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Google Executive Dan Fredinburg Among Victims of Everest Avalanche
alphadogg writes: Dan Fredinburg, privacy director for the company's Google X team, and an engineer who worked on many of Google's most exciting projects during his 8 years with the company, died over the weekend in an avalanche on Mount Everest. The 33-year-old worked on projects such as Google Loon, the company's balloon-based Internet access effort and self-driving car. He also was involved in Google Street View Everest, leading expeditions to gather imagery of the Khumbu region around Mt. Everest. Fredinburg's career began in a much less glamorous fashion as a "dock rat" and as a farm hand in Arkansas.
With all due respects to Mr. Fredinburg, climbing Mr. Everest is now the "in" thing to do for the elites, to the point that the area is strewn with garbage and human excrement that would take years to be cleansed by natural means even if all climbing were to cease today.
No, because some asshole that did nothing of praise but was latched to a big "tech" biz "living the life" "doing what he loved!" is worthy of front page news unlike the common native peasant carrying his luggage on donkeys up the camp, because "those "weren't living the life" and "doing what they love", but who cares, they are poor because they chose to.
Climbing Everest is stupid, irresponsible, dangerous, pointless task
To be fair, slashmydots thinks the same thing of leaving the basement.
Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
When these amateurs start climbing it again WITHOUT a slew of sherpas, and oxygen tanks and using ACTUAL expert mountaineers to hold their hands, then I'll be impressed.
Comparing the conditions under which people like Sir Edmund Hilary climbed to today's rich, trendy yuppies like this guy -- well, clearly times are different.
The death count is currently at 17 with approximately 30 injured.
The earthquake's death toll is currently over 2500.
Source: CNN, BBC, and Red cross.
Those people matter just as much as some rich guy climbing Everest who the earthquake killed via avalanche.
It was very tragic for the Nepalese people as well.
I feel sorry for the people grieving today for lost loved ones. But I'm getting a bit tired of the tiny number of climbers and tourists that died completely dominating the news. Thousands of Nepalese died. Their loved ones may have trouble even surviving, going forward. Let's not forget about them.
#DeleteChrome
That's too bad. Why is this on slashdot?
Google is a company that does a few things with internet technology. Here's their website if you're interested in checking them out: http://www.google.com
Not trying to be a web design critic here, but somebody should be fucking fired for that homepage. Like a single search box is supposed to tell me something about a company named Google?
(Pretend you had never heard of Google. Now you might understand just how fucking stupid it is to direct someone to google.com to learn about Google)
That's too bad. Why is this on slashdot?
A better question is: Why are you on Slashdot?
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
No, because some asshole that did nothing of praise but was latched to a big "tech" biz "living the life" "doing what he loved!" is worthy of front page news unlike the common native peasant carrying his luggage on donkeys
False. We discussed the death of peasants yesterday. Today, a whole day later, we're discussing the death of a googler. You're either disingenuous, a dipshit, or both. But then, you didn't log in, so we knew that.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
So that annoying pedants like me have an excuse to point out that Everest is not the tallest mountain in the world (merely the highest)
Actually, it is neither. The tallest, measured from its base to its summit, is Mauna Kea. The highest, when measured from the center of the earth, is Chimborazo in Ecuador. Everest is just the highest above sea level.
Previous earthquakes in the region have changed the height of Everest, usually by pushing it up even higher. I have not heard about any effect on its height from this quake. Does anyone know?
The biggest destroyer of privacy on the Internet is the fucking US government, not a single corporation. You can always choose not to use a company's products (minus Comcast, eh?), but the government literally sifts everything regardless of your choices.
Climbing Everest is stupid, irresponsible, dangerous, pointless task for people with severe mental problems like constantly needing approval from others or pathological levels of arrogance or constantly feeling inadequate. So I have to wonder how he even got that job at Google with the personality of an Everest climber.
Do you play computer games?
If so do you play on beginner mode or hard mode? Personally I go for the harder modes because accomplishment is a lot more satisfying when there's a legitimate challenge involved.
Climbing Everest isn't anything different. If you really like to climb it's the most accessible major challenge out there, it's true that not everybody who climbs Everest is a dedicated climber who's "earned" the right to take on that challenge, but I see no evidence that Dan Fredinburg was one of those people.
The fact that climbing Everest doesn't personally appeal to you doesn't give you grounds to make up some BS rationalization for insulting those who do.
Personally I have no desire to take on an even moderately dangerous hobby, but I think nothing less of those who do.
I stole this Sig
I climb mountains as a hobby, and know many climbers, a large proportion of whom are geeks who are disinterested in team sports. It's a hobby like any other physical hobby. It brings risk, but also enormous enjoyment from the combination of experiencing the raw beauty of nature where there are very few others with the challenge and thrill of reaching a summit. We climb a peak not to show off; we climb it because it is there. A tiny fraction of mountaineers are interested in bragging rights (except, perhaps, amongst themselves in a good-spirited manner), so your slight against us is rude and ignorant. Fuck you!
"Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason."
Apparently we don't care about a terrible natural disaster unless some famous white guy, livin' the dream for his Googlionaire foundation, dies in an avalanche.
The world has looked the other way for a long time at the exploitation of the Sherpa and the other problems caused by rich Westerners, many not well-qualified, who feel they just have to make the Everest attempt. It's mostly the Sherpa who pay the toll.
I've never understood the sherpa thing.
If you're going to climb Everest, shouldn't you at least do the work yourself? Claiming you climbed Mt. Everest and not acknowledging the people who hauled your ass up there is like claiming you trekked the Grand Canyon and not mentioning that it was a bus tour and all you did was get out for a few photos.