It seems like gravity is the biggest factor that the pie in the sky posts always seem to gloss over. As you said, living in the low of gravity, for the rest of your life, has to have untold issues on bodies that evolved here. It would also add another layer of complexity to everything you do.
So many people act like it's just a cool destination spot for Sheldon-types. I have no doubt there'd be no shortage of people wanting to sign up, but it does seem very sad to me. Like people willing to get facial tattoos sad. They should focus on finding ways to create a VR experience that would allow everyone to experience it safely.
To play devil's advocate - there are a lot of people who would argue that the view: "Why would you do something with so many known and unknown dangers, when you could focus your energies on making a VR simulation of it instead?" also very sad.
I'm not saying we should shoot for Mars, just that until we reach the point of being able to do round-trips and step up the solutions, it sounds like an awful idea to go there. The VR is just a personal wish that I think would be great for not just Mars but all space exploration. I know that I'll never get a chance to visit the moon. But before we're able to engineer a roundtrip I could purchase, I know we'd be able to engineer a rig that could transmit a VR experience that we could all enjoy.
We need both - simulations and to go there in person. We used simulation even for going to the moon, it's going to be an essential tool for Mars as well.
So many people act like it's just a cool destination spot for Sheldon-types. I have no doubt there'd be no shortage of people wanting to sign up, but it does seem very sad to me. Like people willing to get facial tattoos sad. They should focus on finding ways to create a VR experience that would allow everyone to experience it safely.