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(Live Science) Strange "Major," a 145-pound St. Bernard dog, was tossed from a plane at 26,000 feet to test parachute straps at a high altitude. Darwin denied, PETA pissed, and your dog damned glad that's over with   (livescience.com) divider line 107
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cazman 2008-05-03 10:51:57 AM  
FTFA Sporting his own custom oxygen mask, Major dog-paddled all the way down and landed safely, witnesses said.....

Major does not approve of the amusing tag....

 
RagingLeonard [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 11:05:56 AM  
I wonder what else submitard thinks is amusing.
Raping old ladies? Drowning pandas?

 
Complicit [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 11:10:23 AM  
Yeah, I doubt Major enjoyed it much.

 
vudukungfu 2008-05-03 11:15:39 AM  
See!?!?!? I TOLD you that was dog crap that hit my windshield the other day.
Eagle poop, my eye.

 
Megain [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 11:34:23 AM  
submitter: Darwin denied,

really? how so?

 
Razorwolf [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 11:57:32 AM  
Megain: submitter: Darwin denied,

really? how so?


Darwin doesn't claim survivors.

 
Megain [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 12:08:35 PM  
Razorwolf: Darwin doesn't claim survivors.

oddly, i thought he claimed 'survival of the fittest'. i was just thinking the darwin awards (and corresponding cliché use) usually went to people who take themselves out of the gene pool, and a dog being thrown out of an airplane wouldn't really qualify. must just be me

 
Nvisible 2008-05-03 12:18:58 PM  
/rant

I still say that any person who objects to animals being used in tests like this step up and strap in. The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature. If you don't want that to be a non sentient being, then volunteer yourself.

/end rant

 
Recoil Therapy [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 12:41:03 PM  
PETA? There were a few more things going on 60+ years ago than worrying about a dog's feelings (hope he got a good steak dinner though before & after).

Still, you wonder why they didn't just build a dummy of the right weight & toss it out instead (Mythbusters can't have been the first to come up with that idea...

 
Burn_The_Plows [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 12:50:59 PM  
While reading this, am I the only person that started singing?

Ground control to Major dog
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on

 
Roman Fyseek [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 01:42:49 PM  
Recoil Therapy: Still, you wonder why they didn't just build a dummy of the right weight & toss it out instead (Mythbusters can't have been the first to come up with that idea...

They asked for volunteers. "Anybody who wants to perform this dangerous mission, come-here boy! Come-here. Right here. Come-here. Good Boy."

 
ksdanj [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 02:07:28 PM  
Was this Mitt Romney's idea?

 
Malinki 2008-05-03 02:21:48 PM  
Is the Delta house at Dartmouth paying attention?

Probably not obscure, but one can hope.

 
re-elect_jimmy_carter 2008-05-03 02:22:10 PM  
this is messed up and.....wait, peta didnt like it? this is the greatest thing ever!

 
Man On Fire 2008-05-03 02:23:05 PM  
oh. back in WWII. now days they have a lot better ways of testing things.

 
Anagrammer 2008-05-03 02:25:56 PM  
"Major," a 145-pound St. Bernard dog, was tossed from a plane at 26,000 feet to test parachute straps at a high altitude. Darwin denied, PETA pissed, and your dog damned glad that's over with

PETA is pissed? As opposed to . . . what?

If they're upset about this one dog, they must be really upset over thos 14,000+ animals they killed themselves.
/Tomorrow's headline: Muslims seething

 
Anagrammer 2008-05-03 02:26:39 PM  
thos = those

 
bilbo douchebaggins 2008-05-03 02:29:05 PM  
RagingLeonard: I wonder what else submitard thinks is amusing.
Raping old ladies? Drowning pandas?



Easy there, Francis... Everything's going to be just fine.

 
T-Luv 2008-05-03 02:29:40 PM  
What's the big deal? It's just part of the circle of life. Haven't you seen Lion King? Hakuna matata

 
Man On Pink Corner [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 02:30:04 PM  
Roman Fyseek: They asked for volunteers. "Anybody who wants to perform this dangerous mission, come-here boy! Come-here. Right here. Come-here. Good Boy."

