10 life-saving facts that everyone should know

Just about everyone knows that you should never text and drive, and that you should stop, drop, and roll if you catch on fire.

But life can also throw situations at us for which we don't have a quick, handy response.

Commenters in a recent Quora thread about life-saving facts offered their best tips, which are easy to remember and could have a huge impact if you ever find yourself in a dangerous situation.

1. Your brain can't handle walking and using your phone at the same time — so look up.

Safety adviser Murali Krishnan points out that walking and using your phone both demand large amounts of cognitive effort. 

As a result, you can't fully focus on both at the same time in the same way you can with walking and gum-chewing, for instance. You'll suffer "inattention blindness," where you may see an object but not process that it's a car speeding toward you.

2. Eliminate your car's blind spots by adjusting your mirrors properly.

Blind spots aren't inevitable in all vehicles, argues user Kristen Rush. 

By adjusting your mirrors so that you barely see the edges of your own car, you can effectively eliminate the blind spots on the sides of the vehicle. The rear-view mirror should be able to locate any car behind yours. It's worth the few seconds it takes to adjust these when you get in the driver's seat.

3. Heat transfers faster through liquid than gas, so keep warm by staying dry.

There's a connection between being wet and getting cold, and vice versa for heat, says engineer Lia Lavoie. 

To ensure your body temperature doesn't fall too quickly in cold environments, invest in clothes made of wool instead of cotton — they'll absorb more moisture so that dampness doesn't linger on your skin. And, of course, do your best to stay dry.

4. Don't eat snow for hydration unless you absolutely have to.

Lavoie also points out that your body uses a great deal of energy to convert matter from one state to another.

That's why he says you should only eat snow as a substitute for water as a last resort. In gaining that small amount of hydration, you'll give up precious body heat.

5. If your plane makes a water landing, your best bet is to inflate your life jacket after you exit the plane.

User Alvin Yip warns against the impulse to inflate your life jacket immediately if a plane is making an emergency landing on water. The water that could rush into the cabin makes it harder to move if you're more buoyant. 

So swim to an exit, then inflate your jacket to stay afloat.

6. Hitting someone with a stick could prevent them from fatal electrocution.

Electrocution instantly causes the muscles in a person's body to tense up. This is dangerous because it means a person holding a live wire can't let go. 

Ideally, you'll be able to turn off the source of the electricity in this kind of situation, Alex Elderfield explains. But if that's not possible, you can help the person (without getting electrocuted yourself) by breaking the circuit. The simplest way to do that is to find a long hard object, like a stick, and give the person a firm whack.

7. The limits of the human body tend to follow a "Rule of 3."

Survivalists have a shorthand for knowing their limits, Ruchin Agarwal says.

People can generally go three minutes without air, three hours without shelter in extreme weather environments, three days without water, and three weeks without food.

8. If cooking oil catches fire, turn off the burner and cover the pot.

Ruchin Agarwal also explains that people should never use water to put out grease fires. The water molecules sink to the bottom of the hot pan, evaporate instantly, and shoot the flames even higher.

Instead, you can put an oil fire out by cutting the heat and taking away the oxygen.

9. If you get stabbed or impaled by a sharp object, leave it be.

Pulling out an object that has been lodged in your body will increase the rate of blood loss, Thomas Mei explains. Instead, try to cover the wound and do anything you can to stop the bleeding until you find a medical professional.

10. Most airplane crashes happen within the three minutes after take off or eight minutes before landing.

According to Sanket Shah, aviation safety abides by the +3/-8 rule, which encourages people to be vigilant immediately after take off and right before landing — 80% of crashes happen during those times.

You can use those short periods of time to stay alert and locate exits rather than getting lost in a podcast or movie.