What Is Big Red Switch (BRS)?

If you've seen a movie or TV show set in the future, you've probably seen a Big Red Switch. That big red button says "DO NOT PUSH" on it. It looks like it could be amusing to push, but if you do, something terrible will happen. People use the term Big Red Switch as a metaphor for extreme situations where one big decision needs to be made, and all the options are inadequate. It's like when you're at a party, and your friend asks if they can borrow your car—and then they drive off and hit your mom with it! Or when your boss asks if they can take some time off, resigning without warning or when someone is asking you out on a date, they turn out to be married with children! The Big Red Switch can also refer to a device used in factories and other industrial settings. It's usually a security measure that turns off power to an entire facility or neighborhood, so no one can get in or out until certain conditions are met (like everyone evacuating). Shutting down the system and rebooting it is the fastest way to reset and bring it back online. In most cases, it must do this remotely from a physical switch. Often, this switch is red so that it can be quickly identified. These emergency shutdown buttons were known as "Big Red Switches," and they became a standard feature on other kinds of hardware. For example, power switches on PCs were also often painted red to be easy to find in an emergency. It may seem like a stretch to connect these red buttons with nuclear missile launch switches from the Cold War era—but one thing's for sure: who wouldn't want their Big Red Switch?