in a walk-in freezer? A few hours in ordinary clothing at -20 °C, and longer with insulation from the floor.
- How long can you survive trapped in a mine? With air and water, months — thirty-three Chilean miners survived 69 days underground in 2010.