My 16-year old niece whines about doing math homework, which from her perspective, seems totally useless in life. I am sympathetic to the genuine agony felt by teenagers droning toward their hormonal destiny. When anything forces their attention away from their sole purpose in life–dating–it couldn’t feel worse.
For most teenagers, math, especially advanced math, is nowhere near as exciting as next Saturday night. But what if math could lead to the ultimate date? Many successful scientists figured out this equation long ago: math homework = exotic travel.
How does an ordinary woman in her 30’s, who grew up in suburban America, tackle fears of terrorism and global warming? Simple—learn to live on what is available locally. For 12 months, I unplugged and lived on raw, wild land on the Big Island of Hawaii. The views and privacy were unparalleled, but there were also no modern conveniences—no paved roads, no power lines, no house, no water pipes—just a great big empty field flanked by fresh streams and ancient ‘ohia and koa trees. I wanted to answer a single question: Could I survive with only local resources if the world went black?
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