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Humans can scale the highest mountains and live in the harshest deserts. But we all live precarious lives: ones not far from death if we lose access to simple things like water, food, or even sleep.

How long can we survive without the basics?

Every person and situation is different, though the "rule of threes" gets at the desperate nature of what our bodies need: three minutes without oxygen, three days without water, three weeks without food.

But some extraordinary members of our species have broken and redefined these and other limits of human survival.

Here are some of the records for how long people have lived without staples like air, water, food, sunlight, and sleep.

Warning: Do not attempt to break any of these records yourself. You could die.