Groan

 
The Cureman 2008-05-03 02:30:23 PM  
That's why blind people don't sky dive.

 
pounddawg 2008-05-03 02:30:23 PM  
They are upset over a test that happened how many years ago?

a866.ac-images.myspacecdn.com

 
c.j. 2008-05-03 02:31:10 PM  
PETA is pissed

ALWAYS

 
StacyG 2008-05-03 02:31:48 PM  
ksdanj: Was this Mitt Romney's idea?

You stole my post. I'm still for roping Romney to the roof a car and having him driven across the Massachusetts turnpike.

 
Tacoby Bellisbury 2008-05-03 02:31:58 PM  
....60 YEARS AGO

 
pounddawg 2008-05-03 02:32:17 PM  
The Cureman: That's why blind people don't sky dive.

It scares their dogs.

How do blind people know when to pull the rip cord?

There is slack in the leash.

 
Bigjohn3592 2008-05-03 02:33:11 PM  
These days rescue dogs are trained to jump tandem style with their masters. I have met some of these teams, and just like dogs love sticking their head out the car window in the wind, the dogs love to jump. In fact, the dog handling jumpers have to make sure the dog is harnessed before the door of the plane is opened or the dog just might leap out.

//Don't tell PETA, but rescue dogs are still put in highly dangerous positions instead of humans, right here on solid ground.

 
rurdy 2008-05-03 02:34:20 PM  
pounddawg: The Cureman: That's why blind people don't sky dive.

It scares their dogs.

How do blind people know when to pull the rip cord?

There is slack in the leash.


I LOLed.

 
Calvin Coolidge 2008-05-03 02:34:50 PM  
Dog lovers get their panties in a wad in 3...2...1...

 
gnarly 2008-05-03 02:34:54 PM  
It's the luck of the draw.
Opposable thumbs, big brains, not licking our butts... somebody had to win.

 
VRaptor117 2008-05-03 02:35:30 PM  
"We used animals to test things which might put a human in danger over 60 years ago? And still do today? GTFO!"

/stupid article

 
moothemagiccow 2008-05-03 02:36:02 PM  
re-elect_jimmy_carter: this is messed up and.....wait, peta didnt like it? this is the greatest thing ever!

What's so messed up about animal testing? It's normal scientific procedure

 
TommyymmoT [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 02:36:09 PM  
Meanwhile, back in the early days of the space program.

img169.imageshack.us

Here's a video of Laika, the first dog in space, as she travels through the milkbone galaxy, lands on the dog planet, but doesn't forget her friends as she dies during re-entry.

Rest in peace Laika (new window)

 
Bigjohn3592 2008-05-03 02:37:04 PM  
gnarly: It's the luck of the draw.
Opposable thumbs, big brains, not licking our butts... somebody had to win.


speak for yourself

 
srhp29 2008-05-03 02:41:07 PM  
I still say that any person who objects to animals being used in tests like this step up and strap in. The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature. If you don't want that to be a non sentient being, then volunteer yourself.

Sorry, but in this case, there was no need to use a dog. A dog and a human are not even similar. The dog didn't pull the cord so why not just strap the shute to some "dummy" that weighs what they want it to and do it that way?

I understand the value and need for animal testing but I just don't see this as a situation where it had to be that way.

 
gossipmonger 2008-05-03 02:41:51 PM  
Burn_The_Plows: While reading this, am I the only person that started singing?

Ground control to Major dog
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on


I LOL'd.

 
AUgrunt 2008-05-03 02:42:02 PM  
For more k9 history check this out

http://www.war-dogs.com/memorial_memories2.htm

 
srhp29 2008-05-03 02:42:20 PM  
Awe crap...this wasn't yesterady? Okay, maybe they didn't have the technology to use dummies weighted down back then. I withdraw my rant.

 
Superjew 2008-05-03 02:46:58 PM  
Nvisible: The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature.

