We often receive emails like the one below at the lonely North Dakota bunker that serves as Sepia Mutiny’s world blogging headquarters:
…I’d like to reach a wider audience and would really appreciate if you could link [to] my blog.ps - I’m pretty good at keeping my site updated. Please take a look!
Thanks much!
To this, our standard response (if we have time to write one) is a polite “please read our F.A.Q.” But when I read the above email from a blogger, writing from a lonely bunker of his own, with nothing but his science and his blog…well, I’m not made of stone people. I’m quick to recognize a kindred spirit when I see one.
Plus, this guy’s research has direct bearing on my own work and career aspirations (and might save me some day):
I am a resident of Delhi, India, and a psychiatrist by profession (heal the mentally unwell). I’m also fond of the great outdoors, and cultures around the world. I’ll be spending 3.5 months in Antarctica winter of 2008, doing research at the Indian base station. Thru this blog, I hope to keep my friends and family updated on my stay in this incredible land.
—Sudhir Khandelwal [Link]
Of course he is going to be “good about updating his site!” What else does he have to do? :)
First, let’s let Sudhir explain, through his blog, why he is down in Antarctica:
I started thinking of Antarctica seriously after my expedition to Kailash-Mansarovar in the summer of 2006. It was Chitra, in fact, who perhaps jokingly asked me what next after Kailash Mansarovar! Antarctica? And then there were others who had visited Antarctica as members of the Indian Scientific Expedition encouraging me to submit a research proposal to the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences. I proposed to study the longitudinal changes in the general and psychological health of expedition members who stay in Antarctica for short-term (3 months) and long-term (15 months) along with their coping strategies including tobacco and alcohol consumption. After being short-listed, I was called to make a presentation, and to my extreme joy I was informed in August, 2007 to get ready for joining the Pre-Antarctica Induction Training programme of two weeks starting mid-September at Auli in Garhwal Himalayas under the Indo-Tibetan Border Police. [Link]
One of the seminal works about the psychological effects of long term isolated expeditions is a book I read years ago titled Bold Endeavors : Lessons from Polar and Space Exploration. Clinical observation of mental health (mental breakdown and group dynamics) during Antarctic expeditions, as well as long term submarine deployments, helps to inform NASA astronaut training as well as crew selection for the International Space Station (and eventually Lunar and Mars missions). Simply put, when you keep people isolated as a small group (and it is freezing outside), they start to get irritable. Studying that breakdown is of major importance. Look what happened just two weeks ago:
Without releasing names, the National Science Foundation, which runs the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, confirmed that two men had to be evacuated from the base Christmas Day after what one person characterized as a “drunken Christmas punch-up.”A C-130 Hercules military transport plane had to be dispatched from McMurdo Station, the main U.S. research base far to the north on the Antarctic coast, after one of the men suffered a broken jaw.
“There was an altercation between two people,” National Science Foundation spokesman Peter West told the New Zealand Herald. “There’s no indication of the cause or of the background between the two folks…” [Link]
Of equal importance in these studies is identifying and documenting the traits that some people possess that prevent them from breaking down like most would. I mean the natural-born-leader-types who always remain calm, collected, and stay focused on the mission at hand.
The ITBP instructors did their job of physically training us and giving us theoretical and practical demonstrations on hills and glacier with their customary sincerity and zeal. I have earlier experience ITBP personnel’s devotion and dedication in ample measures during my expedition to Kailash Mansarovar. They not only provided security and helping hand during some difficult treks and while crossing fast flowing river streams, but their presence alone was a big comfort.
I had a great time with young scientists of the group. They represented different fields about which I knew very little. But it was heartening to listen to their animated discussion on subjects like astrophysics, space physics, troposphere, ionosphere, geomagnetism etc. It appeared India’s future was secure in their hands. Some terms sounded familiar, but I was totally dumbfounded by a specialty called Limnology. I had not heard of it before. Want to hazard a guess what it is about? Well, it is the physical, chemical and biological study of water. [Link]
I am captivated by his many descriptions of the science conducted/discussed by his colleagues because of my own space and geology background, but I am equally captivated by his interpersonal observations:
Lot of activities going on now in Maitri. All scientists who are only for summer period are setting up their instruments and planning field visits. Though I have spent 2 weeks with many of them during Auli trip, however, now I feel I am senior to them; I almost feel as if they are intruders on our premises and facilities. I wonder if 26th team also felt that way when we came. May be not, since we came heralding their countdown for departing to India. How soon man starts claiming rights over anything which is not his even by any stretch of imagination.Last night there was a movie, ‘Bhul-Bhulaiyyan’ starring Vidya Balan, Akshay Kumar and Shiney Ahuja. It is a remake of a Malayalam/Tamil movie of Priyadarshan. It is about multiple personality and Akshay Kumar plays a psychiatrist. Hence I stayed back for watching the movie. This evening I held an informal and small discussion group on Bollywood and multiple personality. People want me to hold such discussion groups regularly. I am not sure; I may ruffle some feathers. [Link]
I’m more than a little jealous of Sudhir’s assignment. A few of my co-workers have been down there and I might still get the chance to go someday. For now it is good to learn vicariously. For those of you that liked V.V.’s food post from yesterday, here is some more “food blogging:”
People coming here for summer or winter period develop all kinds of food fads in Antarctica. The Indian station, Maitri, has practically all varieties of food suiting every taste. I was surprised to find ‘gur’ (jaggery) here, though, it does not enjoy any popularity. I am its lone consumer. When ship comes here every December/January, it brings loads of food supplies to last till next one year. However, fresh fruits and vegetables last only for a few months and then it is all frozen stuff…Current fads among many members of 26 Team are maggie noodles and eggs. They are now sick of eating frozen vegetables and daal (lentils) for last many months. So you frequently see them boiling maggie noodles or frying eggs. Packaged fruit juices still remain popular with most of the members. They all believe it provides quality vitamins. So they consume it 3-5 times a day. They are oblivious of the effects of preservatives, chemicals or sugar in it. Most of them have a habit of drying their paratha or poori with tissue before consuming; it is another matter that they would later put pure ghee on their chapaati or in daal. [Link]
Although Sudhir doesn’t realize it yet, I am adding an entirely new dimension to his research by writing this post. Chances are that like me, a few of you will find his blog interesting and start reading it often. His readership will grow from the few friends and family that currently visit, to one much larger. Then, he will feel the curse of the blogger: The need to satisfy the masses and the sometimes terrible consequences that follow. Then, he will have two psychiatry papers to publish instead of just one. I’m willing to sacrifice him in the name of science.
