If you've been following events at all, you probably know that 64 year old Diana Nyad swam from Cuba to Key West last week. And you've probably also heard the backlash now that some other people have said they looked at the GPS data from her swim and think she cheated.
I think this highlights one of the issues of our data-rich world. We have become so enamored of crunching the numbers and simulating reality that we have lost any real connection to what that data represents.
The Earth is not a set of data points that refreshes on a regular basis. It is a moving, swirling, growing and decaying non-stop show. I'm not sure who the people are who are questioning Nyad's swim, but I am pretty certain of one thing...they haven't spent much time in the Florida Straits, or else they'd be familiar with the Gulf Stream.
I can't fault anyone for looking at the raw data and seeing her speed up, but you have to wonder why someone wouldn't stop to think about all the possibilities before opening their yap for the media.
My understanding of this affair currently is that independent oceanographers have agreed with Nyad's version of events. So I'm guessing that this is now a non-story.
But one other thing convinces me that the attempt was free from cheating. On video of Nyad's swim, we see a flotilla of boats and kayaks around her.
That's a lot of people to keep quiet if you are going to pull a fast one.
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