this graph took another step down today https://xkcd.com/893/ has anyone made an updated version?
William Anders never walked on another world.
you're right; thank you for the correction
Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
171–180 of 264 posts
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#172Earlier quoted context omitted.
Oh hell that last one got me. Now how do I do that equals with two bars and a squiggle ... ERK ... THUD.
Probably would have been better if I had instead suggested figure formatting and page layout… I think I’ve come close to stroking out over that…
Oh don't. I spent an hour yesterday trying to get a damn table to stay on the right page.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#173Earlier quoted context omitted.
The guy was a legend - flew fighter jets, was a test pilot, and then an astronaut. Let's give him the benefit of the doubt - I'm sure he knew exactly what he was doing.
I mean, he certainly would have known exactly what he was doing at some point in his life, but skills and judgement do degrade with age.
And the obvious degradation of the body's capabilities and its potential failure points (potentially increased by traveling 300mph at 10,000 ft). Commenter is right, 90 year olds shouldn't be driving cars let alone flying. Incredibly irresponsible. Also there's really nothing that cool or heroic about dedicating your life to testing and operating flying death machines on behalf of a military. Get a grip.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#174Earlier quoted context omitted.
[flagged]
The guy was a legend - flew fighter jets, was a test pilot, and then an astronaut. Let's give him the benefit of the doubt - I'm sure he knew exactly what he was doing.
Idealistic thinking. Legends are just motivated people who are often at the right place, in the right time.
It was never my intention to take anything away from this legend of a human. I'm just trying to bring the discussion back down to earth. No harm, or pun, intended.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#175An absolute legend going out like a total badass. I know people will disagree but there is much to be said for living your life on your own terms and accepting the potential consequences without reservation. He was clearly one of those guys. He probably did not expect to die that day, but he knew he would die some day and he wasn’t going to nerf his life to buy a few more years.
This is precisely why I have elected to put off my riskier hobbies until my later years. I find my tolerance for risk goes up as I become less instruyan in the lives of my loved ones. One day, I’ll feel free to take the risks implicit in my stupider ambitions.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#176Earlier quoted context omitted.
"Dying in an accident doing something you always hated is worse than dying in an accident doing something you loved." Dead is dead, though. I do not think the final moments matter as much as all the years before them. So even if I will one day die on the toilet being old, that would be way better, than me dying soon in an climbing accident, even though that sounds more dramatic and I am way more into climbing than to…
He was 90. You're reading too much into it. It's like when people get angry about a "Bless you."
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Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#177Earlier quoted context omitted.
I mean, he certainly would have known exactly what he was doing at some point in his life, but skills and judgement do degrade with age.
And the obvious degradation of the body's capabilities and its potential failure points (potentially increased by traveling 300mph at 10,000 ft). Commenter is right, 90 year olds shouldn't be driving cars let alone flying. Incredibly irresponsible. Also there's really nothing that cool or heroic about dedicating your life to testing and operating flying death machines on behalf of a military. Get a grip.
Get outta here with this ageist crap. I've know several 90+ year olds who are fully capable of independence and driving. My grandma was one of them. Hell, I watched a 93 year old deadlift 450lbs. While the likelihood of some 90 year old being too old for something is high, that means less when looking at an individual.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#178I keep telling my friend not to fly small planes, but he is hooked.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#179I saw the headline earlier, and my first thought was "I hope he was the pilot, because that would be a fitting way to go for a legend." Not only was he the pilot, but he was flying solo at 90 years old.
> I hope he was the pilot
Which was how Gagarin died btw.
Re: Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders ID'd in WA plane crash
#180This is a minor nitpick, as English is not my native language, but wouldn't it make sense to say "died in" more so than "was killed in"? The guy was not a passive observer by any means and should be paid respect.
No, “was killed in” is just as standard when you’re talking about things like plane crashes.