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Supposedly, if an elevator passenger simultaneously presses the “door close†button and the button for the floor he is trying to reach, he can override the requests of other passengers and of people waiting for the elevator on other floors. The elevator shifts into express mode, racing directly to the floor of his choosing—becoming, in essence, a private lift. Apparently (that is, according to Internet chatter and what you might call secondhand anecdotal evidence), people (pizza men, college students, hotel guests) have been doing this for years, which might explain why the rest of us have occasionally had the feeling that elevators were passing us by.I did the experiment myself in the Condé Nast building at the time. Did it work? See for yourself! And try it in an elevator near you; let me know what happens. But don’t get stuck. It just goes to show you that no one should ever go anywhere without a good, long book, just in case.
The experts, however, say that the idea is nonsense, that elevators are not designed to do this, that people are talking crazy.
Comments
Thanks for sharing the tip. This hotel bellman will put that one to the test during his next shift.
You’re welcome!
You know what I can’t get over? What Paumgarten reported about the “Close Door” button being a psychological ruse (at least in newer, craftier elevators) to make the elevator rider feel like the master of his fate rather than a helpless mouse in the careless hand of Steinbeck’s Lennie.
Actually, what I love about making love c. 1911 is that at that time it could be an entirely linguistic exercise …