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Can You Hear Me Now?
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?"
as far as i know, you are still able to make emergency (911) calls from a cell phone even if it has no service agreement. however, seeing as it wasn't the united states, more power to the sales guy or something. :))
next we'll be hearing a story about how spam saved someone's life. (i don't care whether its the canned or electronic kind, would be interesting either way
Although, if they had cell phones on that soccer/football (or was it rugby? I forget) that was forced to resort to cannibalism, they all probably would have gotten sales calls - after all, they always call during dinner.
WWJD.... for a Klondike bar?
Besides, chilling your battery will not revive it. It will only slow down power loss.
What a stupid article!
Convenient, maybe. But what if he hadn't been stranded. How annoying would it be having a solicitor call you and try to cell you more pre-paid minutes every time you run out. I thought it was against some kind of law that phone solicitors could not call your cellular phone anyway? (Correct me if I am wrong)
~.Evanrude
Hell, I probably would have died in his situation, I would have refused to answer the "OUT OF AREA" call.
RonB
It is human nature to take shortcuts in thinking.
Law of averages. They call so often, it's really no surprise that they'd call at a point where you'd need someone to call. Has to happen sooner or later.
"...Ok Mr. Diaz you don't need to make up some stupid story about being lost in the Andes mountains. If you are not interested, you could just say so." *click*
At least in the US, cellphone carriers are required by law to allow all 911 calls through on any cellphone, whether it's activated or not. The law is pretty strictly enforced, too. It's reasonable to assume that wherever he was, a similar service or law exists.
I can imagine that 1) there was some sort of equivalent service in his area, and 2) his service should have a number to call, like '0' or '611' to talk to someone about adding minutes to his calling plan. The guy was smart enough (and lucid enough) to know that chilling batteries rejuvenates them to some extent, but couldn't figure out how to get a hold of anyone on a service that doesn't require "charged" minutes? He's getting more credit than he deserves.
Regardless, if such emergency services aren't available where he was, let it be a lesson to the carriers there. Someone could easily hold them liable for not permitting emergency calls to go through, where life-threatening situations exist.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
... is whether or not they made him buy the minutes before they would help him.
they dont.
I worked in a battery shop for a few months. Cooling batteries makes them discharge slower, and freezing them destroys them (expanding/crystalizing electrolite destroys the membrane between the plates). Last month I left my cell in the car overnight, it got a bit cold (in the 40s), and my phone wouldn't work until the battery warmed back up.
...also, as Jeff67 points out:
"Alcohol only gives the perception of warmth. It does it by dilating blood vessels in the skin. The result is you lose heat faster. Drinking when you're really cold is a good way to get dead."
So, fake longer battery life, and fake warmth. In short, this looks like a bogus story. I guess CNN is taking it's cues from the Chinese news media these days...
Never never never smoke crack before geometry class!
Can you hear me NOW? No? Hum, get a crew out here...we need another tower.
Ah, can you hear me NOW? Good!
--MonMotha
"Then suddenly, at above 12,500 feet, Leonardo Diaz hears a familiar ring."
was his girlfriend by any chance named Cameron Dicaprio?
anyway can someone shed some light on how cellphone batteries get recharged by cold temperatures?
True, but if I'm going to freeze to death, I'd much rather do it drunk.
They have cellphone coverage at the top of a mountain? I find that someone difficult to believe. Also why would anyone take their phone climbing with them and not have any credit on it? Ok, so I'm sure they didn't just make it up, but it does seem stranmge
Sig is taking a break!
It's more convenient than you think. How did the hiker get stranded in the first place? My theory is that the phone company had a hand in getting him lost in the first place. Who benefits? Suddenly here is a heartwarming story that makes the phone solicitors look like benign life-saving angels rather than annoying pricks paid to disrupt our most precious moments of peace....
However.... Alcohol also acts as anti-freeze. You may know of the story about the Baker on the Titanic. The normal survival time in the icy cold waters at that time was only a few minutes. The baker had the right idea and got trashed just before it went under. The Baker was picked up 2 hours later, and he survived.
I don't even get decent reception at home! Which network covers the Andes??
