Recent comments in /f/gadgets

skullmatoris t1_itx9pke wrote

Reply to comment by wilhelmstarscream in Android phones offered early US quake warning, beating iPhones to the punch | Google's earthquake detection network turns Android phones into seismometers, and it paid off yesterday. by chrisdh79

I’ve heard hiding under things is not a good idea. Better to shelter in the corner of a wall or next to something large in the room, that way if rubble falls you’ll have an air pocket

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mazu74 t1_itx6882 wrote

Reply to comment by HaikuBotStalksMe in Android phones offered early US quake warning, beating iPhones to the punch | Google's earthquake detection network turns Android phones into seismometers, and it paid off yesterday. by chrisdh79

Believe me, I’m sure if they could warn people days ahead of time for other kinds of emergencies, they absolutely would without a second thought. Sadly hurricanes are one of the very few that are detectable that far in advance.

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Tommyblockhead20 t1_itx61oc wrote

Reply to comment by wilhelmstarscream in Android phones offered early US quake warning, beating iPhones to the punch | Google's earthquake detection network turns Android phones into seismometers, and it paid off yesterday. by chrisdh79

The more important thing is not what you start doing, but what you stop doing. You don’t want to be going down stairs, eating, woodworking, operating on a patient, etc for obvious reasons. 10 seconds gives you enough time to stop doing anything that could be dangerous during an earthquake and brace yourself.

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other_usernames_gone t1_itx18up wrote

Reply to comment by HiFiGuy197 in Android phones offered early US quake warning, beating iPhones to the punch | Google's earthquake detection network turns Android phones into seismometers, and it paid off yesterday. by chrisdh79

It would though.

You could evacuate areas ahead of time if a large enough earthquake is predicted, or get humanitarian aid set up ahead of time. Imagine if food or water was already there in the moments after an earthquake instead of a day or two later. We could pre-set up halls and other places as emergency accommodation before the earthquake even hit, and tell people where they are ahead of time before communications could be damaged.

People would know it's a bad idea to go swimming or climbing during those days. It would also be a great opportunity for people to get their earthquake plans sorted, pack things they want to bring with them if they get evacuated.

It's easy to put off planning for an emergency when it's a hypothetical but if you know there's a 90% chance it'll happen in the next few days it's a lot easier to get motivated. Obviously people will still procrastinate but it would help.

Of course inaccuracy could be a huge issue, especially with people not trusting it. But it would be a great boon if it worked well.

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MyVoiceIsElevating t1_itwzxzm wrote

Reply to comment by more_beans_mrtaggart in Android phones offered early US quake warning, beating iPhones to the punch | Google's earthquake detection network turns Android phones into seismometers, and it paid off yesterday. by chrisdh79

I am an Apple user that appreciates their attention to UX and detail, but they’re also guilty of a lot of crap.

Just glad Google pulled off a more effective warning system, which will no doubt cause Apple to improve theirs. Competition means we all win.

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more_beans_mrtaggart t1_itwzj7o wrote

Reply to comment by MyVoiceIsElevating in Android phones offered early US quake warning, beating iPhones to the punch | Google's earthquake detection network turns Android phones into seismometers, and it paid off yesterday. by chrisdh79

I was thinking the opposite. Normally an android feature is something they threw at a wall and went with that, leaving it to Apple to show how it’s supposed to be designed.

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