Michael Schumacher in 'critical condition'

[doubleohfive]

You can Google some pretty obscure people. Having an online presence doesn't mean you're famous.

But that's hardly the case here. Formula One has an annual TV viewership of over half a billion people; the only sporting events that are bigger are the World Cup and summer Olympics. Schumacher is one of the most internationally well-known sports figures alive.

Oh? Well I'd still never heard of him before yesterday, and finally just figured out why it was news at all. So what if 500 million people watch F1? That leaves about 6.5 billion people who don't. I'm one of them.

Hope he recovers.

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1i-Yw7s-Pw[/yt]

 

[J.T.B.]

Oh? Well I'd still never heard of him before yesterday, and finally just figured out why it was news at all. So what if 500 million people watch F1? That leaves about 6.5 billion people who don't. I'm one of them.

Indeed, it's a big world. That's why when I see a name in the news that I'm not familiar with, I don't automatically assume that the person must be too obscure to be worth notice.

 

[Pavonis]

I didn't assume that. But telling others to Google it rather than welcoming questions suggests that only famous people have hits in Google.

Frankly I'm sorry I ever bothered to post in here. Some people don't like their provincialism to be highlighted. "What? You've never heard of X? But he/she is world famous (because I've heard of them, therefore everyone must know of them)!"

My apologies for interrupting the thread.

 

[JoeZhang]

But telling others to Google it rather than welcoming questions suggests that only famous people have hits in Google.

I guess most of us a bit baffled how someone without a learning difficulty would not be able to establish the relative fame of someone by simply typing their name into google and judging the context out of the results - it is pretty basic stuff.

 

[Pavonis]

Relative being the key word. He's relatively unknown to me and to many other people I know (as in, they knew the name but nothing else). So is Michael Schumacher famous? Only to people who follow F1. Is he more famous than Paul Silver? Depends on whether you're a seismologist or not.

 

[JoeZhang]

Can Paul silver use Google?

 

[Pavonis]

No. Because he's dead. Didn't you know that? Can't you use Google?

 

[sidious618]

I don't understand the thought process behind going into a thread about someone being near death in a hospital and then acting the way Pavonis is. It's quite beyond the pale, I think.

 

[Pavonis]

I asked honest questions seeking honest answers. I'd never heard of the man before his tragic accident. That others thought being snarky and insulting towards me was preferable to answering my questions is what I consider to be beyond the pale. Is it so hard to imagine the man is not known to everyone?

 

[Miss Chicken]

I am totally uninterested in F1 or any other form of car racing and yet I was able to recognise Schumacher's name. I have no idea what he looks like, nor can I state his nationality for sure. The only other car racer I can name off the top of my head is Arton Senna (who I think died several years ago) so I assume that Schumacher must be quite famous if I have heard of him.

I hope he recovers without any lasting impairment.

 

[Pavonis]

So if Miss Chicken has heard of him he must be famous. Does that mean that anyone she's never heard of must not be famous?

 

[Kestra]

Dude it's just in bad taste to keep this up. A guy has been critically hurt, famous or not. This is the kind of internet argument that can just be dropped.

 

[Misfit Toy]

Is it so hard to imagine the man is not known to everyone?

Conversely, is it so hard to imagine that there are people who are well known to a large part of the world that does not include California?

I didn't recognize the name either, but when I read the first post, I understood that he was a sports figure that had no real significance to me personally. Most people will decide, at that point, to move on. Try it.

 

[Miss Chicken]

So if Miss Chicken has heard of him he must be famous. Does that mean that anyone she's never heard of must not be famous?

No, I am only showing that at least one of the 6.5 billion people who don't follow F1 has heard of him. I am sure many, many more of the 6.5 billion non-followers are aware of him to some extent.

It is much the same as knowing who Pele or Beckham are without having the slightest interest in soccer.

 

[Timelord79 (he/him)]

It is much the same as knowing who Pele or Beckham are without having the slightest interest in soccer.

Who?

 

[MacLeod]

What the hell is Formula 1, and why is he known particularly for it? I assume there is more than one Formula 1 driver in the world. Or is he the only one, hence his fame? Is he known for being good at it, or bad? Does he win a lot? Is he some kind of record holder?

Instead of being irritated that people ask "Who?", why not just take the opportunity to share your knowledge and enjoyment of the "sport"? Asking questions isn't rude.

It might be a regional thing, but Formula One (F1) is widely considered to be the top motor sport in the world, except in the USA.

Yes he was known for being good at it, as he held just about every F1 record.

Now to be fair I suspect many people outside of the USA not to regonise the names of drivers in the US motor sports such as NASCAR, Indycar etc.. But I suspect they might at least regonise the term NASCAR, Indycar etc..

 

[Miss Chicken]

It is much the same as knowing who Pele or Beckham are without having the slightest interest in soccer.

Who?

Ha-ha.

I am going to add that i know the names of at least 2 more soccer players - Ronaldo and Maradona. Someone else can tell me if these 4 players are the most famous players of all.

 

[J.T.B.]

I asked honest questions seeking honest answers. I'd never heard of the man before his tragic accident. That others thought being snarky and insulting towards me was preferable to answering my questions is what I consider to be beyond the pale.

And yet when I attempted to provide some context, your response contained the question "So what?"

 

[Miss Chicken]

Quite often there are memorial threads for actors in SFF or in TV & Media and often I think I haven't heard of the actor concerned so I tend to look him/her up on IMDB. Sometimes I can place them from a role that is listed, sometimes I still can't place him/her. In such a case I usually have no interest in the thread and I don't post. I certainly don't make an issue about not knowing who they are.

 

[StolenThunder]

Hopefully he recovers without too much in the way of neurological consequence but we won't know for a little while I imagine.