Charing Cross Station
the Charing Cross Station is part of London, England, United Kingdom.Top photos chosen by u all:
Complexities of the Mind
Made by LaMadrileña
Acrophobia is the term psychologists use to diagnose the irrational fear of heights that most human beings are born with--some in greater degrees of intensity than others. Nonetheless, as the average-to-moderate acrophobe that I am, photographing the stairwell shot you see here posed a few more challenges than just a little panic to contend with and an increased heart-rate. I say this because despite the fact that I have never in my life contemplated a single suicidal thought --and in perplexing contradiction to my considerable fear of heights--it just so happens that whenever I approach the edge of a precipice or balcony that is high enough to cause the sensation of fear and vertigo, I feel an overwhelming physical urge to leap forward into a free fall. My theory is that this is an exaggerated manifestation of our genetically programmed fear or flight response to perceived danger. By this theory, whenever a stimulus or perceived threat in our physical environment triggers fear at a psychological level, our body's physiologic response is the immediate release of adrenalin onto our blood stream. Adrenalin acts just like a stimulant drug, to quickly increase our alertness and heart rate (which in turn maximizes the speed with which the adrenalin-laced blood flows through the brain). It is our subconscious response to the chemical changes in our brain (caused by the surge in adrenalin) that ultimately influences our conscious decision to either confront the source of our fear with the intent to neutralize the threat (i.e., fight), or to run from it (flight). While this primitive defense mechanism is designed to maximize our chances of survival when faced with physical dangers that would otherwise threaten it, I don't think it's such a good thing that fight appears to be my default programmed response to the adrenalyn surges caused by my irrational fear of heights. To state the obvious, when it comes to this particular source of fear, confronting it by leaping aggressively into space from multiple story heights would not be conducive to continued survival, now would it?
LONDON 2006 - 0028
Made by Sebastien LABAN
Shot while I was working in London. :o) Camera Used : Canon Powershot A40. www.sebastien-laban.com/
City in the Clouds
Made by Nathan Irvin
View of Canary Wharf, London as seen from an airplane
Crack at the Tate Modern IV
Made by Nathan Irvin
Exhibit at the Tate Modern, London
charing cross, 6:57pm
Made by david rixon
Nearest places of interest:
| Old War Office Building Ministry of Defence Hungerford Bridge London Eye | The Strand, London London Transport Museum Trafalgar Square, London Vale Royal Housing Estate |
