This local elementary school class apparently collected data to confirm Galileo's original observations. Cudos to this creative teacher!
Galileo proved that staring at the sun through a pair of binoculars will cause permanent retina damage??
Well, yes. Not one of his better experiments... performed precisely at the end of his career for some reason.
Why didn't they put up some huge mattresses on the ground.... Another missed marketing opportunity for Mattress Mac. "Gallery Furniture. Saves your ass."
Yes. I was watching channel 11 live when he jumped. The helicopter camera man followed him down, then circled to get a direct view of him on the ground. As he began to zoom in, they quickly cut back to a studio shot. Creepy.
What a dork ! Back in the 80's there used to be a club called over in that area called something like Xcess ?? I think that was the name...anyway I left with a girl I met there one night and went to the Transco tower and got in through a service entrance.It was like 4 in the morning and we went up in the service elevators..Wild times When did it become the Williams tower ?
"Although police have not yet positively identified him, the man's family said he was Greg Ryan Hartley, a 20-year-old University of Houston student. " -Houston Chronicle wow... so young.
It became Williams Tower a few years ago when Williams Energy bought Transco. You can't edit your post because Clutch turns that feature off a couple of hours before every game.
I don't post here much, but I'm pretty offended by the replys in this thread. The Houston climbing community lost both a great person and a great climber today. RIP Ryan
Sorry for your loss Gaul. I hope other climbers who are thinking of trying free climbing in situations beyond their abilities learn from Ryan's mistake. Btw, one of the reasons for some of the mockery is that the note he was carrying made it look like it was intentional and some form of an anti-war, pro-muslim protest. That's not going to get you much sympathy these days.
Was this guy troubled in some way? If he was a "great climber", he would never have undertaken such a dangerous, illegal, and irresponsible climb as the Williams Tower without any support gear. If he was a "great person" as you say, it sounds as if he had some emotional problems. What a tragic way to die at 20 years of age.
He's dead at 20 years old and only left an undisclosed political message behind. What a waste of a life.
As you should be. Unfortunately, this board has a poor track record dealing with people who've lost their lives in unusual ways. I'm guessing 99% of these posters wouldn't say such asinine things if they weren't cloaked in the anonomity that the board offers. No matter why it happened, a young man lost his life and left behind people who cared about him. I am unable see the humor in this situation.
Wow, that is VERY unfair to call the replies in this thread "asinine". The only "asinine" act about this event is a young man who commits an illegal and stupid climb up the side of the Williams Tower. He also didn't "lose his life" in the passive sense that you report. He killed himself selfishly, therefore he was the person who inflicted the pain on his loved ones. I feel for the guy's friends and family, but let's put this whole thing in perspective, and not let our emotions cloud the real issues here.
