"Too long, your story needs editing."

[grampablohm]

First, a public service. All must view this. This is from a bay area organization that promotes pedestrian rights.

http://www.walksf.org/images/rememberthekittens.jpg

This makes me giggle like a schoolgirl.

Comments

I'm just sayin'

[drhibbert]

If that guy's supervisor died from that incident, he didn't die of the removal of oxygen from the air. You know as well as I do that addition of an inert gas (such as He) to a closed container does not change the partial pressures of the other gasses already in the container. Therefore, not including the air that was pushed out of the room, there was just as much oxygen in the room as before the He hit the floor. Furthermore, you have enough oxygen in your blood to sustain you for about 2 minutes, more than enough time to get out of the room and away from the source of He

I'm just respondin'

[grampablohm]

true enough, and well put. BUT, and here is the key, It doesn't end in a punchline that way. You can't use a high squeeky voice when your lungs is frozed with crystalline blood. And although I agree with the tissue o2 lasting 2 mins(blood o2 is actually lost rather quickly, on the order of 15-20 seconds, its the tissue that sustains), its an issue of shock as well. the sudden increase is He (and its alot of He, you realize...) would result in, first of all, panic, and secondly, feelings of lightheadedness in short order, one or two heartbeats. That combined with the extreme cold probably caused him to pass out, resulting in the subsequent and confirmable death. regardless, no punchline mike, and frankly, your the only one besides myself who could possibly care about a partial pressures and gas diffusion discourse. heh.

Re: I'm just respondin'

[drhibbert]

I figured the inability to speak would be self-evident--his vocal cords probably froze, too.

Are you sure about the lightheadedness? I thought that was only when you breathed He in the absence of oxygen, such as when inhaling He from balloons, especially given that deep-sea divers would not use the combination of He and O2 if it made them lightheaded. Ok, some of them would, but most wouldn't. Not that it matters, but I am just curious.

Yes, I probably am the only one besides you who would care about that.

Re: I'm just respondin'

[grampablohm]

right, but he is effectively in the absence. 02 goes through phase transition at that temp, let alone the molar ratio difference.

Re: I'm just respondin'

[drhibbert]

True

Re: I'm just respondin'

[hohotread]

Hey, just 'cause I got lazy doesn't mean I forgot ALL my chemistry. I was about to post a similar reply to Mike's before I read it. I wondered how he'd survived the freezing to breathe himself to death on He.

Re: I'm just sayin'

[grampablohm]

and generally, no I don't find tragic deaths via lab related accidents funny (allison didn't either, if I call her from the lab with a hyper-sonic "help me, help me" I think I will be locked out of the house). Regardless, its a freaky circumstance, like getting killed by one of those airplane potty icicles. those make me laugh too.

Re: I'm just sayin'

[drhibbert]

The airplane potty icicles do make me laugh. The main reason I couldn't laugh at the lab guy was that I was thinking of how painfully he must have died. Getting hit with a multi-hundred-mile-per-hour urinal projectile, however, would probably kill you before you even felt it.

Re: I'm just sayin'

[grampablohm]

true enough, its a super shitty way to go.