Popular Science

Survive on a single food | CAN IT BE DONE?

In the 2015 sci-fi film The Martian, a marooned astronaut survives on the red planet eating nothing but potatoes. But since there are no real humans on Mars, could a person survive eating nothing but spuds on Earth? The short answer: Unless you’re stranded with nothing but taters, it’s not a good idea. Learn more:…

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In the 2015 sci-fi film The Martian, a marooned astronaut survives on the red planet eating nothing but potatoes. But since there are no real humans on Mars, could a person survive eating nothing but spuds on Earth?

The short answer: Unless you’re stranded with nothing but taters, it’s not a good idea.

Learn more:

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Producer/Video by: Jason Lederman

Narrator: Jess Boddy

Researcher: Ellen Airhart

Cameras:
Canon EOS C100 –
Canon EOS 5D Mark III –

Additional equipment:
Canon EF50mm Lens –
Canon Zoom Lens EF24-105mm –
Sachtler Ace XL Tripod System –
Sennheiser EW100ENG G3 Camera Wireless Mic Kit –
Litepanels Astra E 1×1 Daylight LED Panel –
Lowepro Magnum 650 AW Shoulder Bag –
The North Face Base Camp Duffel –

Music: APM Music

Media:
The Martian (20th Century Fox), Pond5, Prelinger Archives, Pixabay, Pexels

CC BY-SA 2.0:
(28429961810).jpg

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19 Comments

  1. Ant B

    September 12, 2019 at 10:37 am

    No; you will most likely get sick and die. You could try milk, despite the fact that it is does not have enough iron, but sucks to be you if you are Lactose intolerant, like about 65 % of the world’s population.

  2. Yogthulu The First

    September 12, 2019 at 11:12 am

    What’s taters precious?

  3. Raheim Allen

    September 12, 2019 at 12:18 pm

    In the book he had enough vitamins and mineral supplements for his whole crew left in the HAB.

    • pharynx007

      September 12, 2019 at 5:59 pm

      yeah, i don’t remember if they covered that in the movie, but i guess not since they didn’t talk about it in this video.

    • Raymond Ramírez

      September 12, 2019 at 10:03 pm

      I posted the same type of comment. Most of the “Martian” fans never read the book. You and I did!

  4. Brother Nobody

    September 12, 2019 at 1:06 pm

    Not to mention the psychological impact of the lack of variety which would also manifest physically as well. Ie: depression, anxiety, etc..

  5. RyoriNoTetsujinfan

    September 12, 2019 at 2:33 pm

    Yikes, I guess the lav mic failed :/ sorry

  6. Jim Loehr

    September 12, 2019 at 3:12 pm

    Potatoes only, no. Now if he had sour cream, butter and cheese…

    • Perry Champ

      September 12, 2019 at 9:13 pm

      and some ground beef, and ketchup, and pickles, and some hamburger buns, and some beer, and some ice cream with chocolate syrup.

    • Gordon Ridgeway

      September 13, 2019 at 2:19 am

      and bacon

    • Perry Champ

      September 13, 2019 at 9:37 am

      @Gordon Ridgeway How could I have forgotten bacon? Wow, I’m getting old.

  7. Paul Olson

    September 12, 2019 at 6:51 pm

    The Irish people lived mostly on spuds, and when faced with the potato failure were forced to move to USA ( the potato famine)

  8. Ira Rosenberg

    September 12, 2019 at 8:46 pm

    I still remember my 7th grade teacher’s answer when that question was posed by one of my classmates–peanuts!

  9. matthewweaverworks

    September 12, 2019 at 9:07 pm

    Eat diverse food. Moderate amounts

  10. Raymond Ramírez

    September 12, 2019 at 10:02 pm

    If you read the book, it tells that the astronauts had vitamin supplements in their food stocks so he could had taken the supplements of the entire crew for several months and reduce deficiencies until he was rescued. So in practice, he can survive with just potatoes and the supplements.

  11. FireFrei

    September 12, 2019 at 11:35 pm

    The person narrating this video ate a lot of potatoes.

  12. A3Kr0n

    September 13, 2019 at 4:14 am

    What about Pop Tarts?

  13. Beach&BoardFan

    September 21, 2019 at 7:00 pm

    Thought you could survive on beer for a year?

  14. Guy M

    September 22, 2019 at 11:58 pm

    No one loads their taters with healthy stuff. Its butter, grease and deep fried then mayo, bacon bits and sour creams. Aint no one puttin no salad on their potato!

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