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All sensation of hunger ceased after the third day of privation.¹ Over the course of a month, as their strength decayed, so did their interest in life. Their primary sensation was one of fatigue. Everyone was tired, sleeping for longer stretches both during the day and night.

They also began to feel cold. It was not uncommon for the crew members to wear all their clothing, and to wrap themselves in blankets. Although the temperature of the ship was unvaryingly kept at the optimum level for Martian comfort, and had not been altered, all of them were constantly shivering, for the blood runs coldly through the veins of those who are starving.² They asked Barrow to increase the temperature of the ship, but it was determined that such an increase was impossible. The Investigator was designed to operate at a precise temperature. An increase of even one degree could have significant consequences.

Hungry, tired, and cold, the days trickled slowly by. They perceived their strength continue to decline, and every exertion began to be irksome.³ After three months on the reduced rations, it was undeniable that they were all in terrible shape. They found that they were very weak between the shoulders and in the loins, and greatly reduced.⁴ They experienced soreness in their joints, so that the motion of propelling themselves through the ship was a constant strain; the many little adjustments required to pilot their bodies were immensely painful. In addition to these discomforts, or perhaps because of them, they also became annoyingly peevish, and lost their temper at the most trivial of circumstances.⁵ Each was sensible of the others weakness of intellect, though blind to their own.⁶