UN names woman who fell from building

AP on Yahoo ^ | 2/18/08 | John Heilprin - ap

[SuziQ]

Running at about 12 MPH would have resulted in an impact point around 30 ft from the base of the building (assuming no wind contributions).

Wouldn't she have to have been a fair distance from the window to get up to that speed? And been a hurdler to boot, in order to clear the window frame at that speed?

[the anti-liberal]

Counting up to what looks the 19th floor I see no opening windows. But then, I only have pictures like these to go by.

[shove_it]

>>” What’s the world record these days?”<<

The current world record for women is held by Galina Chistyakova of the former Soviet Union who leapt 7.52 meters in Leningrad in 1988.

That’s a couple dozen short of a few.

[Myrddin]

I calculated the time of drop first, then considered what velocity would be necessary to achieve the vaguely stated "dozens" of yards. One dozen yards would be 36 ft. That's 9 feet of horizontal travel for each of 4 seconds in flight. Nine FPS is 6 MPH...a fast walking speed. Two "dozen" yards is 72 feet and would require 12 MPH. Still very reasonable for a short sprint. A "head first" leap wouldn't require much hurdling skill. Just a dive out the window.

[Myrddin]

If a helicopter was used, there should be some video security camera footage.

[bray]

The fact that she came out of the UN building indicates Foul Play. We can expect the same thorough investigation as the Oil for Food scandal.

Pray for W and Our Troops

[spunkets]

"Assuming one "story" is 15 feet, the drop was 285 feet. The duration of the fall would have been about 4.2 seconds. Running at about 12 MPH would have resulted in an impact point around 30 ft from the base of the building (assuming no wind contributions).

Neglecting air resistance, the fall time would have been 3.0s and from:

a=9.81 m/s, and x= 1/2 at²= 285 ft

Then at 12mph, the ditance traveled would have been 52ft, or 17.5yds.

If I look at drag and a terminal v of 123mph, 135lb woman, only 0.1 sec is added, so it's only a 3% change. The vector v is 66mph, v_y is 65 mph, and v_x is 12 for no drag. considering the drag coefficient is ~1-1.2 downward and ~0.2 in a direction parallel to the Earth, the woman could gain speed in the x direction during the fall, depending on how she "flew". If you watch free fall 'chutists holding hands, then letting go, they fly apart. That acceleration comes from the difference in drag coefficients in the 2 directions, and how hte persons orient themselves.

[spunkets]

...of course she was tossed out the window.

[Ezekiel]

United Nations security guards found her body Sunday morning on the lawn, several dozen yards away from the building, overlooking the East River.

Somehow I don't think she went there for the view.

[txhurl]

Defenestration I believe is the legal term.

[spunkets]

I’m quite sure the windows don’t open to discourage that.

[Erasmus]

But how far would she have gone if she had been carried by a European Swallow?

[spunkets]

I’m only familiar with storks. I think the rest of the birds would have dropped her. Considering she gained quite a bit of weight since the last time the stork hauled her butt, even a big one would probably have been dragged along and eventually would’ve let go.

[Caipirabob]

I'll have to read more about this. Was this a "voluntary" suicide?

[Lijahsbubbe]

William Colby left a meal on the table and the TV and computer on while deciding to go canoeing alone at night, so I guess anything is possible.

Wow. Where'd you pull that up from? I forgot all about that one!

[Mila]

"Looks like the body is on a stretcher. That body had probably been moved at the time of the picture.

No one could throw her 50 feet and she couldn’t have jumped that far."

Good observation.

[Scythian]

Perhaps she had information on Morgellons and PGPR RHIZOBACTERIA?

[King of Florida]

That picture was taken looking east on the south side of the building (which would be to the left in the photo). The walkway on the left is right next to the building, and what looks like a lawn is a wide grassy swale separating the walkway from the beginning of 42nd Street (the 42nd St. exit from the FDR).

There are no windows on the south (or north) side of the building. Even if she jumped from the southernmost east- or west-facing window, she would have had to have made a 90-degree turn after jumping and then traveled about a 100 feet to land where her body is pictured. Were there hurricane force winds blowing from the north in NYC that day?

[Robe]

Hey Norm.. Have a look at the site via Google Earth.. Hard to see where this happened..

[UCANSEE2]

To land where the picture shows, she would have had to have been fired out of a cannon.