Aside from that, what is your point? Did you even bother to read the article, which despite mentioning this detraction, has nothing to do with it? Or were you just looking for easy upvotes?
In fact, it invalidates those criticisms against McCandless.
Did you actually read the article? That's not what it says. It suggests he became paralyzed by a neurotoxin, an event which no one could have foreseen at the time. Having a map wouldn't have cured his paralysis. I'm not even convinced he was lost.
Yes, had he not eaten the seeds, he (possibly) would still be alive... but he still would have been an idiot.
Only if you stretch the term "unprepared" beyond what people understand the Park Ranger to mean.
Maybe "less than optimally prepared" for the scope of what he was trying to do, but "unprepared" is not fair. "Unprepared" basically puts him in the same category as people who die from hypothermia because they wear cotton clothes.
Personally, I find the details completely beside the point. McCandless sacrificed everything to test his philosophical conjecture and I have nothing but respect for that. I honestly would've thought there'd be more empathy for it here.
Well, it's point is Christopher McCandless is a celebrity, lets work out how he died.
There is little science going on here, other than using science to work out how celebrity McCandless died.
Image if those scientists used their knowledge for real pressing issues that affect many people.
Not saying scientists should be boring and not allowed to do superficial things like all people. But take it for what it is.
Which is probably why people go back to the bigger picture.
Sounds like this issue isn't that superficial... it has affected a lot of people.
According to the article, McCandless was using a reference book to determine which plants were safe to eat; the book listed wild potato as non-toxic, because it was not yet understood that it contained ODAP. If it had been known, McCandless would not likely have eaten wild potato, would not have been poisoned, and would likely not have died in the way that he did.