Do highway crash bars really protect the engine?
They protect more than the engine! If they're like on my bike (not a Harley) the bike is balanced such that in a minor tipover they keep the whole bike off the ground. I think they'd definitely pay for themselves the first time the bike went over. I want to say you should -expect- the bike to go over sooner or later, but that's not right, it's the wrong attitude. But it's good to be prepared for it if it ever happened.
How do I survive a car crash?
The best way to survive a crash is to either not have one or to minimize the effects of one.I'm not being flippant here -- the vast majority of crashes could be avoided if everyone knew and obeyed the traffic laws. Most motor vehicle collisions are "crashes," not "accidents." An accident implies an Act of God or some unforeseeable event, such as a tree limb breaking onto the road or sasquatch running into your path. A crash is preventable by everyone obeying traffic laws.Crashes can be avoided by drivers paying attention to stop signs and traffic signals, not speeding, not driving while impaired, etc...Similarly, everyone in the car should wear a seat belt, even if you're just going a couple blocks. Wearing a seat belt helps reduce the amount of injury caused by slamming into hard parts of the car interior. But it's not your lucky day and you've been in a crash. What should you do?DON'T PANIC! Try to remain calm. A calm voice can sometimes help victims and there's little solace from someone shrieking, "OHMYGOD! OHMYGOD! OHMYGOD!" in the background.Call for help. The sooner you get help on the way, the sooner it will get there. Cell phones have helped tremendously in this area, so get one and keep it charged properly. In the US, you can even use a cell phone without a service contract to call 911.Get first aid training ahead of time. I can tell you to put direct pressure on a wound to try to stop the bleeding. I can discuss the pros and cons of tourniquets. I can explain the difference between a simple or compound fracture. But there are a lot of people out there who know it better than me and have already explained it a million times. In a good first aid class, you'll even get to practice with simulated injuries AND you'll get feedback from a qualified instructor.Here are some web sites with basic first aid information:http://www.mayoclinic.org/first-aidhttp://www.webmd.com/first-aidDid I mention not to panic? Training ahead of time helps prevent panic during an emergency.Think about making a basic first aid kit for your car. Having a few slings, a couple gauze pads, and a roll of tape is a great way to start preparations. The web sites above have links to either build your own kit or buy one ready-made.One last thing: DON'T PANIC! (and always keep your towel with you ;-) )
How should one brace for an imminent car accident? What's the best way to prepare as to minimize injury if you realize a collision is unavoidable?
This little knowledge can minimize injuries and save you!In many crash incidents, car occupants do get a few milliseconds to react before the collision occurs. Let me answer this question in two parts,Things to do while driving to minimize injuries in the event of a crashHow to react as a crash occursWhile Driving: (4 things to do)1. Since you will have very little time to react to an oncoming collision, it is important to remain focused at all times. Be mindfully present.Remember to keep your, eyes on the road (visual)hands on the wheel (manual)mind on the driving task (cognitive)(Sorry, you can't do this while driving)2. Your head restraint must be properly adjusted to protect you against whiplash (stopping the neck from bending back). To adjust it properly, you should,Ensure that the top of the head restraint is as high as the top of your headPosition the head restraint as close to the rear of your head as possible See Murali Krishnan's answer to What is the correct position for adjusting head restraint in a car?3. Always wear your seat belt properly. Statistics show that buckling up is the single most effective thing you can do to protect yourself in a crash. If you have any excuse for not wearing seat belt, you better read this Murali Krishnan's answer to Why don't people "buckle up" their seatbelts every time they ride in a car?4. You should sit at least 10 inches (25 cm) from the steering wheel to prevent being injured by the airbag. Measure this distance from the center of the steering wheel to your breastbone. Since airbags differ from car to car, you can ask the vehicle manufacturer for advice about the minimum distance between you and the airbag. Also, remember that air bags are an addition rather than an alternative to seat belts. As a Crash occurs:If an accident appears imminent, you need to respond quickly and try to minimize damage. See How To Survive A Car Crash - Drive Steady.1. Face forward, look straight ahead and sit squarely against the back of your seat. The goal is to distribute the impact over the largest area possible.2. Tighten up your muscles and brace yourself holding on firmly to steering wheel.3. Keep your wrists flat, not bent.
