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squarefish writes "CNN has this story about a hiker stranded in South America's Andes mountains when a blizzard begins. He reaches into his backpack for his cell phone -- only to find his prepaid minutes are up. Out of nowhere, a phone company solicitor is calling on his cell phone, asking if he would like to buy more time. Is this convenient or what?"
Yeah, but I think the mobile emergency number is 112 worldwide. Any phone can make that call, even without a SIM card, and it will be carried by any available network. He should have just done that.
I don't know about world-wide, but here in Europe 112 works without a SIM card. That's why most cities have places where you can donate your old phones (sans card), that they give to the elderly or homeless.
I've dialed 112 once here in Germany. It seems to bypass the standard GSM call setup -- you're immediately connected to an operator, and it's got its own share of the available resources so you'll get through even when there's a network overload.
Alcohol is a vasodialator, so you do get increased bloodflow, especially in surface capillary veins. So you do suffer from hypothermia at a greater rate, but you also prevent frostbite. Depending on the amount of exposed skin, drinking small amounts alcohol is often considered a good thing. If your boots get wet and then freeze, drinking is the only thing you can do to help keep the circulation going and save your toes. Alcohol and water are both vasodialators, but alcohol works best. Caffeine is a vasoconstrictor, which is a bad thing for frostbite. Brandy contains lots of sugars, so would have an overall warming effect, assuming he had reasonable clothing.
Chilling batteries can cause the output voltage to rise, because the internal resistance is a complex function based on temperature. I've seen the graphs of battery output for satellites, very non-linear, with several peaks and dips for different temperatures.
the AC
Hemos is like...sci-fi fans;he thinks technology is cool, but he hasn't bothered to understand the science it's based on
.. who claim that you shouldn't drink alcohol in extreme hypothermic conditions?
Alcohol dilates the blood vessels and the rush amplifies your body heat. True, you lose heat faster and in 'normally' cold conditions you shouldn't drink alcohol. But if you're stuck in a freezing mountain, you need to keep comfortable to keep awake, which is essential to your survival. And the article says the guy is relying on carefully measured doses of brandy. Limiting intake is essential.
Alcoholic beverages are actually present in most hikers' backpacks for this purpose (and also for treating wounds, due to its antiseptic nature).
And what's up with "you shouldn't drink anything at all in hypothermic conditions"? In fact, you should drink adequate amounts of liquids. Water, as most liquids, preserves your temperature. The only time you shouldn't intake liquids is when you're already victimized by hypothermia (in other words, you're already unconscious or near unconsciousness so you can't really do anything anymore, but this is handy advice for people who encounter hypothermia victims -- don't give them food or drink).
Pet peeve: Profane people propagating perfunctory pedantry.
On the other hand, if you eat the snow you can freeze to death trying not to dehydrate. I'm sure a very slow but steady diet of snow is the best way to go.
I'd carry a plastic bottle that I could put snow into, then put the bottle into my clothes. After it melts, then you can drink it. That's much safer.
Do not eat without melting! Eating snow and ice can reduce body temperature and will lead to more dehydration.
Melt ice or snow and boil it if possible. Don't eat crushed ice - it can injure your mouth and can also cause further dehydration.
Lundin says eating lots of snow is a common and potentially deadly mistake.
"Don't eat snow," said Mike Sheets. "Don't put it in your mouth and try to melt it if you're thirsty. You'll use up too much of your body's heat, and you need that energy for yourself."
Drink a lot of water, 8 to 12 glasses a day. But do not eat snow to satisfy your thirst. Eating snow can lower your body's core temperature, triggering deadly hypothermia.
Don't waste body heat by eating snow. Make a fire; heat water before drinking.
Do not eat snow as it tends to dehydrate the body
Do not eat snow to obtain water, it will just make you colder.
"Weapons should be hardy rather than decorative" - Miyamoto Musashi
I think that goes for OS's too