Buzz
In life, things can go wrong at any time. Sometimes it's a small issue that you’ll stress over now and laugh about later. Other times, the consequences are much more severe, resulting in serious injuries or even fatalities. When things break down without human intervention, technology often betrays us and malfunctions.
Imagine something as simple as your coffee mug exploding in your face, or your and your coworker's cherished Apple gadgets suddenly failing when everyone else's is fine. Even worse, picture a malfunction that disables a billion-dollar telescope in space or causes a cruise ship to tip over.
Here are ten bizarre malfunction incidents from recent times:
10. Exploding IKEA Cup
Recently, IKEA was ordered to compensate a woman in Beijing $8,000 after she sustained serious injuries when one of their glass mugs exploded in her face. The woman, identified only by her surname Wang, was drinking a hot beverage from IKEA’s Stelna mug when it shattered. The explosion caused her to break a front tooth, cut her lip, and knock her unconscious. She was rushed to a hospital and required four stitches in her lip.
After the incident, Wang visited the hospital 12 times, and it also took a heavy toll on her mental health. Since then, she’s been easily startled by loud noises and suffers from depression. She filed a lawsuit against IKEA, demanding approximately one million yuan (around $200,000) in compensation. IKEA's legal team defended the mug’s safety by presenting test results to prove its durability. Ultimately, the court found insufficient evidence to prove the mug was defective but still required IKEA to pay for Wang’s medical expenses and refund her for the mug. Both parties were dissatisfied with the ruling, which was upheld by an appeals court.
9. Russian Soyuz Rocket Malfunction
In early October 2018, a Russian Soyuz rocket, one of the most reliable and long-standing spacecraft, experienced a significant launch failure shortly after taking off. The malfunction occurred during a routine crew mission to the International Space Station, with NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexey Oychinin onboard. While both astronauts landed safely, investigations were launched to understand the cause of the issue. Initially, NASA attributed the failure to a problem during booster separation, which triggered a warning light in the crew capsule. This automatically activated engines that carried the capsule away from the malfunctioning booster and, crucially, the dangerous rocket fuel.
After a few minutes of free fall, the capsule's parachutes deployed, and it landed safely on the ground, where a Russian search-and-rescue team greeted the two astronauts. After a medical check-up, the astronauts returned to Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to reunite with their families and officials. Despite the anomaly, NASA was reassured by the fact that everything else in the mission was functioning perfectly. The cause of the anomaly, however, was still a matter of great concern for the space agency.
8. Lion Air Flight 610 Crash
The tragic crash of Lion Air Flight 610, which claimed the lives of 189 people off the coast of Jakarta, may have been caused by a technical malfunction, as revealed by an investigation into the incident. Flight data analysis showed that the airspeed indicator had malfunctioned during the last four flights of the ill-fated Boeing 737 MAX 8. Seorjanto Tjahjono, head of Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee, stated that detailed inspections were underway, with the NTSB and Boeing set to conduct thorough checks on the airspeed indicators of this specific aircraft model.
Captain Nurchahyo Utomo of the Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) clarified that the plane’s cockpit had two airspeed indicators, one for the pilot and one for the copilot. One of these indicators must have reacted to a malfunction in its display. The plane was reported to be in “good condition” prior to its crash 13 minutes after takeoff. However, it was later confirmed that the same plane had encountered technical issues on a previous route the day before the crash. Boeing and Lion Air have refrained from commenting as investigations are ongoing, but the malfunctioning airspeed indicator is considered a major clue in solving the incident.
7. Helium Can Cause Your iPhone to Malfunction
A Reddit user known as “harritaco” shared a strange occurrence where, during the installation and testing of an MRI machine, over 40 people noticed their Apple devices stopped working. This included iPhones and Apple Watches, but oddly, Android devices were unaffected. While the Redditor wasn’t surprised by the electromagnetic interference, they found it unusual that only iOS devices were impacted. Another user, “captaincool,” suggested that liquid helium used to cool the MRI magnets could be to blame.
Intrigued, harritaco decided to test this theory. They sealed an iPhone 8 inside a bag and filled it with helium. After about eight minutes, the phone froze. Helium interferes with the microelectromechanical system (MEMS) oscillators in smartphones, which control the device’s clock. Even though the oscillators are housed in a sealed chamber, it can still allow gases like helium to seep in. Interestingly, the iPhone user manual contains a little-known warning about exposing the device to gases such as helium, stating that “exposing iPhone to environments with high concentrations of industrial chemicals, including near evaporating liquefied gases like helium, may damage or impair iPhone functionality.”
6. Irving Oil Refinery Explosion
In October 2018, a massive explosion rocked the oil refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, sending flames and black smoke rising from the site. Fortunately, officials reported that only four individuals sustained minor injuries. The blast occurred around 10:00 AM, and one local resident, Litsa Daeres, even mistook the blast for her own furnace exploding.
