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One of our favorite things in the latest issue of mental_floss is Chris Higgins’ wonderful MacGyver Fact Check. We had him analyze a whole bunch of episodes and determine just how plausible the escapes were. Here’s just one of the stories that surprised us.
JUMPING OUT OF A PLANE (IN A CAR!)
EPISODE: “The Heist,” Season 1, Episode 5
Sticky Situation: A diamond-mogul villain has captured Mac and his most recent love interest in the cargo hold of an airplane. The villain cackles, “Take it up to 30,000 feet. The lack of oxygen will kill ’em!”
MacGyverism: Conveniently, the cargo hold also contains a sports car and a comically oversized parachute. Mac attaches the parachute to the roadster (with its top down, of course), and then drives the car out of the airplane. The parachute releases just when oxygen levels are high enough to breathe. While gently floating to the ground, Mac makes out with his girlfriend and the credits roll.
Plausibility Meter: Surprisingly high!
First of all, the bad guy knows his science. At 30,000 feet, humans aren’t getting enough oxygen and can suffer from hypoxia, a medical condition that can have fatal results. Climbers trying to reach the top of Mt. Everest (summit: 29,029 feet) often succumb to hypoxia, and that’s after they’ve had days to acclimatize. As for the parachuting with the car, let’s run the numbers: A sports car plus two passengers will add up to about 1.4 tons, and a large cargo parachute can easily handle two tons if dropped from that height. MacGyver and his lady friend can even put on a few pounds and still make the thing work.
Best For: Lovers
If you’re interested in seeing what other surprises the issue has (both about and not about MacGyver) be sure to pick up a subscription here. You’ll make our mothers very happy.
Comments (6)
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I love Macgyver! He made the hardest things look easy. Even more than Buckaroo Bonzai, Mac made science sexy. He got the hottest women and could defuse a bomb with a paperclip and a piece of gum. The only problem with the show is it looks dated now, with all the cold war and russians stuff.
posted by Eric P on 8-27-2009 at 9:11 am
I went to pick up the magazine yesterday after the interesting teaser about President Lula (which was great) but I have to admit I was kind of dissapointed in the MacGyver article. Other than the teaser above, all of the facts came straight from the Mythbusters special. It felt more like a ‘it was late and we were tired’ filler than a feature article. I’m still really enjoying this month’s issue, but I was interested in learning more Macgyver facts…I loved that show so much!
posted by Ann on 8-27-2009 at 10:33 am
I still love the episode of Family Guy where Peter mails Macgyver for help, and supplies him with a rubber band, a straw and a paper clip. Macgyver plays with the items for a second until he accidentally shoots the paper clip into his eye. That’s realism!
Back to the article, I love the 5 Paper Clip rating system! Though out of seven seasons, you basically stuck to Season 1, and another page of scenarios would have been nice. I still thank you for the great work.
posted by Steven on 8-27-2009 at 11:30 am
Er..
Can anyone tell me if a gas powered car will run in an oxygen poor atmosphere?
Continuity is a curse.
posted by David on 8-27-2009 at 1:02 pm
I second that opinion, Ann. Three of the four were done by the Mythbusters at some point, so it really just seemed sort of…eh.
posted by Jordan on 8-27-2009 at 3:48 pm
MacGyver is a modern day God. He is responsible for the man I am today. In fact, I founded the “Church of Followers of St. MacGyver”. Our weekly gatherings are 2 hours of a mixture of hijinks and borderline terroristic gadgetry. You should join us sometime. First you have to find the room we are locked in. Behind an industrial strength lock. In an abandoned chemical warehouse. Then, after you demonstrate to the congregation how you can make a shotgun out of wrapping paper, vaseline, a 9 volt battery, welding rods, and dry dogfood, you may be allowed to join our ranks. Maybe…
posted by Brady on 8-27-2009 at 11:52 pm