https://theprogressnetwork.substack.com/p/what-are-smartphones-good-for
"One week ago, at least eight skiers in the backcountry of Lake Tahoe,
California, were killed by an avalanche—the deadliest in modern state history,
The New York Times informs us.
It could have been even worse: Six others were rescued after employing
emergency beacons and a relatively unknown feature embedded in all iPhones,
model 14 and later: Emergency SOS, which operates via satellite to connect to
emergency services. There’s no need for a cell signal, data, or Wi-Fi
connection; all you need is a clear view of the sky.
Longtime readers of this newsletter will know that humanity has gotten
dramatically better at surviving natural disasters. Still, avalanches kill so
few people each year that they’re hardly even a blip in the data. You’re much
more likely to be bitten by a New Yorker.
That said, I had to do my
What Could Go Right? due diligence, and from the
information available—a data set from Switzerland—we are in fact more likely to
survive avalanches now than we were a few decades ago, despite changing climate
conditions and more skiers going off-piste. The study authors believe that
better safety training and technology that enables rescuers to find people
faster have made the difference.
Which brings me back to the iPhone’s Emergency SOS function. Satellite phones
made for outdoor enthusiasts have been available for years, but they’re bulky
and expensive, so there’s a real benefit to making the technology part of
everyday gadgets. (It’s been free since its rollout in 2022, although as Apple
expands its satellite-based offerings, non-emergency use may eventually cost
something.)
And it really does save lives."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
