Today would be the 88th birthday of Fazlur Rahman Khan, the Bangladeshi man who is widely considered the "father of tubular designs" for high-rise skyscrapers. He designed the Sears tower which was the tallest high-res for 22 years. He also designed John Hancock Center, Willis Tower, Hajj Terminal, King Abdulaziz University, One Magnificent Mile, Onterie Center and many others.
Google's Doodle shows his photo and a high-rise surrounded by other buildings that don't come even close in height.
Google wrote:
A humanitarian in his personal as well as professional life, he was inspired by the belief that his work had a positive impact and he encouraged other engineers not to lose track of the purpose of their profession. When he was named Construction’s Man of the Year, he reflected, “The technical man must not be lost in his own technology. He must be able to appreciate life, and life is art, drama, music and, most importantly, people.”
Fazlur Rahman Khan died at the young age of 52 on March 27, 1982. He died from a heart attack and he was buried in the states in Chicago.
You can read more about his life on Wikipedia.
Forum discussion at Google+.
