Brain registers no fear: How rock climber conquered El Capitan without safety gear

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A white supremacist group rally in Los Angeles. Credit: The Atlantic

You may have already heard about Alex Honnold, who climbed the mighty El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without any safety gear.

The elite rock climber reached the summit in about four hours using only his hands and feet. The 31-year-old became the first person to climb the 3000-foot (914-metre) granite wall alone without a safety harness or ropes to catch him if he fell.

[Y]ou may also be wondering how the hell he had the courage to attempt such a feat in the first place…Well, science has the answer.

Medically, it would seem, Honnold does not experience fear. At least not in the way that you or I would. Or, if he does experience it, he requires a lot more to set it off than anyone this team of neuroscientists at least has ever studied.

In January 2015, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson became the first to “free climb” the Dawn Wall — a particularly steep route to the top of El Capitan — by grabbing just the rock and using ropes only to catch them if they fell. They did it in 19 days.

Honnold is first to climb the iconic rock alone without protection in mere hours.

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: Science shows Alex Honnold feels no fear

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