Cruising at 35,000′ (10,668m), halfway into our eight hour journey, my finally, I think I am asleep slumber was interrupted by turbulence.

A flight attendant then began asking a passenger across the aisle to “get up”, “get up”, “Sir you must take your seat. The captain has illuminated the seat belt sign”.

I glanced to my right and was astonished to see a tall man lying on the floor, from one end of the 777’s bulkhead to another.

The flight attendant attempted to lift the passenger, without success. “OK, I will have to call the Captain“.

A number of flight attendants quickly congregated just in front of my somewhat cozy exit row seat. A large first aid suitcase appeared along with a defibrillator.

The lead flight attendant sought assistance: “Ladies & gentlemen, we have a medical situation and are looking for a doctor. Please ring your call button and we will find you.”

Two physicians appeared. The seasoned flight attendant asked for ID. The first doctor – well tanned from a vacation – said he did not carry a card. The flight attendant asked where he practiced and if he knew Dr. _____________. “He’s an opthamologist, right?”. “Yes, ok, you’re a doctor”.

The second doctor was an Army captain on his way to Afghanistan.

Three nurses appeared as well.

They quickly went to work, checking the sedate man’s vitals including his pulse, blood pressure and temperature.

More communication with the Captain.

The passenger and his wife spoke little English.

The medical volunteers decided to check next for diabetes. “Does anyone on board have a diabetes monitor?” (I have likely erred in the name of this device).

Two passengers appeared with their devices….

The medical team and flight crew were making little progress talking with the man’s wife. Soon, the lead flight attendant sought another volunteer “Does anyone on board speak Czech?”

The odds were loooooooooong, I thought, now standing to give the passenger assistance crowd more space.

Yes! A young Czech woman appeared. Communication happened. What were the odds?

90 minutes of flying time remained. The passenger was stable. We continued to jet east, seeking a sunrise.

More conversation with the Captain. We seemed to accelerate a bit. There would be no circling. Landing was prompt and foggy. I don’t recall such a direct approach on any previous flight.

All passengers were asked to stay seated while the paramedics walked on board and attended to the patient.

Remarkably, he walked off the plane with them….

I fondly recall this event as a wonderful example of human to human kindness. I did not observe any passenger grumbling, rather I enjoyed plenty of grace that recent night, at 35,000 feet.

Farhad Manjoo:

I believe the children aren’t our future. Teach them well, but when it comes to determining the next big thing in tech, let’s not fall victim to the ridiculous idea that they lead the way.
 
 Yes, I’m talking about Snapchat.
 
 Last week my colleagues reported that Facebook recently offered $3 billion to acquire the company behind the hyper-popular messaging app. Stunningly, Evan Spiegel, Snapchat’s 23-year-old co-founder and CEO, rebuffed the offer.

Pew Internet:

Two-thirds of online American adults (67%) are Facebook users, making Facebook the dominant social networking site in this country.1 And new findings from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project indicate there is considerable fluidity in the Facebook user population:
 
 61% of current Facebook users say that at one time or another in the past they have voluntarily taken a break from using Facebook for a period of several weeks or more.
 
 20% of the online adults who do not currently use Facebook say they once used the site but no longer do so.
 
 8% of online adults who do not currently use Facebook are interested in becoming Facebook users in the future.

Seth Godin:

Engaging in the middle of a tantrum does two things: it rewards the tantrum by giving it your attention, and it makes it likely that you’ll get caught up, and say or do something that, in the mind of the tantrum-thrower, justifies the tantrum. That’s the fuel the tantrum is looking for–we throw tantrums, hoping people will throw them back.
 
 When you have valuable employees or customers (or kids) who throw tantrums, that might be a sign that there’s something wrong with your systems. The most basic way to decrease tantrums is to find the trigger moments and catch the tantrum before it starts. By creating a way for people to raise their hand, send a note, light a signal flare or otherwise highlight the problem (internal or external) before it leads to a tantrum, you can shortcircuit the meltdown without rewarding it.