The Case of the Speluncean Explorers

[Occhidiangela]

However, Tamsen Donner’s death is especially suspicious since she had been in strong physical condition when last seen by the third rescue team.

That is irrelevant, thanks to what we now know about hypothermia, and the widely varying ability to resist it in human beings. Having a higher metabolism, or any number of other traits that are not outwardly visible, impact on how one's body resists cold, what temp one's core dropping to induces lethargy. Also not obvious is the strength of will to live, and the point at which someone mentally loses the desire to live or fight the suffering. Likewise, some people reach a point, and simply accept their death, and stop trying. I cold weather situations, this tends to be fatal.

After seven different formal cold weather training sessions over 20+ years, I learned a bit more each time from the Physioligists, and the answers to how one survives cold (in our case, the general scenario was being in cold water, but similar issues apply to cold weather on land) are not as simple as "conventional wisdom" would suggest.

For What It's Worth