Kansas
First, the big idea:
Kansas gets new twist on tourismSt. Louis has the Arch. Seattle has the Space Needle. New York has the Statue of Liberty.
Now Tom Overby wants to create a monument for his hometown of Kansas City, Kan.: a 650-foot-tall tornado -- 45 feet taller than the Space Needle, 20 feet taller than the Arch and 345 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty -- that would anchor a tourism district with a theme based on The Wizard of Oz.
Then, the intellectual validation:
Richard Sommer, architect, associate professor and director of urban design at the Harvard Design School, said that as part of a network of attractions and art and entertainment venues ``this could be a boon to downtown,'' but added that people probably won't want to live or work near the structure.
And finally, a better idea with more intellect:
Kansas is Flatter than a PancakeWe purchased a well-cooked pancake from a local restaurant, the International House of Pancakes, and prepared it for analysis by separating a 2-cm wide sample strip that had not had time to desiccate. We collected macro-pancake topography through digital image processing of a pancake image and ruler for scale calibration...
* Ray, 12/04/2003 10:21:25 AM