What should I do if I am in a plane that is about to crash in minutes?
Remove everything sharp from your pockets. Loosen your belt and remove your tie or scarf. Remove high heeled shoes. Take glasses off for landing so they don't fly off so are available to help you see your way out if you need them.Know where your closest exit is and a backup for the type of landing... some exits can't be used in water landings. Count the number of rows to those exits and try to identify any protrusions that you might use to find them if the cabin is full of smoke. Stay in your seat until instructed. Do not open a door or window exit without direct instructions from a flight attendant. Have a piece of cloth (preferably damp) to assist in breathing if there is smoke. If there is smoke during evacuation, stay as low as possible. Follow the instructions of the flight attendants in their pre-landing briefing. If everyone is on the same page and understands what is expected of them, people will be working together to get everyone out. Don't waste your time taking video with your camera.... LISTEN and PAY ATTENTION. If you survive with a video, it's cool. If you die because you were more interested in taking a video than paying attention, it's not so cool. If a water landing DO NOT inflate your lifevest until you are actually at the doorway. If you inflate it and the aircraft fills with water, you will get trapped on the ceiling and not be able to swim underwater to get out the exit. If this happens, get out of your lifevest to be able to swim out and hang onto someone once out. Lifevests easily buoy 2 people. Although you didn't ask, after exiting the aircraft, move well away towards the wind so that smoke and fire move away from you. Do not lie down in tall grass. Do not completely leave the area so that you can be accounted for. All that being said, most catastrophic crashes are not anticipated so it is rare to get much advance notice. In those cases, if you survive, follow the flight attendants' directions and don't take anything with you.
What is the best way to break a leg?
Indeed if your life depended on it, the fibula would be the best as a sacrificial lamb. Agree with Jean Marion there, as long as your tormentor lets you get away with it. The entire affair smells of the Saw series of movies somehow...Given that the fibula is to be broken, at short notice and little instrumentation, how to go about it? Here's a WikiHow(ish) step by step guide:Get a hammer or any heavy blunt instrument of suitable size available.Lie on the side with the chosen leg to be broken upwards. If that choice is given to you, choose the side of your dominant hand i.e. right side up for right handers.Feel the bony prominence on the outer part of your ankle. This is the lower end of the fibula. Break it here and your ankle becomes unstable. So choose a point in line with the prominence around 15 cams above it, at least 10 cms. Going too much further up can injure the common peroneal nerve and cause a 'foot drop'.Lift the 'hammer' and take it all the way back as your shoulder allows you to.Take a deep breath. Do not hold it. Holding breath for too long can knock you out.Remember ye Gods and let it swing.Thump.You should hear, or at least feel, a cracking sound. If not, kindly repeat till you do. Possible side effects include, but are not limited to, a large weal, breaking the other leg and shoulder dislocation.All said, the safest way to 'break a leg' seems to be to join the theatre and do a cracking job on stage. 'Break a leg' is a theatrical idiom for wishing good luck!
What should you attempt to do to minimize your impact in a collision?
Old Man Dirt got it pretty good.... A few years back Car & Driver had some "guidelines to safe driving" that I still remember. Went something like this: - Always try to avoid hitting something (longer following distance, stay alert, Avoid idiots,etc) - Never give up control (steer around, get off the brakes if locked, squeez next side to someone) - Hit some Soft vs. Hard (bushes v. trees, ditches v. culverts, railings & barriers v. bridge abutmts) - Hit something at the SLOWEST speed possible (obvious reasons) - Hit property before people (also goes with "damage your stuff before someone elses") - Sideswipe before direct hit (disapates energy-> see SLOWEST speed) - Hit something going you way vs. stopped/oncoming (pretty obvious) - Always have an "out" (Good pilots ALWAYS look for a place to "set it down" Sullenberger vs. geese, 2009) - NEVER, EVER hit something HEAD ON ! I hope this helps. Watch everyone + TRUST no one. Take Care & good luck!
