> Middle aged people tend to make better polar explorers. Not so much because they are physically more capable, but more to do with their mental capacity. Out on the high polar plateau there is nothing but endless white stretching off in every direction. You ski for 12 hours a day and because of the wind and cold, it’s almost impossible to talk to your team mates. So, in effect, you are alone in your head for all that time. By being a bit older and having a bit more life experience, it helps fill the blank canvas that is Antarctica.<p>I always wonder if the same would apply to soldiers. A former special forces soldier I know said that they didn't look for jocks (though you need some athleticism); they looked for people with the ability to perform as a highly functional team member under extreme stress and exhaustion - sort of like the developer who maintains their sense of humor, keeps everyone loose, and still turns out work to the highest standards after a week of 18 hour days, with a deadline breathing down your necks and an angry boss. It seems to me that older people are generally more capable in that regard.<p>> [the butter] tastes revolting, but then your body just craves the fat content and you eat the butter like blocks of cheese.<p>He needs a bit of better butter. I highly recommend eating Plugra butter straight, assuming that your heart doesn't need all that blood all the time. Really; go buy some and you will come back and thank me. I can't even imagine how good it would taste in the author's situation.<p>(I have no affiliation with Plugra.)