5 ms·

I've heard about this incident first hand from old timers out in DV, having gone for years myself. The warning at the start of the piece, maybe merited, feels

I've heard about this incident first hand from old timers out in DV, having gone for years myself. The warning at the start of the piece, maybe merited, feels a bit over the top. The story itself is quite intriguing.

jmspring 10y ago
Reading through the story, I had heard most of it while in the desert a few years ago. The writer's style generally rubs me the wrong way on multiple fronts. It's an interesting story and case, but I can't get over the "style" of the presentation.
- meddlepal 10y ago
  I was not a huge fan of the style either, but it does a fairly good job of keeping the reader interested. That said, the amount of digs he takes at various local and federal agencies is really unnecessary.
  - sverige 10y ago
    I dunno, I think he earned the right to criticize them. It was fairly mild, considering the effort he put into it compared to them. And he was complimentary to them overall. He didn't even launch into what would probably be an epic rant if he were to provide all the details, but rather stopped himself. Apparently he has gotten the "style" feedback enough that he felt it necessary to put a full disclaimer at the head of the article.
    - syllogism 10y ago
      I think the effort he put in is pretty hard to justify objectively. He can do what he likes with his time, but it doesn't mean the various agencies deserve criticism for doing less.
      - dredmorbius 10y ago
        It wasn't doing less. It was not sharing helpful information with someone who'd earned rights to it through assistance, and dismissing very well-founded advice and input. That said, it's very harsh territory, and local government has very few resources.
        whyenot 10y ago
        He comes across as very earnest; that might be misread by some people as obsessive. He also did do some very questionable things like remove the day planner and other items. It could be that law enforcement didn't really want to work with him any more than they had to. It's hard to know, we don't get to see that side. I really enjoyed his account. I've spent a lot of time doing field work in the Mojave (I am a plant taxonomist), and it's such a neat place to explore -- at least in spring time, before it gets too hot.
        dredmorbius 10y ago
        Uncovering human remains after 8 years in the desert of foreign nationals, hours from the nearest signs of civilisation, at risk of one's own life, and wanting to demonstrate to others that the claim is substantiated: removing an item that provides solid proof strikes me as grounded. The author clearly deliberated over, and fairly considered the merits, of removing other items. Consider too: finding something once in the desert does not mean you're likely to find it again. Animals, weather, rains (rare, but often overwhelming), or other humans could further disturb the scene, or you could simply lose track of where the item had been (even with GPS) or be distracted by false hits (the reflective surfaces which turned out to be rocks). Particularly after discovery of the remains had been reported and multiple parties were aware, with information being leaked out. I find nothing malicious, and nothing reproachable, in his account. Though note that this is his account, there may be another side.
        ktRolster 10y ago
        In addition, the police lost/damaged some evidence apparently, like the note written in German that was folded.
- dredmorbius 10y ago
  I'm curious about what rubs you wrong. The writing is good, clear, intelligent, informed, and captures the sense of the place and people -- I've spent some time there myself.
triplesec 10y ago
The warning is not over the top at all to anyone with any experience of the Nevada deserts. You want to be prepared and fit. The extreme heat will tire you out and raise your need for water. See the multiple gallons of water they carried in for just a couple of days? Many people have no clue that hill walking in moderate climates is much uch easier compared with the desert in terms of stamina.
- Roboprog 10y ago
  Even in the Central Valley in California, it routinely gets into the high 100s for a few months in the summer. Having lived most of my life there, and knowing how debilitating that level of heat is, I can't imagine what drives people to think they can hike around in 20 degrees (F) warmer weather without carrying a gallon of water for the afternoon. ... Aside: I seem to remember seeing something about the Arabian Peninsula soon becoming so warm you cannot maintain core body temperature by evaporation of your sweat, at which point it will be uninhabitable outside of modern buildings with A/C ... Then again, if you live in a coastal area where the temperature is usually between 50 to 80 F, an 8 mile hike in the hills sounds like a pleasant activity to take on after lunch :-)
  - lightcatcher 10y ago
    > Aside: I seem to remember seeing something about the Arabian Peninsula soon becoming so warm you cannot maintain core body temperature by evaporation of your sweat, at which point it will be uninhabitable outside of modern buildings with A/C ... No source on this, but I remember reading somewhere that in the hottest conditions recorded (Persian Gulf heat + humidity), the humidity would actually condense on a human like a cold water bottle on a hot day.
    - Roboprog 10y ago
      Great, so you get to absorb the heat of vaporization from how ever many moles of water that is per hour.

