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Packing For Mars: The Curious Science Of Life In The Void (2010)

by Mary Roach(Favorite Author)

3.91 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0393068471 (ISBN13: 9780393068474)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

W. W. Norton & Company

review 1: It's hard for me not to envision what this book covers as a NASA checklist of bodily functions in space: farting in space, check; fingernail clipping in space, check; pooping in space, check; sex in space, check; urinating in space, check; vomiting in space, check. All accounted for. This book details a number of the seemingly inane experiments conducted by the various space agencies to figure out what effects weightlessness or intense g-forces have on the human body. It's all important stuff to know when planning a long range, zero gravity vacation and Roach makes it palatable (is that the right word) for nearly anyone. There are plenty of opportunities for humor including a bunch researchers, who after spending months in the isolation of Greenland, mob a baby and scare t... morehe crap out of the mother. There's also the mysterious Narnia-like freezer in NASA where astronaut poop is stored. That's right, astronaut poop. In fact this book is, in my mind, in danger of being remembered for all of its various evacuation processes. At least now I understand why astronauts drink Tang instead of coffee.I was also surprised to find that NASA, at least at the time the book was written, paid test subjects around $17,000 to lay in bed and play video games for three months. If I ever need an extended vacation I may be tempted to call the Johnson Space Center. Seriously, all of you government guys: get on the ball and fund NASA. Space exploration is the next big thing, has to be the next big thing. Remember we only have 5 billion years or so until the sun burns out. Wouldn't it be best to follow the boy scout maxim and be prepared?Ultimately, this is a well-written book and is full of interesting stories and anecdotes. Even if Mary Roach just wrote it as an excuse to watch all 3 volumes of supposed zero-g porn and analyze if the fluids reacted in a way that was consistent with weightlessness. 3 volumes, really? Even using the fast forward button, that's a bit much. . .
review 2: I doubt I would have picked this book up if it hadn't been a book club selection (Thank you Keri-Lynn for picking it!), but I'm very glad I did.It's written in such an entertaining and interesting style. I laughed out loud several times and enjoyed the witty perspective the book took on space exploration. There are so many interesting and strange aspects to both our fascination with space travel, and how things work (and, more often, how they don't work) in space. A fun read. less

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