>>> Can't they just train the astronauts to not suffer from this type of
>>> nausea as much? Or at least have it impact their functionality less.
>>> Being able to launch with slightly less fuel requried seems quite a
>>> strong goal to me.
>>
>> Not really.  It actually comes from the cerebellum and is pretty much a
>> reflex.  Your eyes and inner ear disagree, and ever since we were
>> dinosaurs, that could only mean one thing "Oh! crap, I've been
>> poisoned!" and the reflex is to evacuate the toxin, by sweating and/or
>> vomitting.
>
> Didn't they try various things like projecting an image onto the inner
> walls that was in sync with the actual movement. Saying that, some
> people still feel ill with the VR kit, and that's only just their head
> moving! The same inputs seem to affect different people by vastly
> different amounts.
>

Possible.  however, our inner ear has been used to gravity for millions 
of years.  it's not always obvious what it feels in micro-gravity,  and 
sometimes, both ears apparently feel different, as my ex-girlfriend told 
me after flying on the "vomit-comet" once.  so you can't really project 
something diffferent for each astronaut, even less for each eye of the 
same astronaut.

>> They teach astronauts to try to compensate for it, but it's not always
>> easy, and it used to be easier just to screen them before sending them
>> to outer space.  There's one (whose name escapes me at the moment) who
>> had to have one of his ear nerves completely severed, making him deaf on
>> that side at the same time, to resolve the issue.
>
> Now we're talking. Sorry, we need to save 5 kg of fuel, and we can't
> have you puking each time we turn (although if you could just aim your
> puke along this axis and open the window...) so we have to take your
> inner ear out :-)
>
We'd also save space and weight if we simply cut your legs off.  You 
don't need them any way, while you're up there.

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