A Physicist on Everest: How Body and Mind Break Down at Elevation [Excerpt]

In his new book, physicist Francis Slakey recounts the myriad physical and mental challenges in summiting the world's highest peak

By Francis Slakey on July 20, 2012

A Physicist on Everest: How Body and Mind Break Down at Elevation [Excerpt] — Credit: COURTESY SIMON & SCHUSTER

Editor's Note: The rights to our excerpt from To the Last Breath: A Journey of Going to Extremes, by Francis Slakey, have expired. The book is available from numerous online booksellers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)

Francis Slakey is the Upjohn Lecturer on Physics and Public Policy at Georgetown University and the Associate Director of Public Affairs for the American Physical Society. He is a Fellow of the AAAS, a Fellow of the APS, a MacArthur Scholar, and a Lemelson Associate of the Smithsonian Institution. He has hitchhiked across Central Asia, lived with Masai in East Africa, scaled the granite face of El Cap, and skied in Antarctica. He appeared in the National Geographic documentary, Beyond the Summit, and his writing has appeared in Scientific American, Slate, and the The New York Times. In recognition of his adventures, in 2002, he was chosen to run the Olympic Torch from the steps of the U.S. Capitol. His memoir, To The Last Breath, is available wherever books and e-books are sold.