New tips on what to do during earthquakes

I cringe at the thought of earthquakes. And lately their frequency have been more often and so intense.

My last tremulous experience was in the 90's when I was yet in college. We were having a meeting with the school president for a school activity when the whole conference room swayed. The sound of the airconditioning unit has tripled and I thought the whole place was going to burst like some bomb. We scampered to the exits leaving our older teachers hiding under the conference tables.

Had the 6-storey building crumpled due to the earthquake, those under tables would have been one of the fatalities. Because that was what our teachers told us when earthquakes strike, we should duck under tables.

That is one disastrous action!

According to an email I received today, ducking under tables could be deadly. The probability of getting crushed is very high. The American Rescue Team International (ARTI) issued some helpful tips when earthquakes strike. And I think this is very logical.

Herewith I copied the tips from Triangle of Life article by Doug Copp.

1. Almost everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' when buildings collapse are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed.
2. Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position. You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but leave a void next to it.
3. Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during an earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake. If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created. Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.
4. If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can achieve a much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a sign on the back of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down on the floor, next to the bottom of the bed during an earthquake.
5. If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next to a sofa, or large chair.
6. Almost everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is killed. If you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the doorjamb falls sideways you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed!
7. Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building). The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each other until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away from the stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be damaged. Even if the earthquake does not collapse the stairs, they may collapse later when overloaded by fleeing people. They should always be checked for safety, even when the rest of the building is not damaged.
8. Get near the Outer Walls Of Buildings or Outside Of Them if possible. It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the building the greater the probability that your escape route will be blocked.
9. People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what happened with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They were all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have survived if they had been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that had columns fall directly across them.
10. I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact. Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.

Spread the word.

Picture from science.discovery.com

For The Singing Wannabes and Those Who Are Trying to Be One

Woke up with an urge to sing today. Actually I am no singer and even hate karaoke sessions. The last time I performed in public singing and old song was when I was in Grade 2. And my trainer had a hell of a time practicing my innocuous voice. After that, I shy away from the limelight hahaha.

So I actually find American Idol amusing especially during their states-wide search for qualifiers because some gutsy people really stole the show with their theatrics and not with their voices.

Speaking of singing and American Idol, I happened to read this nice article by Nestor Torre of Inquirer Entertainment entitled Lessons learned from AI very encouraging and full of hints for those who wanted a career out of singing. I am quoting the article in full here for my future use (or yours) .

Viewers who regularly watch “American Idol” on TV don’t just get entertained and caught up in the excitement of the ongoing singing tilt; they also get valuable pointers on how to make it big in the pop music field.

They get this informal “education” from the comments of the show’s judges, who don’t mince words when they analyze the finalists’ performance in excruciatingly minute detail.

The advice they give may occasionally be painful or insulting to the tilt’s young singers—but, if they could get past the initial hurt or embarrassment, they would benefit from the jurors’ candid comments and analyses.

The first key factor in doing well in the singing competition appears to be: Choice of song. At first, this would seem to have little to do with musical talent, but it turns out to be a key consideration, because the right song presents the singer at his or her best.

It showcases the individual singer’s unique combination of vocal quality and range, emotive and interpretative ability, temperament and personality. This indicates that an effective musical performance only partly depends on a good singing voice and banks more on a combination of plus points that sum up the singer’s entire artistic identity.

Thus, depending on his or her choice of songs to perform, a competing singer can be a winner one week and a loser the next. So, contestants are urged to think long and hard before they decide on a song to interpret.

Fresh interpretation

And they should know themselves really well, so they can most judiciously choose the song that best reflects who they are as performers—and individuals.

The second factor may appear to be too obvious to mention, but the tilt’s judges insist that it’s also key: Don’t forget the lyrics!

Why do they belabor the obvious? Because, when a singer forgets the lyrics to the song he’s singing, he betrays his lack of discipline, competence and professionalism—and is no winner in anybody’s book.

Next: Give an old song a fresh interpretation. Meaning, don’t copy famous singers’ performing styles. Instead, put your own stamp on the old standard, and thus make it your own.

This piece of advice is most relevant to many singers here, new as well as experienced, because we love to imitate famous performers, especially when they’re First World talents.

Blame it on our own “deathless” colonial mentality, which predisposes some of us to believe that we’re intrinsically inferior to stars “from abroad,” so the best we can do to succeed is to copy their singing styles, note for note.

Real deal

This explains why we have a hard time making it internationally, because a copy, no matter how exact, is never as good as the real deal. So, the sooner we can stop settling for being “gaya-gaya, puto-maya,” the better for us!

Other factors: Be confident about your ability. Look your best. Exude charisma, or a reasonable facsimile thereof.

Discipline yourself to become a consistent performer. Have the right kind of attitude in performing—meaning, love your audience more than yourself. Want to make people happy with your performance!

Be comfortable with the song you’ve chosen to sing. Show off your musical range. Develop rapport with your audience. Don’t over-analyze your approach to a song; just perform it intuitively and viscerally!

So many factors to think about—or, not. The path to stardom, on “Idol,” or elsewhere, is fraught with tests, risks and dangers at every turn. But, if you know what’s expected of you, you could survive longer, and even make it—all the way to the top!

Drawing from pupster.wordpress.com
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