Failures in Intuitive Problem Solving by Will Phillips March 2010 You're a good problem solver aren't you? In fact, most people think they are yet at times our natural, intuitive approach to a problem is dead wrong. Now think fast as this is a little test. What's the quickest way to stay safe in an earthquake. Quick; what comes to mind? Was it "Duck and Cover?" Doug Copp, Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the American Rescue Team International (ARTI), has crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings. He tells the story about the first building he entered, a school, in Mexico City during the 1985 earthquake: "Every child was under its desk. Every child was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene, unnecessary and I wondered why the children were not in the aisles. I didn't know at the time know that the children were told to hide under their desks." Most everyone who simply hides under objects, like desks or cars are crushed to death. Even if you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam falls sideways you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed. Not a pretty picture I know. In a similar situation, the victims of the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles , and were all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or lying next to their vehicles. All the crushed cars had voids three feet high next to them, except of course for the cars that had columns fall directly across them. If you're in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Finally, never go to the stairs as they swing separately from the main part of the building. They continuously bump into each other until the stairs fail, and can fall on you. What's the message here? Common sense doesn't always make good sense. When making decisions about your business, I encourage you not to use common sense, but rather tried and true solutions for the challenges that you face. Research the data and see what it tells you. Share your questions with other members of your REX Roundtable. Just don't Duck and Cover!