Charity Parachuting

From Pubmed

All parachute injuries from two local parachute centres over a 5-year period were analysed. Of 174 patients with injuries of varying severity, 94% were first-time charity-parachutists. The injury rate in charity-parachutists was 11% at an average cost of 3751 Pounds per casualty. Sixty-three percent of casualties who were charity-parachutists required hospital admission, representing a serious injury rate of 7%, at an average cost of 5781 Pounds per patient. The amount raised per person for charity was 30 Pounds. Each pound raised for charity cost the NHS 13.75 Pounds in return. Parachuting for charity costs more money than it raises, carries a high risk of serious personal injury and places a significant burden on health resources.

It does have to be said that that isn't exactly the right figure as some of those people would do a parachute jump themselves, but are instead getting their friends to pay for it via a charity donation. But, making it free for them (as their friends and co-workers are paying for it) is more likely to have people doing it.

How many people jumped off the building in this video?

From the BBC:

Sky divers Vince Reffet and Fred Fugen have set a new world record by base jumping from the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

Unless I am very much mistaken, three people jumped off the building - the two in the picture and the cameraman, who as per usual doesn't get a mention, despite having the harder task.

"Skydiver goes for 120,000ft record fall"

Steve Truglia, we salute you (you can have a 'rock' after you've landed safely!).

It will be a shame to see Joseph Kittinger Jr's 1960 record of 102,800 feet to be beaten after all these years, though.

On a pedantic note, cracking the 770 mph sound barrier might be a tad easier up there - the speed of sound is slower where the atmostphere is thinner.