Another near-miss for the Darwin Award

[Theophylact]

New Scientist vol 175, issue 2353 - 27 July 2002, page 13

UNDERGRADUATE stupidity knows no bounds. In an attempt to impress his or her classmates, a student took a sip of liquid nitrogen to prove that it is safe. It isn't. Within two seconds, the victim had collapsed in intense pain, unable to breathe, and eventually passed out. All-night surgery ensued.

"My entire upper gastrointestinal tract was badly scarred and perforated," the hapless student recounts in an anonymous letter to the journal Chemical Health & Safety (vol 9, p 4). "They removed part of my stomach and had my entire digestive system, top to bottom, running on machine power for a while." The expanding gas also collapsed one lung. Eight weeks later the student was discharged from hospital. A little wiser, we hope.

[Epidemic]

wow almost unbelievable.

I would think that the instant freeze of tissues would have prevented it from getting as far as the stomach. as well as the pain of the tongue during the initial freeze process.

are we sure this is factual

[Theophylact]

No, but it's published in a refereed journal (Chemical Health & Safety), and I assume the writer was not hoaxing them.

[Knothead]

Incredible!

I remember a story a few years back, in which some guys climbed Mt. Everest (or was it K-2? Anyway...)

One of them had a flask of Vodka hanging from his waist, to celebrate attaining the top of the mountain with. Well, it was so cold up there, that had it been water it would have frozen, but being mostly alcohol it remained liquid, albeit freezing cold.

So they reached the top, sure enough, the poor guy pulls out the flask and takes a drink...it froze his esophagus, and killed him.

Fact or Fiction, you decide!

[Epidemic]

"the hapless student recounts in an "anonymous" letter to the journal Chemical Health & Safety"

I am surprised the would use an anonymous letter as fact.

I wonder how they validated it.

even that climber froze his esophagus. I would also believe that the peristalsis.of the esophagus would cause massive internal bleeding as the lining and sub layers shattered... I would believe that it happened but have a hard time believing that they would have made it to the hosptal to tell his or her tale.

At best the climber had -30° F liquid I would think liquid nitrogen would be able to freeze more quickly and deeply than the climber.
The insuing thaw from blood vessels would be devastating.

Well I am just tinking too much about this I guess.

if you dip your finger into liquid nitrogen, could you thaw it out? or is your finger toast?

[Epidemic]

I would guess that duration would have something to do with it.

Theo????????? your ball

I would recommend that you stick things only things you want dead in it exept for single celled critters.

Why put single cell critters in liquid nitrogen? What purpose would it serve except to freeze them. But then, even if they are multi-cell criters, they'd freeze.

Maybe its a good weapon- spray it on the bad buys and freeze them. Like the dude in Mortal Kombat IV.

I'd hesitate to stick single cell criters in anything. Where can you get such critters anyhows?

[Epidemic]

single cell critters are everwhere. Heck the ones on your body outnumber the total population of humanity.

They freeze them for future analysis. Larger critters that you want to live is where I was driving with the above posts. You should not use the stuff on things you want to live except single celled creatures.