The amateur search

ABSTRACT

In the days that followed Jim's disappearance at sea, his family, friends and colleagues came together in a remarkable effort to help find him. The group gathered, analyzed and filtered information from many sources. In concert with the Coast Guard, the results were used to focus the search in the places where Jim and his sailboat Tenacious were most likely to be.

The scope and breadth -- indeed, the very existence -- of this amateur search effort reflect Jim at his best. The group was at first composed of those whose lives he had touched directly, who used skills and knowledge he had helped them to gain in hopes of finding him. As time passed, others joined in who were inspired by the unfolding story. In the end, thousands came together to search for Jim.

REFERENCES

• 1: {Fossett} http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Fossett
• 2: {Hafner 2007} Katie Hafner, Silicon Valley's High-Tech Hunt for Colleague, New York Times, February 3, 2007.
• 3: {Kim} http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Kim
• 4: {Silberman 2007} Steve Silberman, Inside the High-Tech Hunt for a Missing Silicon Valley Legend, Wired Magazine, issue 15.08, August 2007.
• 5: {Tenacious} http://www.openphi.net/tenacious/

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.3 INFORMATION STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
      H.3.3 Information Search and Retrieval

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.1 MODELS AND PRINCIPLES
      H.1.1 Systems and Information Theory

General Terms:
Design, Theory