Welcome back to JJNN.
This article is from the Japanese version of Slashdot.
When is the last time that you bought a cell phone? The last phone that I bought was an iPhone. I got the iPhone because I wanted a phone that has a lot of extra features that I could modify. Other people buy phones because they can be used to watch TV or they have a cheap calling plan. One other reason a lot of people that work on or in the water buy their phone for is the waterproofing. A phone that is waterproof can still be used after it is dropped in the water so it is a great advantage for those types of people.
Waterproofing is overlooked by a lot of people because they never think their phone will get wet to the point where it will stop working. Today's article is all about a man that is now very glad that he didn't overlook the waterproofing option. On the 18th of June a truck driver was on a ferry crossing from the island to the mainland of Japan. Apparently he got a little seasick so he leaned over the rail to throw up. At the same time the ferry hit a wave and he was tossed overboard. The ferry was about 2km (about 1.2 miles) off the coast at the time the man fell off and the water was extremely cold so there was no way that the man would be able to swim back to the shore.
Luckily, the man's waterproof cell phone was tucked safely away in his pocket. He took it out and called the number for emergencies at sea (in Japan the number is 118). He was actually very lucky that he got a signal that far from the shore, but the call did go though and he was picked up within 40 minutes of falling off the ferry. He had to be treated for hypothermia, but in the end everything worked out for him because of his waterproof cellphone. That is something to think about the next time you buy a cell phone.
It is now time for the word of the day. Today's word is 防水(ぼうすい). It is pronounced bosui and it means waterproof.
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