On February 20, 1963, a team of nineteen Americans embarked on the first expedition that would combine high-altitude climbing with scientific research. The primary objective of the six scientists on the team—who procured funding by appealing to the military and political applications of their work—was to study how severe stress at high altitudes affected human behavior. The expedition would land the first American on the summit of Mount Everest nearly three years after a successful (though widely disputed) Chinese ascent. At the height of the Cold War, this struggle for the Himalaya turned Everest into both a contested political space and a remote, unpredictable laboratory. The US expedition promised to resurrect American heroism, embodied in a show of physical strength and skill that, when combined with scientific expertise, would dominate international rivals on the frontiers of territorial exploration. It propelled mountaineers, scientists, and their test subjects 29,029 feet above sea level, the highest point of Chinese-occupied Tibet. There they faced hostile conditions that challenged and ultimately compromised standard research protocols, yielding results that were too exceptional to be generalized to other environments. With this book, Philip W. Clements offers a nuanced exploration of the impact of extremity on the production of scientific knowledge and the role of masculinity and nationalism in scientific inquiry.

On February 20, 1963, a team of nineteen Americans embarked on the first expedition that would combine high-altitude climbing with scientific research. The primary objective of the six scientists on the team—who procured funding by appealing to the military and political applications of their work—was to study how severe stress at high altitudes affected human behavior. The expedition would land the first American on the summit of Mount Everest nearly three years after a successful (though widely disputed) Chinese ascent. At the height of the Cold War, this struggle for the Himalaya turned Everest into both a contested political space and a remote, unpredictable laboratory. The US expedition promised to resurrect American heroism, embodied in a show of physical strength and skill that, when combined with scientific expertise, would dominate international rivals on the frontiers of territorial exploration. It propelled mountaineers, scientists, and their test subjects 29,029 feet above sea level, the highest point of Chinese-occupied Tibet. There they faced hostile conditions that challenged and ultimately compromised standard research protocols, yielding results that were too exceptional to be generalized to other environments. With this book, Philip W. Clements offers a nuanced exploration of the impact of extremity on the production of scientific knowledge and the role of masculinity and nationalism in scientific inquiry.

Human Physiology in Extreme Environments is the one publication that offers how human biology and physiology is affected by extreme environments while highlighting technological innovations that allow us to adapt and regulate environments. Covering a broad range of extreme environments, including high altitude, underwater, tropical climates, and desert and arctic climates as well as space travel, this book will include case studies for practical application. Graduate students, medical students and researchers will find Human Physiology in Extreme Environments an interesting, informative and useful resource for human physiology, environmental physiology and medical studies. - Presents human physiological challenges in Extreme Environments combined in one single resource - Provides an excellent source of information regarding paleontological and anthropological aspects - Offers practical medical and scientific use of current concepts

From arid deserts to icy poles, outer space to the depths of the sea, this exciting new work studies the remarkable life forms that have made these inhospitable environments their home. Covering not only micro-organisms, but also higher plants and animals such as worms, fish and polar plants, this book details the ecological, biological and biogeochemical challenges these organisms face and unifying themes between environments. Equally useful for the expert, student and casual scientific reader, this book also explores the impact of climate change, rapid seasonal changes and pollution on these extraordinary creatures.

A diverse account of how life exists in extreme environments and these systems' susceptibility and resilience to climate change.

This book provides an intriguing look at how life can adapt to many different extreme environments. It addresses the limits for life development and examines different strategies used by organisms to adapt to different extreme environments.

During the long twentieth century, explorers went in unprecedented numbers to the hottest, coldest, and highest points on the globe. Taking us from the Himalaya to Antarctica and beyond, Higher and Colder presents the first history of extreme physiology, the study of the human body at its physical limits. Each chapter explores a seminal question in the history of science, while also showing how the apparently exotic locations and experiments contributed to broader political and social shifts in twentieth-century scientific thinking. Unlike most books on modern biomedicine, Higher and Colder focuses on fieldwork, expeditions, and exploration, and in doing so provides a welcome alternative to laboratory-dominated accounts of the history of modern life sciences. Though centered on male-dominated practices—science and exploration—it recovers the stories of women’s contributions that were sometimes accidentally, and sometimes deliberately, erased. Engaging and provocative, this book is a history of the scientists and physiologists who face challenges that are physically demanding, frequently dangerous, and sometimes fatal, in the interest of advancing modern science and pushing the boundaries of human ability.

Materials Under Extreme Conditions: Recent Trends and Future Prospects analyzes the chemical transformation and decomposition of materials exposed to extreme conditions, such as high temperature, high pressure, hostile chemical environments, high radiation fields, high vacuum, high magnetic and electric fields, wear and abrasion related to chemical bonding, special crystallographic features, and microstructures. The materials covered in this work encompass oxides, non-oxides, alloys and intermetallics, glasses, and carbon-based materials. The book is written for researchers in academia and industry, and technologists in chemical engineering, materials chemistry, chemistry, and condensed matter physics. - Describes and analyzes the chemical transformation and decomposition of a wide range of materials exposed to extreme conditions - Brings together information currently scattered across the Internet or incoherently dispersed amongst journals and proceedings - Presents chapters on phenomena, materials synthesis, and processing, characterization and properties, and applications - Written by established researchers in the field

Unfriendly to conventional electronic devices, circuits, and systems, extreme environments represent a serious challenge to designers and mission architects. The first truly comprehensive guide to this specialized field, Extreme Environment Electronics explains the essential aspects of designing and using devices, circuits, and electronic systems intended to operate in extreme environments, including across wide temperature ranges and in radiation-intense scenarios such as space. The Definitive Guide to Extreme Environment Electronics Featuring contributions by some of the world’s foremost experts in extreme environment electronics, the book provides in-depth information on a wide array of topics. It begins by describing the extreme conditions and then delves into a description of suitable semiconductor technologies and the modeling of devices within those technologies. It also discusses reliability issues and failure mechanisms that readers need to be aware of, as well as best practices for the design of these electronics. Continuing beyond just the "paper design" of building blocks, the book rounds out coverage of the design realization process with verification techniques and chapters on electronic packaging for extreme environments. The final set of chapters describes actual chip-level designs for applications in energy and space exploration. Requiring only a basic background in electronics, the book combines theoretical and practical aspects in each self-contained chapter. Appendices supply additional background material. With its broad coverage and depth, and the expertise of the contributing authors, this is an invaluable reference for engineers, scientists, and technical managers, as well as researchers and graduate students. A hands-on resource, it explores what is required to successfully operate electronics in the most demanding conditions.

Bioengineering in Extreme Environments is an engaging text that supports students' education in both technology and the natural world. Students learn about natural science, human body responses, and various technologies that enable or could enable humans to thrive in extreme environments. The text demystifies technology for readers, demonstrating that many technologies are simply well-developed solutions to everyday problems. Over the course of 11 chapters, students visit Death Valley, Antarctica, the Great Salt Lake, Chernobyl, Jupiter, Mt. Everest, and other extreme locations to learn about their environments, effects on the human body, and the types of technology they each would require for human survival. Each chapter includes learning objectives, the core text, and instructions and assignments for small groups. Students are challenged to work together to cultivate knowledge, complete interactive homework assignments, and answer thought-provoking questions. Embracing active learning and interdisciplinary knowledge-building, Bioengineering in Extreme Environments is an ideal textbook for undergraduate general education courses in science and the natural world.