Kevin Scott, chief of Irving Oil, explained that the incident was caused by a malfunction in the refinery’s diesel treating unit, where sulfur is removed from diesel fuel. One worker described the blast as so forceful that it knocked him off his feet. The refinery halted production for the day, and it took several hours to extinguish the resulting fire. The site was eventually declared safe to re-enter, with the affected area isolated and secured.
5. NASA Successfully Fixes Hubble Telescope Malfunction
For over 20 years, the Hubble Space Telescope has provided valuable data on topics such as dark matter and the formation of planets. However, in October 2018, the telescope began experiencing issues with its gyroscope, which is responsible for helping it rotate and lock onto new targets. The gyroscope operates in two modes: a “high” mode for turning between targets, and a “low” mode, which helps keep Hubble steady while focusing on a specific target. A backup gyroscope began spinning at dangerously high speeds, forcing NASA to initiate a running restart, essentially turning the device off and on again like flipping a switch.
After a series of corrective maneuvers to clear any blockages, the gyroscope began spinning at normal speeds again. Before the Hubble can resume full operations, more tests need to be conducted, including target-switching and precision-pointing checks.
4. Voting Machines Experience Malfunctions
During the 2018 midterm elections in the US, multiple states faced major challenges due to malfunctioning voting machines, causing delays and, in some cases, forcing voters to leave without casting their ballots. A report from the Brennan Center for Justice, a public policy think tank, explained that the root cause was simple: Many voting machines are outdated. In fact, 41 states are using systems that are over 10 years old, and 33 states need to replace their machines by 2020. Even more concerning, 43 states are still relying on machines that are no longer manufactured.
This results in a higher likelihood of malfunctions, and since these machines are no longer being produced, finding replacement parts becomes a major challenge. This is primarily because the software is outdated, and spare parts are almost impossible to find. Such issues make these voting systems increasingly unreliable and, more importantly, less secure. Some election officials have even resorted to searching for spare parts on platforms like eBay, although even there, finding replacements is difficult. State and federal lawmakers will need to allocate more funding to update these voting machines before the next major election or risk facing public outrage if the machines fail or cause inaccurate voting.
3. A Boy Causes an Elevator Malfunction by Urinating on the Button Panel
In February 2018, the public safety minister in China released footage of a boy urinating in an elevator as a reminder for parents to keep better control of their children. The video, taken from an elevator in a building in Southwest Chongqing, shows a young boy urinating on the elevator buttons, which resulted in a short circuit. As the lights flickered, the elevator doors began to open and close repeatedly, visibly distressing the boy.
The boy had to be rescued from the malfunctioning elevator. Authorities contacted his father, but he denied the video’s authenticity, claiming he couldn’t believe his son could urinate that high. When asked, the boy denied his involvement. The video quickly went viral on social media, with most users agreeing that the boy needs better discipline at home, while others saw the humor in the situation, joking that it was ‘impressive’ that he could urinate so high.
2. Cruise Ship Lists to the Side Due to Unusual Technical Glitch
In October 2018, passengers aboard a Carnival cruise ship experienced a terrifying moment when the ship tilted dangerously to one side. The tilt was so extreme that plates, glasses, and various objects began to slide, causing a wave of panic throughout the ship. This incident occurred shortly after departure from Florida and lasted for approximately one minute. A passenger noted that although the ship typically rocks back and forth, this time it did not return to its original position. Photos from the aftermath captured broken glass and plates scattered across the dining room.
Another passenger shared their shock on social media, describing how they witnessed water spilling from the pools. The cruise line later released a statement assuring passengers that everything had returned to normal after the tilt. Despite the brief malfunction, the ship continued its Caribbean journey without further issues.
1. Banksy Confirms Partial Shredding of Artwork Was Due to Malfunction
Famed artist Banksy recently uploaded a video to his website explaining that the partial shredding of his latest piece was a malfunction. The artwork, known as Girl With A Balloon (or Love is in the Bin), depicts a young girl reaching for a heart-shaped balloon. The piece was auctioned at Sotheby’s in London, and shortly after being sold, it unexpectedly fell through a hidden shredding mechanism within the frame. However, the shredding process halted just above the girl's head, leaving the balloon intact. Despite the shock among the audience, the auction continued, and the unnamed European buyer still purchased the partially shredded artwork for over $1.86 million.
Banksy shared a video revealing how he had installed the shredding mechanism in the picture frame and demonstrated how it was supposed to function by shredding a replica of the artwork. In the video, he mentions that it worked perfectly during rehearsals every time. He fittingly titled the video 'Shred the Love, the Director’s cut.'