Sure, sometimes. But in this case? What exactly did the dog do that a mannequin couldn't? This just sounds absurd. There must be more to it.

 
incrediculous 2008-05-03 02:47:03 PM  
i37.photobucket.com

/credit "smackd" of wwiionline

 
i hate jimmy page 2008-05-03 02:49:29 PM  
srhp29: why not just strap the shute to some "dummy" that weighs what they want it to and do it that way?

Because dummies don't breathe and pump blood therefore they can't test the effects of a jump on health.

Do you honestly think they just believed a dog would be a better substitute for a sack of potatoes? Honestly?

 
AtomicAcidbath 2008-05-03 02:50:51 PM  
This dog is impressed and wants a parachute.

/and a steak
//with beer
///okay, I want steak and a beer.

 
TommyymmoT [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 02:51:55 PM  
Superjew: Nvisible: The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature.

Sure, sometimes. But in this case? What exactly did the dog do that a mannequin couldn't? This just sounds absurd. There must be more to it.


They did it at 26,000 feet, and you need oxygen after 13,000, so I'm pretty sure that's what they were testing.

Not the straps.

 
Daroc 2008-05-03 02:52:09 PM  
Nvisible: /rant

I still say that any person who objects to animals being used in tests like this step up and strap in. The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature. If you don't want that to be a non sentient being, then volunteer yourself.

/end rant



Way to RTFA
"One doctor made a high-altitude jump himself to experience the strain on the body, nearly killing himself, and was able to calculate exactly when an airman's parachute should be opened to limit the impact of the g-forces, said Dean."

 
Daroc 2008-05-03 02:53:56 PM  
Doh!

Meant to quote Superjew

 
i hate jimmy page 2008-05-03 02:54:35 PM  
TommyymmoT: Superjew: Nvisible: The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature.

Sure, sometimes. But in this case? What exactly did the dog do that a mannequin couldn't? This just sounds absurd. There must be more to it.

They did it at 26,000 feet, and you need oxygen after 13,000, so I'm pretty sure that's what they were testing.

Not the straps.


Also, there is g-shock, temperature, radiation and who knows what else. It doesn't matter if you tested something on 1,000 dummies, you still need animal testing before you let a human do it. Anyone that thinks otherwise is a douche and automatically volunteers themselves for any experiment.

 
TommyymmoT [TotalFark] 2008-05-03 03:01:51 PM  
i hate jimmy page: TommyymmoT: Superjew: Nvisible: The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature.

Sure, sometimes. But in this case? What exactly did the dog do that a mannequin couldn't? This just sounds absurd. There must be more to it.

They did it at 26,000 feet, and you need oxygen after 13,000, so I'm pretty sure that's what they were testing.

Not the straps.

Also, there is g-shock, temperature, radiation and who knows what else. It doesn't matter if you tested something on 1,000 dummies, you still need animal testing before you let a human do it. Anyone that thinks otherwise is a douche and automatically volunteers themselves for any experiment.

==========

Agreed. They already had straps back then, that could lift a truck.

If you're gonna test a parachute strap, why use just 145 pounds?

I'm sure there were paratroopers that weighed more than that.

 
Zem 2008-05-03 03:02:52 PM  
Nvisible: I still say that any person who objects to animals being used in tests like this step up and strap in. The only way to get realistic results is to use a living creature. If you don't want that to be a non sentient being, then volunteer yourself.

And they can carry on objecting in complete futility until the day that dogs develop opposable thumbs and the know-how to manufacture weapons. Till then, we're on top and we test things on the lower species. End of story.

Or to put it another way: This.

 
ha-ha-guy 2008-05-03 03:08:42 PM  
Why did they need a dog? I mean the damn dog was just weight, he didn't use his thumbs to pull the rip cord. Toss a dummy in the harness and stick some sensors on the dummy.

It will more realistic since the crash test dummys mimic the human frame and will give you a better reading of the shocks.

There is a reason we don't use Saint Bernards for crash tests at GM...

 
TxRabbit 2008-05-03 03:10:17 PM  
What exactly is the point of this? The story is over 60 years old, the part about the dog boils down to one sentence in the otherwise useless article, and PETA is not even involved. Subby and mod are both big bags of FAIL.

 
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