> a different day-night cycle The duration is very close to Earth's. I don't think it will be an issue. And since Mars is several light minutes away, and henc

> a different day-night cycle The duration is very close to Earth's. I don't think it will be an issue. And since Mars is several light minutes away, and hence out of range for real-time dialogue, going out of sync with Earth's cycle will not be a huge issue either. You'll be talking via email anyway. > reduced gravity Yeah, that's a bigger issue. > boredom and cabin fever Could be an issue, yes. But if you're a scientist, you could work yourself to death in that new environment. So much to study, so little time. > It'll be extremely expensive, really depressing, and probably pointless. Climbing down from trees seemed the same at first. Moving out of caves, into hand-built dwellings seemed the same at first. Etc. The point being, it's easy to overstate both the glamorous and the depressing aspects of something we are not familiar with.