Chapter 18 Chapter 15 Important Achievements

Everest has not yet been summited, and another expedition may be necessary.But what experiences gained from this expedition can be used as a reference for the next expedition? What this expedition discovered is of remarkable importance not only to future Everest expeditions, but to humanity as a whole.Through this expedition, we found that humans can adapt to the high altitude effect; humans can breathe less and less oxygen at higher and higher altitudes and in thinner and thinner air.If the human spirit—his love of adventure, his pride in himself, his willingness to sprint for the recognition, admiration, and cheering of his peers—will push him to climb the highest of the mountains, then he will find that he can Cope with every situation; he will find that his body and mind are adept at responding to the calling of the spirit.

This was the discovery of the second Everest expedition, and, as we shall see later, fully confirmed by the third expedition.The significance of this discovery is better understood if we recall the opinion of scientists prior to these expeditions.Scientists once believed that humans could not adapt to altitudes above 20,000 feet.That is to say, regardless of physical exhaustion, if you climb from 20,000 feet to 23,000 feet twice, the high-altitude effect you will feel the second time will be greater than the first time.And if you climb to 23,000 feet for the third time, it will feel even worse.Likewise, if you spend two days at 23,000 feet, you will feel worse the second day than the first.And if you're there until the third day, it's even worse.That will exceed the limit of your acclimatization.You will no longer be able to adjust to the changed conditions.You will not be able to respond to the calling of your spirit.Instead of adapting to circumstances, you will succumb to difficulties.You will have to admit to being defeated by material circumstances, and no longer enjoy the sense of accomplishment of overcoming adversity.

This was the bleak view of many scientists before the expedition, all because of their lack of confidence in themselves.They are confident in their science, but for some mysterious reason they always focus on the physical, chemical and mechanical aspects of the world, on germs and diseases, and very little on man himself and humanity as a whole Notice.And when they pay attention to man, they only pay attention to his sick body.They're dealing with tiny fractions of humanity, and tiny fractions of the world.They don't deal with the whole, so they get wrong conclusions. Through this Mount Everest expedition, we found that if a person's spirit pushes him up to 23,000 feet for the second time, then the high-altitude effect he feels the second time will be lower than the first time.This result has been repeatedly tested by real people, and the same result has always been obtained in experiments at places above 23,000 feet.In addition, the expedition was lucky to have a member of the team who was a medical officer and who happened to have done research in physiology for several years, and he was also one of the highest climbers on the Everest expedition to about 270,000 Thousands of feet, and without the use of oxygen.He recorded his experience.

Talking about his 23,000-foot climb to the North Col, Somerwell said, "We'll never forget the first time we climbed that damn ice slope. Struggling, until finally reaching the col, almost completely collapsed.It was the first time he had climbed 23,000 feet.Now let's hear how he felt the second time he climbed 23,000 feet.He said: After a day or two in the third camp below (21,000 feet), we climbed up the North Col again.This climb was drudgery, but that's about it; Mosshead and I were overjoyed when we reached the North Col, and immediately set out to explore the route up to Everest.

So Somerwell felt less of the high-altitude effect on his second ascent to the North Col than he did the first time, not more.Now let's hear how he felt when he climbed 23,000 feet for the third time.He said: One or two days later, we boarded the North Col again. Except for occasional breathing difficulties along the way, we didn’t feel any discomfort. The few days we spent at 21,000 feet allowed us to adapt to the high altitude, water and soil. A considerable degree; what was previously hard work is now relatively easy.So the high-altitude effect Somerwell felt was less, not more.The experience of others also supports his account.So we have evidence that man can adapt to a height of at least 23,000 feet.

This physical adaptation to altitude gave Somerwell the strength to ascend to twenty-seven thousand feet without oxygen.His experience, as well as the verification of others, shows that the high-altitude adaptation process is very fast and can continue to very high altitudes.Acclimatization is possible and rapid at high altitudes. In addition, we can notice that this process of adaptation not only acts on the body, but also on the mind.When external conditions are constantly changing, the body can automatically adjust through some mysterious processes without the awareness of the mind.The number of blood cells increased, and no doubt other changes took place.And the mind adjusts itself.When climbers and porters climb up the North Col for the first time, they are not sure whether they will have the energy to continue climbing after climbing the 23,000-foot North Col.Once they climbed to that height, the standard of achievement in their minds was raised.In the end they didn't take 23,000 feet very seriously.The pickers kept going up and down; Noel slept there three nights straight.Malory and Somerwell, Finch and Bruce slept higher up.When the expedition team set off, the 21,000-foot camp area was regarded as the base for various work operations; when the expedition team returned, the team members took the 23,000-foot North Col as the starting point.Mentally they have raised the bar for achievement and, like their bodies, have grown accustomed to higher altitudes.

But has the expedition team ever obtained proof of adaptation to water and soil above 23,000 feet?not much.Every climber has climbed from 23,000 feet only once.But the provocateurs reached the camp at 25,500 feet twice.The first time they were sent to such a high place it was difficult, but the second time they climbed up naturally.Finch and Geoffrey.When Bruce was there, the situation might be in a mess, so he summoned one or two pickers at Knoll at 23,000 feet, ordered them to send these thermos up to Mr. Finch, and they set off on the road.The wind was terrible, and it was likely to be night before they returned, but they delivered safely and successfully completed the task.That altitude was a thousand feet higher than any man had ever reached before that year.

These experiences led Somerwell to believe that no horizontal line below the summit of Everest would be the theoretical limit of acclimatization.He predicted that once people can adapt to the 23,000 feet, they will be able to reach the summit.He therefore believed that one could reach the top of a mountain without oxygen.He believes that there must be many people who can climb to the top of Mount Everest relying on their own physical strength without external support, as long as they stay at 21,000 feet for a few days and let their bodies automatically adjust.If a party were allowed to live for a fortnight or so at the height corresponding to the third battalion (21,000 feet), hiking now and then to 23,000 or 24,000 feet, I have no doubt that the physical From my point of view, they could climb Everest if the weather was good and the wind wasn't blowing too hard.Therefore, he predicted: To reach the summit of Mount Everest, the most likely way to succeed is to send nine to ten climbers who can stay in the highland camp, let them fully adapt to the water and soil, and then organize a series of expeditions, each time About three people, continue to try as long as the weather conditions allow.

It is a great pity that such a conclusion has not been put into practice.The author himself places himself among those to blame for the failure to prepare for the third expedition.However, the concept of high-altitude soil and water adaptation has not been fully accepted even today.In 1923, people still clung to the notion that oxygen was essential, and Somerwell himself was partly to blame for that, since he had so persuasively persuaded the Everest Committee to support the 1923 The two-year expedition was equipped with oxygen.So the third expedition was also provided with oxygen, just like the second expedition.

The truth is: we don't yet fully understand that humans are a very young species that hasn't existed for more than half a million years.We are still in the stage of probing and proving our capabilities.We haven't traveled all over our little planet to see what we can do and where we can go.Currently, we are finding it difficult to climb to the summit of Everest, having stumbled and stumbled on this first attempt.But we don't yet know how much we are capable of, and we don't know that we should humbly learn from those chicks and cubs who have the courage to experience and recognize their wings or legs.

If there is one fact that stands above all others on this and the next expedition, it is this: the human faculty is still to be developed and cultivated; if you practice it, it expands.We have more confidence in ourselves for good reason.