extreme science

[noun]

An approach to scientific research that is outside what is considered average, normal practice. This research approach includes projects like the Experimental Lakes Area, where researchers intentionally polluted a very large pristine lake to measure the effects of excess nutrients. In another example of extreme science, in 2013 a group of medical professionals accompanied 12 children (aged 8 to 16) from the United Kingdom on a climb of Mount Everest. The purpose of this trip was to research the effects of high altitude (low oxygen) on children and provide information on how human muscle responds to oxygen-deprivation.