This is a must read story written by Dr. Bob Rockwell, a Stanford graduate physicist and an accomplished Moutaineer. This is a story of his first trip to Mt. Whitney, and what it was he saw up there (I know that this is the YOSEMITE board, but the physics tie-in is too good to pass up). He wrote the story for his grandkids; after reading it, I wished I were one of his grandkids! Enjoy
http://www.ridgenet.net/~rockwell/Climbing/AbombStory.pdf