"Henry E. Schaffer" <hes@ccvr1.cc.ncsu.edu> (05/21/91)
In article <telecom11.380.1@eecs.nwu.edu> ardai@teda.eda.teradyne.com (Mike Ardai) writes: X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 11, Issue 380, Message 1 of 10 > [This is getting rather far from Telecom...] Sure is - well, I'll test the moderator's patience further. :-) > ... Putting one of them into > the same pocket as bullets will cause the bullets to short out the > charging studs. This will heat them up and cause them to fire. I > seem to rememeber that a cop shot himself that way back in the 70's in > NYC. This is a wonderful urban myth with a good psychological explanation. I get careless and shoot myself -- quick, what explanation/excuse can I use? ... Well, it has been shown that a cartridge going off in a pocket will cause noise, scorch marks, and bruises. It doesn't penetrate through clothing into flesh, and so this can explain being "shot". Still, many people will buy this excuse, and so it is worth a try. (For details, see Hatcher's Notebook by J. Hatcher.) henry schaffer n c state univ
"Henry E. Schaffer" <hes@ccvr1.cc.ncsu.edu> (05/26/91)
In article <telecom11.390.2@eecs.nwu.edu> "Henry E. Schaffer" <hes@ccvr1.cc.ncsu.edu> writes: X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 11, Issue 390, Message 2 of 12 > This is a wonderful urban myth ... Nonetheless it is a very good idea to keep ammunition out of electrical and thermal conditions which might set it off. Even considerably less force than a normal gunshot can damage an eye or cause other injury. John DeArmond told me that my original posting could be taken as overly downplaying a real danger, and upon re-reading it I think he's right. Be careful, and don't take chances. henry schaffer n c state univ