4 ms·

I never understand why people don't wear seat belts, even in cabs. I think the thought is that it's the city, you probably won't be going fast. But humans are

by axaxs 11y ago

I never understand why people don't wear seat belts, even in cabs. I think the thought is that it's the city, you probably won't be going fast. But humans are really bad at judging just how fast they are travelling. Imagine I asked you to absolutely sprint full speed into a tree while blindfolded. So no time to brace yourself or slow down. You'd probably refuse, thinking this will either hurt very badly or even permanently injure you in certain circumstances. And that is at 12-15mph for most of us. In a car you are going at least twice as fast at all times, and have all sorts of fun objects to break your motion, like steering wheels and dashboards.

willis77 11y ago
Cycling is great for giving an appreciation for what 20-30mph really feels like, without the car disconnect. Same as your sprinting example: go get a bike, find the steepest hill you know of, pedal as fast as you can down the hill (this is going to be 30-40 mph), then ask yourself if you'd like to hit a brick wall in that moment. Most people who are otherwise comfortable riding without seatbelts would be peeing pants and grabbing brakes long before 40mph.
- Jach 11y ago
  These are both pretty terrible arguments, due to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_%28physics%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_%28physics%29 Cars have crumple zones for a reason. This is not to say seat belts aren't good, as they along with air bags contribute to impulse, but there's a huge difference between shooting an egg (or person) at a brick wall at 50 mph while naked, vs. encasing it in sufficient amounts of bubble wrap first. I'll gladly sprint into a tree, or ram a bike into a wall, at such speeds provide I or the tree/wall are sufficiently padded. (https://youtu.be/DEP8juRSBRo https://youtu.be/DEP8juRSBRo)
  - axaxs 11y ago
    Neither are terrible arguments. They are not exactly equivalent, obviously. A car does have crumple zones, meant to slow deceleration of the vehicle itself. It is assumed that passengers and objects are somehow attached to the car, such as by a belt device of some sort I imagine. The crumpling effect doesn't help you when you propel into the person in front of you, or as in many cases, through the windshield itself and into something that's not so crumply. You absolutely would not drive into a wall sans seatbelt at 30mph, even with a newer car. You'd be a fool to do so, as you will get injured and MAY not survive said injuries.
eeeeeeeeeeeee 11y ago
Plus, in my experience, cab drivers have no qualms with going double the speed limit (more fares is more money).

by axaxs 11y ago

willis77 11y ago

Cycling is great for giving an appreciation for what 20-30mph really feels like, without the car disconnect. Same as your sprinting example: go get a bike, find the steepest hill you know of, pedal as fast as you can down the hill (this is going to be 30-40 mph), then ask yourself if you'd like to hit a brick wall in that moment. Most people who are otherwise comfortable riding without seatbelts would be peeing pants and grabbing brakes long before 40mph.

Jach 11y ago
These are both pretty terrible arguments, due to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_%28physics%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impulse_%28physics%29 Cars have crumple zones for a reason. This is not to say seat belts aren't good, as they along with air bags contribute to impulse, but there's a huge difference between shooting an egg (or person) at a brick wall at 50 mph while naked, vs. encasing it in sufficient amounts of bubble wrap first. I'll gladly sprint into a tree, or ram a bike into a wall, at such speeds provide I or the tree/wall are sufficiently padded. (https://youtu.be/DEP8juRSBRo https://youtu.be/DEP8juRSBRo)
- axaxs 11y ago
  Neither are terrible arguments. They are not exactly equivalent, obviously. A car does have crumple zones, meant to slow deceleration of the vehicle itself. It is assumed that passengers and objects are somehow attached to the car, such as by a belt device of some sort I imagine. The crumpling effect doesn't help you when you propel into the person in front of you, or as in many cases, through the windshield itself and into something that's not so crumply. You absolutely would not drive into a wall sans seatbelt at 30mph, even with a newer car. You'd be a fool to do so, as you will get injured and MAY not survive said injuries.

eeeeeeeeeeeee 11y ago

Plus, in my experience, cab drivers have no qualms with going double the speed limit (more fares is more money).