Hi-Tech Search for Jim Gray

Hi-tech pioneer and veteran Jim Gray (some keywords: databases and transactions, linked to many icons from Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and others) is lost at sea. He left San Francisco Bay Area heading out for Farallon Island on Sunday, January 28, 2007. He and his boat, the fiberglass cruiser “Tenacious” vanished in the open ocean. A high-tech search started when it turned out that traditional search and rescue by the coast guard had been unsuccessfully. High-tech giants (mentioned above) worked together and created a quick, impressive combination of different technologies in order to find Jim. Unfortunately, this great thinker and engineer was nowhere to be found. Not even the tiniest remnant or debris of his boat could be detected. It sounds like a mystery and is a real tragedy for his family and friends. An excellent but also sad story was published in the wired magazine; August 2007 issue. We all hope that Jim will return. The efforts to find him, driven by Werner Vogels and other high-tech executives, is an impressive example how a great person can link very different people, interests, positions and companies in order to find a solution. Unfortunately, his accident was the trigger to make this happen.