Long ago in the land of America a new invention took the nation by storm. This new contraption could be seen bouncing down the streets of town traversing the horse trails and brick avenues. A sort of horseless cart powered like a locomotive and steered by person on a bench seat with a lever. The car had come to America and the love affair began. Soon, things began to progress. Ingenuity took control and the car started to undergo major design improvements. It became sleeker, faster, and more powerful. In relatively little time the automobile became a major avenue of travel and a major purchase for the average American.
New Life, New Death
More cars with more power not only meant a new way of life for Americans, it also meant a new way of death. The funny thing about building up speed and momentum was that it also increased the force of the object that was accelerating. Thus, faster cars meant more force exerted on and by the car and it's passengers. People would drive their cars and if an “accident” happened the driver, his passengers, and whomever or whatever he hit was in trouble. Isaac Newton told us all long ago about the laws of motion, particularly “An object in motion or an object at rest will continue to stay in motion or at rest unless acted on by an unbalanced force.” To translate and apply to a driving situation: lets imagine a car traveling at 50 mph. If this car runs into a tree (an unbalanced force) it will stop and everything attached to the car will also stop. Anything not attached to the car, passengers or loose objects, will continue to move at 50 mph in the same direction that they were traveling. That is until they strike another object like the steering wheel, the windshield, the street, the tree, or whatever else could be in the way.
What To Do?
Engineering and physics came together to help the situation. The invention and installation of seat belts began to change things. People who wore them were now being saved in situations that they might not have been if they hadn't been belted. Why is that? Remember our car traveling at 50 mph? Well, now when the car stops a belted rider is attached to it and they too will stop. Amazing? Not really, just physics. On a side note, engineers also added airbags to further prevent injury.
What Do Seat Belts Do?
Seat belts help in a variety of ways. First, they keep a driver behind the steering wheel. This is important when having to make an evasive maneuver to avoid a hazard. Being held behind the wheel will give the driver better control. Second, a seatbelt attaches a person to the vehicle. Where the car goes, so too does the passenger. Third, a seatbelt will reduce the severity of injuries. Not every crash results in a person dying; sometimes a person is injured or deformed. Seat belts reduce the chances of that happening by not allowing the wearer to connect with objects that would have caused the damage, like the steering wheel or the windshield. In the same vein, the seatbelt reduces the chance of a fatality.
Excuses
Some people want to offer excuses as to why they choose not to wear a seatbelt. “I would rather be thrown from the car.” Most of the time, a person thrown from a vehicle will strike objects around the vehicle like a tree or the street or perhaps another vehicle will hit them. “It might get stuck and my car may be submerged or on fire.” Seat belts have a very high efficiency and a design to gives a very, very slim margin for error. If a person is unable to unbuckle himself or herself it is more likely because they are unconscious or dead. “Its not comfortable.” Seatbelts are made to give enough slack and with adjustments to make them hardly noticeable. These are only a few excuses, but people will come up with many more.
No Guarantees
Let's face it, in driving there are no guarantees. There is risk involved every time you decide to get into an automobile. It's a calculated chance that we take for granted on a daily basis, but while there are not guarantees that you will make it through any crash or danger that befalls you, a seatbelt gives you an opportunity to survive. All it takes is one second a short click.
