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from the 24h37m22s-should-be-close-enough-for-anyone dept.
A team of scientists from Holland, Germany and the UK's University of Manchester studied animals in which variation in a single gene dramatically speeds up the natural circadian cycle from 24 to 20 hours (DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1516442113).
It is the first study to demonstrate of the value of having an internal body clock which beats in tune with the speed of the earth's rotation.
The researchers released animals with 24 hour or 20 hour clocks into outdoor pens, with free access to food, and studied how the proportion of animals with fast clocks changed in the population over a period of 14 months.
This allowed the team to study the impact of clock-speed in context of the "real-world" rather than indoors.
Mice with fast-running clock gradually become less common with successive generations, so that by the end of the study, the population was dominated by animals with "normal" 24h clocks.
The research has potentially important implications for human health: clock-disruption associated with abnormal work and lighting conditions, such as night shift work leads to health problems, such as increased risk of Type 2 diabetes.
Wouldn't Mars-born humans gradually select for circadian rhythms that match Mars's rotation?
(Score: 2) by Whoever on Wednesday January 27 2016, @07:22AM
There are different levels of "blind", but some blind people have no eyes and they do drift off the normal day rhythm. I know one such person.
My personal anecdote is a trip to India, which is almost opposite in phase to where I live. On the day of my arrival (a Sunday), I spent several hours by the outdoor pool at the hotel. I got over my jetlag quicker on that trip than any other I can remember.
The article on DSPD is interesting. I find that I naturally sleep best if I go to bed quite late (11:30 to midnight). Attempts to shift my sleep time result in waking during the night.
(Score: 2) by Kell on Wednesday January 27 2016, @07:48AM
Yes, I've worked with people with vision impairment extensively. Some have no eyes, limited vision and varying degrees of light sensitivity. I'm not at all surprised that people with no light sensitivity get out of sync with the day time, although I haven't seen much of that myself. Interestingly, rather than "blind", the preferred terminology in our professional environment is "person with vision impairment"- it places the focus on the person, rather than the condition. This was an interesting education for me the first time I started working with them. I've met some astonishingly capable people like Gerard Gosens and Daniel Kish. They are simply amazing in what they can do.
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.
(Score: 2) by Whoever on Wednesday January 27 2016, @08:07AM
The person that I know who is blind refers to herself as "blind". Also, we volunteer for "Guide dogs for the Blind" [guidedogs.com]. No one that we have come across through that organization has any issue with the use of the word "blind", although many people with guide dogs have a small amount of vision.
It is truly amazing what some of them can do. For example Trevor Thomas, [blindhikertrevorthomas.com] who seems to have no problem with the use of the word "blind".
(Score: 2) by Kell on Wednesday January 27 2016, @08:17AM
Sure. I'm not saying it's common or expected to use that terminology, at all. I just said it was interesting that that's our usage in our professional work, as stipulated by Vision Australia (with whom we collaborate).
Scientists ask questions. Engineers solve problems.
(Score: 2) by Pino P on Wednesday January 27 2016, @07:46PM
I guess it must differ by country. Groups of people with disabilities in some countries actually disprefer person-first language [rationalwiki.org] when it becomes awkward.