There is apparently a growing number of people who are choosing to end their lives by committing suicide in public places, and authorities are having to deal with ways to prevent it.  An eighteen-year old boy and a restaurant chef who had appeared on the TV reality show "Kitchen Nightmares" both recently opted to cut their lives short by jumping off the George Washington Bridge linking Manhattan Island to Fort Lee, New Jersey.  Earlier this year, a Yale student took a leap off the 86th floor observation deck of the Empire State Building.  It's not really known why people who commit suicide in public choose well known landmarks such as the GW Bridge, the Golden Gate Bridge, Empire State Building, or Niagara Falls.  Maybe it's because an important event in their lives took place there, or maybe they just want their names associated with the location.  Authorities are being forced to reconsider how they restrict access to these places.  The GW has a pedestrian walkway and low railings, so it may be time to raise fences.  The Empire State Building's observation deck has ten foot fences, yet over 30 people have managed to avoid the security guards and scale that fence to their deaths.  New York City cops use large airbags to prevent people from splattering on the sidewalks and streets, but other methods are being considered, such as concrete barriers, suicide prevention hotlines, and large nets.  People are inventive, though, and they will probably find ways to circumvent the better security devices.