Arron Baker
Arron Baker asked Andy Weir:

Hey Andy, I was wondering what made you choose Mark as being a botanist/mechanical engineer considering the (presumably) wide variety of academic fields to choose from? Cheers!

Andy Weir It was pretty much critical to his survival. He was going to have to grow food. So rather than try to explain to the reader why an astronaut suddenly worked out how to grow crops, I made him a botanist.

I picked Mechanical Engineer to explain his high degree of skill with his makeshift solutions. Again, a convenience to maintain plausibility.
Andy Weir
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