Contrary to popular belief, it is easier to get signals on top of mountains. Why? Because at the top of the mountain you have line-of-sight with many different ground antennas. It is the same reason that you get a good 'view' :)
Also, from my personal experience in the Alpes, phones seem to work pretty well at high altitudes - so much, that I even get signals from neighbouring countries' networks sometimes. The major problem with large height is that your cellphone might appear in many cells simultaneously and the networks might become confused. (And this could be one of the reasons why you can't use a cellphone inside an airplane)
As far as the batteries are concerned.. I am aware that lower temperatures lower the reaction strength => the internal resistance of the battery increases => it becomes unusable very quickly. However it works again when it becomes warm. This does appear bogus...
... what do you expect from a story related with telemarketers and reported by Journalists working in US Media Conglomerate B]
I miss my rubber keyboard.(Homepage)
Possible, but not probable...
I'm close to someone involved in low level local politics... What you'll find is that news such as this is about 40% fiction (They call it creative writing, or some such in journalism schools.)
Most news agences embelish the truth, and often resort to such common argument falacies as taking quotes out of context as well as employing sensationalism and plain old fiction.
In general, stories have seeds of truth; some are just larger seeds than others... Remember that the best lies are those based on reality.
Side quote: "The US media is unique not in the ability to provide an un-tainted viewpoint; Rather, it is unique in it's ability to convince the american population that it is without bias."
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
"Help! I've fallen, and I can't sign up!"
...for a new long distance service, until you rescue me from this cliff...
-- Terry
Now we can't even DIE in peace, without some ($*%&$ing phone solicitor bothering us.
If Mr. Edison had thought smarter he wouldn't sweat as much. --Nikola Tesla
If the people desgining the hardware and software for the phone had half a brain, they'd check the battery status before attempting to switch it to 5x power usage and not do it if the battery were too low to support it..
It sounds like a urban legend to me.
To give the story some credibility it should have stated where he was found.
This fact could be compared with known base stations, and verified the claim or if it was possible.
On a side note, the ad on the page was for prepaid phone cards!
Carbon based humanoid in training.
I'll admit to not having very much of a clue how cell coverage works outside my region, but if someone told me that a cell phone was reachable on top of a fucking mountain, I'd take some convincing.
If I'm wrong, I'd like to know. Is this something along the lines of Iridium? I don't gather so from the article.
Blearf. Blearf, I say.
Well the posts seem to all say the same thing, here's a summary:
In most places, Emergency Calls are free.
An obscure mountain path durring a blizzard doesnt seem like the most likely place to get cellphone coverage.
Soliciting on Cellphones is illegal in many places, just like soliciting on Fax Machines.
so is it real?
-- 'The' Lord and Master Bitman On High, Master Of All
soccer/football (or was it rugby? I forget) that was forced to resort to cannibalism
I don't think there has ever been a verified case of one football eating another.
Are you sure you got your facts straight?
Blearf. Blearf, I say.
Wasnt the baker also a very large man? The surface to volume ratio might have had something to do with it too.
All Troll + "offtopic" mods are meta moderated as "Unfair", because you abused the system.
.. 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.
Just experiment until you get more bars on your signal indicator. And hope like hell there is no cell tower on the summit of K2!
In Canada we use CDMA [on a tri-band xmitter no less]. You can dial 911 if the phone is user-locked [e.g. enter code] or just locked [hit two keys to unlock]. You have to pay 0.25$ a month for a 911 "connection fee". Without a service plan I'm sure the phone will call 911 but I have never tried.
Another little tidbit. If anyone has ever dialed 911 on a phone its somewhat interesting. My motorolla v120 will sit in "emergency mode" and do a funny beep. You can't dial any other number until you reset the phone [e.g. power down].
Tom
Someday, I'll have a real sig.
Stick the phone antenna in a tube of pringels and scan around. When you have the most bars, you'r pointing at a tower. That's what it seems like anyway, i could be wrong.
/.'er should always be armed with a phone with an external antenna. And some potato chips.
So a
FRA: STFU GTFO
So after some quick agonizing I take the call, hoping it isn't my boss in a panic. It's Pacific Bell. The nice lady wans to know if I'm interested in signing up for CallerID.
I couldn't have been more interested !
Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1992-1951
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
Living in Boston, I frequently hear about stranded hikers who call 911 while hiking in the White Mountains in New Hampshire. Cell phones have became so common and these calls happen so frequently that it has actually become a problem. To discourage this behavior (unprepared hikers calling 911 to be rescued), the authorities came to a unique solution: Bill the caller for the cost of the rescue.
Let me be clear; not every hiker who calls 911 will be billed. If you have a genuine emergency, please use 911. But if you're stranded due to your own stupidity, you're going to pay.
"I'm The Bounty Bear. I will find him anywhere. I'm searching."
Yes freezing doesn't "revive" the battery.
Cutting power draw to zero does.
When my cell batteries goes "DEAD" (i.e. the phone powers off), if I wait a bit, I can get it to turn on for a bit (but only 2 seconds of "talk" time).
One time it took a few times to make it unrevivably dead. (I let it go dead because it had a memory effect [less and less capacity over time], even though the manual said that could not happen. My fix worked, BTW).
Some batteries may have a stronger "revival" effect than others.
It probably has something to do with chemical reactions and the capacitance of the cell.
Just because it CAN be done, doesn't mean it should!
One of the two huge forest fires in Arizona (which have now merged into one) was set by an equally clueless hiker who decided to set a signal fire to attract a rescuer. It worked - a TV helicopter rescued her. But it also set a wildfire (the Chediski fire) which is now part of the record-setting Rodeo-Chediski fire which has been in world news lately. It is burning the largest stand of Ponderosa pines in the world, not to mention hundreds of structures.
Sigh.
If people are going to get lost, they oughta at least prepare for the fact! Of course, if they were prepared, they probably wouldn't get lost in the first place.
The only good weather is bad weather.
(* Wasnt the baker also a very large man? The surface to volume ratio might have had something to do with it too. *)
Finally, I have an excuse to eat regular food instead of that "fat-free" cardboard-tasting stuff.
"But, honey, I am increasing my shipwreak survivability."
Of course, surviving and getting laid are not necessarily the same thing.
Table-ized A.I.
The guy was lucky he wasn't a crusty, battle-hardened American consumer. Otherwise, here is what would have happened:
Man, I'm freezing... This brandy is good (Hiccup)...
Riiiinng...
Hello?
Hi, maybe I speak to Mister Diaz?
Leave me alone, you f&@*$%ing telemarketer bitch! Click. Hey, wait a sec... Hello? Hello? Oh crap...
That's right, boys and girls, telemarketers are not only a nuisance, they also create deeply ingrained reflexes that can hamper your survival if you happen to be drunk, stranded and out of minutes at the same time...
Did you hug a telemarketer today? Good! Keep hugging him until he chokes.
--
Mad science! Robots! Underwear! Cute girls! Full comic online! http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/
Well, too bad he forgot the number for 911. or 112. or 611, and hitting 0 to talk to an operator. Or 0 for that matter!
titanic baker alcohol
Hit #4
My God, it's Full of Source!
OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
Funny...if you hit reload enough times, you'll eventually get an ad for 50% more phone minutes on the right side of the page.
QUIT WHILE YOU'RE AHEAD! ;)
You may be the only (fictional) telemarketer to have inspired more gratitude than raw, stomach-churning hatred, so get out of the business right away! And live the rest of your life on cat food and talk show appearances :)
Yeah, actually - as I understood it, the problem with phones appearing on multiple cell towers and causing network problems was a real event with analog cellphones. When they went to digital networks, this was taken care of.
I heard one story of a guy flying in a private plane who used his analog cellphone to make a call. The call went through just fine, but when his bill came at the end of the month, he was triple-charged for roaming calls made at the same time.
Every prepaid cell phone I've ever used has allowed emergency calls, and/or calls to order more minutes, even when expired. Certainly, it would be in the phone company's interest to have an order line for more time, even if it wouldn't take emergency calls. Why didn't the hiker call it earlier? Or did he forget he had his phone?
Wrong- the human body has about 1/4 the salinity of seawater.
In other news, there has been an upsurge of telemarketers calling, even unintentionally on landline phones, asking if the user is stranded on a mountain and would like to buy minutes...