General Discussion

[Logicintuwisdom]

This person:-

http://www.theartsdesk.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/mast_image_landscape/mastimages/18f718ef1d...

recently undetected by the building's jobsworth security staff, took it upon himself to 'base-jump' from the top of London's newest landmark recently - from this building:-

http://www.skyscrapernews.com/images/pics/46TheShard_pic8.jpg 

Apparently, this is one of those dangerous 'extreme sports' that's all the rage at the moment. 

Now, obviously this individual went straight to the news media, because not only had he successfully executed this jump totally undetected by the building's excuse for security, police or any one else, but he had videoed himself doing it as well - & claimed he had done it four times in total!

Apart from the appalling security implications - e.g. if he could do this with his harmless but essential parachute. then so could some nutter with a not so harmless RPG for example - using the Shard Tower as a perfect firing platform -

(cont.)

[Logicintuwisdom]

(cont.)

- it occurred to me that maybe this man had proven something quite important even though his intentions were probably not altruistic rather more financial in nature.

If we are going to continue to construct these gargantuan towers to work, play & live in, then we need to find a way to get down from them quickly, if they are majorly compromised as was so graphically & tragically shown that we currently are unable to do so with what happened on 9/11.

Some new skyscrapers now that have apartments, penthouses etc., are being built with so called self-contained 'panic rooms', which is alright I suppose if you have a fire to a limited extent or like that was illustrated in the Jodi Foster film Panic Room - if you have burglars; but I can't see what help a panic room is going to be if you have one of these extreme weather events, earthquake etc., or a huge fire that is out of control or indeed our old nemesis - the nutter-using-an-airliner-as-a-guided-bomb (you can be sure if it's happened once -

(cont.)

[Logicintuwisdom]

(cont.)

- it will be something some other terrorist/s will attempt in some future atrocity).

No! If the building's integrity you are in has been undermined and it is in danger of collapse - you quite simply don't need to be there. So what do you do?

Well, as I suggested in another thread of mine - maybe when they design these huge edifices they could somehow incorporate round the outside of the central lift-shafts or maybe even the outside of the building, one of these:-

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jcNgZIRq2xg/TWUD-yYl-YI/AAAAAAAAAYA/wUGf1Fj1nKc/s1600/helter%2Bskelter%2Br...

However, bearing in mind when both those twin towers individually fell - how extremely fast they fell - the difficulties of engineering an internal or external 'helter skelter' might be proven moot, because this too, would probably just not be quick enough to get a large number of people out of one of these 'self-contained-city-type' skyscrapers.

Some sort of 'base-jumped' escape maybe the only really viable solution.

(cont.)

[Strangesam]

Are you twocursedhands? or Pokemonfan's double?

[Logicintuwisdom]

(cont.)

But I can here you scoffing already & would agree with you to a certain extent - a fit young sportsman who 'base-jumps' as a hobby earning some media money in the bargain is one thing; but an overweight man/woman in their fifties for example or even a child - frightened they're about to die trying to clamber into a parachute, then having the nerve to jump out of a window whose never done it before - then skillfully having to steer said parachute safely to terra firma - that's something quite different.

Maybe the answer is in the parachute construction itself.

Perhaps now we have GPS, microcomputing technology, coupled with some sort of inertial gravity rate-of-fall sensing device, the 'skill element' could be passed onto the parachute itself. 

Incorporating some sort of rudimentary 'autopilot' so all that the frightened escapee would have to do, would be to put it on (which obviously needs to be as quick and easy as possible), jump & hang on for dear life & let the parachute do the rest! 

(cont.)

[Logicintuwisdom]

(cont.)

I'd really like to hear what people think of this idea, because I'm sure you'd agree something's got to be done - I mean, look at this building:-

http://www.mothertrip.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Burj-Dubai-tallest-skyscraper-3.jpg

This is the Burj Dubai, which apparently, is currently the tallest, if not one of the tallest buildings in the world at the moment. (Next they're planning a 2 mile high tower-type building capable of housing a million people!) 

But just have another look at it for a moment.

One day some god forsaken desert wind decides to surpass the architect of the building's planned maximum stress endurance, or some group decide to do the 9/11 thing or even someone's chip fryer manages to cause an unprecedented fire - whatever the cause; if you were at the top of this ginormous tower, what would you say your options were without some sort of 'intelligent' parachute - & this edifice is close to when it will collapse - the express elevator perhaps?

What do you think is the answer?

[Logicintuwisdom]

Strangesam wrote:Are you twocursedhands? or Pokemonfan's double?

Neither, just some poor sod (with the emphasis on POOR) who doesn't have a working PC or laptop and is restricted to around a thousand characters due to the PS3 browser connected to a CRT TV, which may or may not be a contributory factor!

I wonder if I should make the above statement a permanent signature - you know a bit like at the Bank underground station in London on the loudspeaker - "mind the gap" - "MIND THE DOORS"!

What dya think people - or would that sound a bit twee?!

[dannyjt]

What's with the massive posts? 

[WinnieP]

Oww
I was hoping you were going to make it to page 2 on your own.
:-(

And how rude of you strangesam! It clearly says (cont)
Cant you at least have the manners to wait untill people have finished what they're saying, before you go butting in next time. Eh....!
;-)

[fenian]

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dannyjt wrote:

What's with the massive posts? 

we only know one person that does this with the quotes