September 2009
12 posts
Revenge
We were leaving the Prudential center in Boston and encountered a very odd situation. There was a revolving door with an open regular door next to it held open. Naturally I walk towards the safer of the two and as I pass through the door rudely shuts right on me, right in front of two friends who naturally burst into laughter. Apparently the timer ran out on the handicapped button. WTF? I know it...
“A revolving door for installation in a building, comprising a cylindrical shell...”
– United States Patent 705239
The Backstory:
I used to like them a lot, especially as a kid when I’d run around and around in them until told to stop and hurry along. Now, as an educated member of society, I’m shocked that these death traps not only exist, but have gained such popularity. Every time you use a revolving door, you are putting your life and safety at risk. They are impractical in almost every situation and they do not offer...
The definition is deceptive. Yes, revolving doors provide a pretty good weather seal, but but, the doors are inconvenient and impractical in almost every installation they are found. Large groups have great difficulty getting through them in a short amount of time, given that only one person can move though the door at once. The benefit of using the door versus the amount of time it actually...
Ah yes, guillotines. Whenever a high volume of people are entering and exiting at the same time, there’s a tendency for the door to spin faster than expected as a result of inertia. When people are entering and exiting small compartments at a high velocity, accidents are prone to happen. Picture a door spinning at constant, typical speed. Let’s assume a high volume of people and therefore...
One day last summer, I walked past an unfortunate accident just outside a busy hotel. A reporter was taping man on the street interviews with guests and was trying to talk to a stranger. The interviewee ran into a revolving door just outside a hotel and the reporter’s arm, with microphone in hand, followed him in. Crushed inside the door, paramedics and recue squad personnel had to remove the...
WatchWhat the hell?!
You see, hinged doors don’t smash and shatter a large pane of glass and then collapse a large beam on top of you.
Most importantly, revolving doors are simply awkward. Have you ever been having a conversation with someone and approached a revolving door only to have the conversation stop while you each spin around? I find that it seems like an un-written rule that you don’t share a compartment with someone, even if it’s really big. It’s better to be safe rather than risk awkwardly tripping over one...