jmspring 10y ago

Reading through the story, I had heard most of it while in the desert a few years ago. The writer's style generally rubs me the wrong way on multiple fronts. It's an interesting story and case, but I can't get over the "style" of the presentation.

meddlepal 10y ago
I was not a huge fan of the style either, but it does a fairly good job of keeping the reader interested. That said, the amount of digs he takes at various local and federal agencies is really unnecessary.
- sverige 10y ago
  I dunno, I think he earned the right to criticize them. It was fairly mild, considering the effort he put into it compared to them. And he was complimentary to them overall. He didn't even launch into what would probably be an epic rant if he were to provide all the details, but rather stopped himself. Apparently he has gotten the "style" feedback enough that he felt it necessary to put a full disclaimer at the head of the article.
  - syllogism 10y ago
    I think the effort he put in is pretty hard to justify objectively. He can do what he likes with his time, but it doesn't mean the various agencies deserve criticism for doing less.
    - dredmorbius 10y ago
      It wasn't doing less. It was not sharing helpful information with someone who'd earned rights to it through assistance, and dismissing very well-founded advice and input. That said, it's very harsh territory, and local government has very few resources.
      - whyenot 10y ago
        He comes across as very earnest; that might be misread by some people as obsessive. He also did do some very questionable things like remove the day planner and other items. It could be that law enforcement didn't really want to work with him any more than they had to. It's hard to know, we don't get to see that side. I really enjoyed his account. I've spent a lot of time doing field work in the Mojave (I am a plant taxonomist), and it's such a neat place to explore -- at least in spring time, before it gets too hot.
        dredmorbius 10y ago
        Uncovering human remains after 8 years in the desert of foreign nationals, hours from the nearest signs of civilisation, at risk of one's own life, and wanting to demonstrate to others that the claim is substantiated: removing an item that provides solid proof strikes me as grounded. The author clearly deliberated over, and fairly considered the merits, of removing other items. Consider too: finding something once in the desert does not mean you're likely to find it again. Animals, weather, rains (rare, but often overwhelming), or other humans could further disturb the scene, or you could simply lose track of where the item had been (even with GPS) or be distracted by false hits (the reflective surfaces which turned out to be rocks). Particularly after discovery of the remains had been reported and multiple parties were aware, with information being leaked out. I find nothing malicious, and nothing reproachable, in his account. Though note that this is his account, there may be another side.
        ktRolster 10y ago
        In addition, the police lost/damaged some evidence apparently, like the note written in German that was folded.
dredmorbius 10y ago
I'm curious about what rubs you wrong. The writing is good, clear, intelligent, informed, and captures the sense of the place and people -- I've spent some time there myself.

triplesec 10y ago

The warning is not over the top at all to anyone with any experience of the Nevada deserts. You want to be prepared and fit. The extreme heat will tire you out and raise your need for water. See the multiple gallons of water they carried in for just a couple of days? Many people have no clue that hill walking in moderate climates is much uch easier compared with the desert in terms of stamina.

Roboprog 10y ago
Even in the Central Valley in California, it routinely gets into the high 100s for a few months in the summer. Having lived most of my life there, and knowing how debilitating that level of heat is, I can't imagine what drives people to think they can hike around in 20 degrees (F) warmer weather without carrying a gallon of water for the afternoon. ... Aside: I seem to remember seeing something about the Arabian Peninsula soon becoming so warm you cannot maintain core body temperature by evaporation of your sweat, at which point it will be uninhabitable outside of modern buildings with A/C ... Then again, if you live in a coastal area where the temperature is usually between 50 to 80 F, an 8 mile hike in the hills sounds like a pleasant activity to take on after lunch :-)
- lightcatcher 10y ago
  > Aside: I seem to remember seeing something about the Arabian Peninsula soon becoming so warm you cannot maintain core body temperature by evaporation of your sweat, at which point it will be uninhabitable outside of modern buildings with A/C ... No source on this, but I remember reading somewhere that in the hottest conditions recorded (Persian Gulf heat + humidity), the humidity would actually condense on a human like a cold water bottle on a hot day.
  - Roboprog 10y ago
    Great, so you get to absorb the heat of vaporization from how ever many moles of water that is per hour.