Episode 40: "The Martian" author Andy Weir

In the space of a few weeks, Andy Weir went from being and underground sensation for his self-published sci-fi survival story "The Martian" to a legitimate best-selling author with his book currently being made into an A-list motion picture. His tale of a stranded astronaut who must kludge, bodge and fabricate his way to survival immediately brought to mind our $20XX Challenge event, although with used spaceship parts instead of discarded Camaros. Weir's story will strike a chord with anyone who's ever had to improvise a mechanical solution when none seemed possible. He was good enough to sit down with us to discuss some of the "builds" in the book and their inspiration.