I watched last night "Apollo 13" for the millionth time.
Each time, I watch it, different words come to mind.
Last night, I put down in a piece of paper these words:
Team spirit,
Improvisation (photoluminescent algae)
Lack of fear
Positive thoughts ("failure is not an option")
Re-calibration - Adaptation to a dynamic situation
Unity
Calmness
On Earth, most of us rarely have to think about the signals that keep our internal clocks aligned. The Sun rises, daylight changes, darkness arrives and morning comes again.
Our bodies have evolved alongside this roughly 24-hour cycle. Light is one of the strongest signals our bodies use to synchronise the circadian clock. But what happens when the Sun no longer provides a reliable schedule?
A spacecraft orbits Earth roughly every 90 minutes, so astronauts experience about 16 sunrises and sunsets every 24 hours. They cannot go to sleep every time the Sun disappears – but their bodies still need to know when it is time to sleep, wake, eat, exercise and work.
This makes spaceflight more than just an engineering challenge. It is an extraordinary experiment in human biology – one that can reveal what happens when the environmental cues that normally regulate our sleep disappear.
Sleep is thought to be controlled by two interacting biological systems. One is the circadian clock, which helps determine when the brain expects sleep and wakefulness. The other is sleep pressure, which gradually builds the longer we remain awake and dissipates while we sleep. Usually, these systems work together. But jet lag, shift work and spaceflight can pull them apart.
An astronaut may be exhausted after many hours awake but still struggle to sleep because their circadian system is signalling it is daytime. Feeling tired and being biologically ready to sleep are not always the same thing. This distinction is one of the most important lessons spaceflight can teach us about sleep.
[read the rest of the article, here]
"You'll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine”.
Robin Williams @ Dead Poets Society
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Did I write "job" (at the title)?
I am sorry, I didn't mean to...
But, when they ask me... I am not saying that I am an "Associate Professor" and all these rather "pompous" words.
What I am saying is this: I am just a teacher... Sever letters, one word...
But, I feel really proud when ex-students of mine call me that... (teacher).
I feel really proud when my students as they leave the lecture theater, they tell me "thank you". So precious these 2 words...
As I am writing these lines, I am having Cyrus on my side and James Blunt at a small speaker...
I just watched "Good Will Hunting" with my most favourite actor (ever) : Robin Williams.
He is a psychologist at the film and a Teacher (capital T!).
I am not going to spoil it to you - it's a must watch it, again and again...
For many reasons... (also Dead Poets Society is a must watch, especially this clip).
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I had the privilege to work for few years with Ronan. He is my first PhD student in Ireland. He is just a unique scientist, full of ideas and the ways to apply them in Science. I am so happy for Ronan that he goes from summit to summit on his way to his Ithaca.
Yannis
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Our internal biological clocks regulate nearly every aspect of physiology, from sleep and hormone secretion to metabolism and mood. When these rhythms become disrupted, they can contribute to the development and progression of psychiatric disorders. My research aims to better understand how circadian dysfunction influences bipolar disorder and how restoring healthy biological rhythms through chronotherapeutic approaches may improve treatment outcomes.
What drives me...
it continues here