Whose fault is it if you crash your car trying to avoid a crash (especially in the U.S.)?
Accidents like the hypo you describe typically result in negligence claims seeking recovery for damages. There are five elements of negligence. Let's say that when you swerved you struck another car, resulting in property damages and injuries. The first element is duty of care. You, the driver who swerved into you and the driver you struck when you swerved all have a duty of care based on all of the obvious things expected of us when driving a car.Next comes the question of whether you and, or the other drivers breached your duties. According to the facts a non-moving vehicle suddenly moved into your path. The actions you took to avoid colliding with the car suddenly in your path resulted in a collision with another car. The facts don't point to a breach of duty by you or the driver you struck, but the driver who crossed your path obviously breached her duty to exercise necessary care while changing lanes. At this point we've gone far enough to know that you are not liable for negligence, but the first driver may be.Third is determining the cause in fact, also known as the actual cause. Your car struck another car, resulting in property damage and injuries. But you wouldn't have swerved but for the negligent act of the first driver. Thus the first driver's actions caused the accident.Fourth is proximate cause. This involves whether the driver who caused the accident should have known that her actions could result in the accident that resulted, because even though she caused the accident she won't be held responsible for an unforeseeable consequence. For example, suppose that the collision caused the fireworks in your trunk to explode and that the explosion temporarily blinded the driver of the car behind you, causing it to crash. The driver of the first car is responsible for causing you to crash, but isn't responsible for what happened as a result of the fireworks explosion, even though one event led to the other.The fifth and final element is damages. Here there is both property damages and personal injuries.
How does the caster angle affect the vehicle dynamics?
Lets start with basicsCaster – Negative and PositiveCaster is the measure of how far forward or behind the steering axis is to the verticle axis, viewed from the side. An example of caster in action is the front wheels on a shopping cart. They run a large amount of positive caster to make the cart track straight without wandering. However, the method that the cart uses (displacement caster) is different than how your car develops it’s caster angle (angled pivot), but the effect is the same.Positive CasterPositive caster is when the steering axis is “in front of” the verticle. In a road car, this would mean that the top of the coilover would be pushed towards the rear of the car. Positive caster creates a lot of align torque (the force that straightens the steering wheel when you go forward) which improves straight line stability of the car. Due to the geometry of positive caster it also will increase negative camber gain (a good thing) when turning. As you increase positive caster the steering will get heavier also, but with modern power steering systems this is rarely a problem. Generally you want as much positive caster as you can reasonably get so long as the car is equipped with power steering.Negative CasterNegative caster is when the steering axis is “behind” the vertical. This is generally only found on older vehicles due to tire technology, chassis dynamics, and other reasons. Modern vehicles do not use negative caster. It will lighten the steering effort but also increases the tendency for the car to wander down the road.P.S. : Regardless of what caster setting you use, make sure that your caster is symmetrical. Running a different amount of caster on one side will cause the car to pull towards the side with less caster.
What is the easiest bone to break and what is the easy easiest way to break it?
"...wrist fractures are the most commonly broken bone in patients under 65 years of age (after that age, hip fractures become the most common broken bone)." http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/upperfx/... "The collarbone is the most commonly broken bone in childhood. These breaks are usually the result of falling directly on the shoulder or on an outstretched arm during play or sports. They can occasionally be the result of a direct blow to the collarbone, such as during tackling in football (without pads), or being crosschecked during hockey or lacrosse." http://www.emedicinehealth.com/broken_co... "In fact, the radius is the most commonly broken bone in the arm. It usually happens when you fall and land on your outstretched hands. It can also happen in a car accident, bike accident, skiing accident, and similar situations." http://www.davidlnelson.md/Wrist_Fractur...