Slashdot Mirror
Man Claims iPod Set His Pants Aflame
alphadogg writes to mention that an Atlanta man is claiming an iPod Nano actually caught fire in his pants creating flames that lasted 15 seconds and reached up as far as his chest. Apple hasn't responded to the claims yet other than sending him a packet to return the iPod.
I'm sure they can spin this into positive PR.
It bent, the battery ruptured, the lithium reacted with the air. Fire. Possible? I doubt it was spontaneous like the Dell laptops.
Web2.0: I love when people Flickr my cuil and digg my boingboing until my google is reddit and I start to yahoo
If the fire is caused by a lithium battery, what would the effects of pouring on water be?
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
Dry cleaning uses non-water-based solvents to remove dirt and stains from clothes. The potential for using petroleum based solvents in this manner was first discovered in the mid-19th century by French dye-works owner Jean Baptiste Jolly, who noticed that his tablecloth became cleaner after his maid spilled kerosene on it, and from this observation developed a service to clean other people's clothes in this manner, which he termed "nettoyage à sec," or "dry cleaning" in English.
ask the mythbusters.
I predict that the FAA will ban any and all devices that use lithium ion battery technology. They can't risk one of these devices turning into something of Thermite while in flight.
Life is not for the lazy.
His pants had a small brown spot inside the pocket...if it were for 15 seconds, and up to his chest, wouldn't it be a little more burned than that?
Several years ago, I was splashed with gasoline and set on fire while wearing a polyester Hawaiian shirt. No damage was done to me or the shirt. I slapped it out. It happened twice because the girl I was with thought it was funny so she did it again. It was funny. I'm sorry about what happened to you, that looks like a lot of damage, but fire does strange things.
riding round the world on an old motorcycle
Indeed. Glossy paper protected him?
Glossy paper is little more than hydrocarbon steeped cellulose fibers, I fail to see how "chest high flames" would've been stopped by glossy paper. Also why they would apparently fail to burn anything but a little bit of the inside of his pocket. I mean, they'd have to go through his pants to reach chest-high, wouldn't they?
It's far more likely that it was a slow burn, which the paper did slightly insulate him from, but which when he finally noticed was hot enough to slightly char the inside of his pocket and the paper. The "chest high flame" could be attributed to misremembering the event due to shock. I know I've poorly recalled a minor accident I was in, once. (Poorly recalled right after. After I had time to think about it, I'm pretty sure I remember correctly, but at the time it seemed much worse than it was)
Can you be Even More Awesome?!
It really does sound like one of their episodes.. An implausible urban legend, a pending lawsuit.. splashed with a tiny amount of questionable science..
Now, all repeat after me ' BUSTED '.
---- Booth was a patriot ----