TORONTO – If you’re like many North Americans, you woke up today, jumped in a hot shower, meticulously groomed your (or your child’s) hair, jumped into your car and weaved in and out of traffic to get to work in record time.
Well, it turns out, you are doing all of these things (and more) wrong. How embarrassing!
American research says that everyday, people are boarding planes the wrong way.
Jason Steffen, a research fellow at Northwestern University, recently took a break from studying axion-like particles to focus on the methods used for getting passengers on and off airplanes quickly.
“I thought there had to be a better way,” he said.
Steffen calculated that the best method would be a combination of filling all the window seats first, then the middle ones, then the aisle seats, with passengers boarding every other row.
Of course, this type of method would take some serious cooperation from airport staff, airlines and passengers.
“I understand why airline people aren’t calling me,” said Steffen.
With Steffen’s initiative in mind, Global News looks at some other things we have been doing wrong.
Merging in construction
While there may not be a way to avoid driving through construction zones, there could be a way to make it less painful.
Rather than merging into the next lane as soon as you see a construction closure up ahead, the zipper method advocates that drivers wait until reaching the end of the lane, then take turns merging in a “zipper” fashion into the open lane.
Numerous municipalities and transportation organizations, including the city of Saskatoon, tout the benefits of the zipper merge, saying it eases congestion and reduces the likelihood of a crash.
When drivers merge too early, they are generally moving from a slower-moving lane into a faster-moving one. Sudden lane changes and speed changes can result in fender benders and a general feeling of road rage-y-ness.
Of course, this method requires the cooperation of all drivers stuck in the construction zone in order to fairly let every car merge in an alternating fashion.
But that shouldn’t be a problem. Most drivers caught on a traffic-congested street tend to be super patient and courteous…
Learn how to do the zipper merge below:
Bathing
Do you pride yourself on your general cleanliness? Perhaps you shouldn’t.
Popular North American culture would have you believe that a morning shower, filled with steamy water, lather, suds and laughter is the best way to start your day (lather, rinse, repeat – right?).
But the daily scrubbing could wreak havoc on your skin.
The outermost layer of our skin is made of flattened dead cells, attached to each other to form a tough “horny layer” of keratin, mixed with lipids.
This tough horny layer serves as a protective barrier, maintaining the skin’s hydration and pliability.
Researchers say hygiene practices such as scrubbing and using soap compromise the skin’s protective barrier, causing skin dryness, irritation and cracking.
For the general public (i.e. not health professionals), there is such a thing as being “too clean.”
Researchers recommend skipping the daily shower once or twice a week, using cooler water (the colder the better), and cutting your shower time down to five minutes max.
If you still are wrapping your head around this whole showering business, you can learn how to shower here.
Opening plastic packages
We’ve all been there. You get home from the local gadget store and are so excited to rip into your new toy. But it is clad in seemingly child- and adult-proof hard plastic packaging.
After several minutes of struggling to pry apart the clamshell package you find yourself distraught and sweaty, stabbing at your new purchase with a pair of kitchen scissors.
But there’s a better way.
Put down the kitchen scissors and pick up the can opener. There are tools on the market specifically for opening plastic packaging, but a can opener gets the job done as well, and you likely already have one.
Doing your daughter’s hair
Put down the hair brushes. There is a better (and more awesome) way to put your child’s hair in a ponytail.
With only a vacuum and hair elastic – and a willing participant – this man shows the world his hairdressing skills. Watch the video below:
*With files from The Associated Press
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