I went back to the states for winter vacation and on my flight back and I started thinking about how time is such an interesting concept. Every time I've gone from the U.S. to Japan, or even just different parts of the Americas, I've traveled through different time zones. In a sense, I'm a time-traveler. I've always enjoyed watching take-offs while sitting in a giant, metal structure that's stylistically falling from the sky until it somehow reaches its destination. All while being pampered by flight attendants and watching movies. It's a bizarre, yet interesting experience.
All of this has made me question what effect(s) time-travel would have on the body and mind. The main thing that comes to mind when I think of travel is jet lag. Jet lag, for anyone unfamiliar, is the sensation of fatigue that comes from riding an airplane and crossing over to another time zone. For example, when I went to visit the states I gained a day. Japan is 16 hours ahead of Seattle, so I lost a day when I came back from the U.S. and it all evened out in the end.
Our sense of time becomes distorted as our body's circadian rhythm (internal clock) is still used to the time we've been living in. This can cause some people to become nauseous, unable to sleep well, anxious, increase stress hormone production (namely cortisol), and even have problems with memory and concentration. I messaged a friend about this and she brought up a good point, are there any long-term side-effects? I did a quick search and sure enough it's been studied.
The study in question tested Syrian hamsters due to their precise circadian rhythms making them good control subjects. The results showed that effects persisted for a month for the single flight, but when I think of professions that involve frequent air-travel it made me wonder how that lifestyle would be. I work with many students who aspire to work in the aviation industry and I worry that they might end up stressed and depressed on a daily, anxiety-filled basis. But no job's perfect, eh?
If crossing time-zones that differ in mere hours has such effects on the body and mind, what would time-traveling to a different year or era have? There are various stories that talk about time-travel and explanations for possible obstacles we'd have to overcome in order to achieve it. When I think of them it makes me think that perhaps we have found a way to time-traveled in a controlled manner but haven't perfected a method of protecting us from the (potentially irreversible) effects such travel would have on us.
Looking beyond profession, I'm reminded of how Einstein theorized time to be relative. In a way we're all time-travelers. We're all just going at different rates, going with the flow at our own pace. Time doesn't even matter. It simply is.
Peace
All of this has made me question what effect(s) time-travel would have on the body and mind. The main thing that comes to mind when I think of travel is jet lag. Jet lag, for anyone unfamiliar, is the sensation of fatigue that comes from riding an airplane and crossing over to another time zone. For example, when I went to visit the states I gained a day. Japan is 16 hours ahead of Seattle, so I lost a day when I came back from the U.S. and it all evened out in the end.
Our sense of time becomes distorted as our body's circadian rhythm (internal clock) is still used to the time we've been living in. This can cause some people to become nauseous, unable to sleep well, anxious, increase stress hormone production (namely cortisol), and even have problems with memory and concentration. I messaged a friend about this and she brought up a good point, are there any long-term side-effects? I did a quick search and sure enough it's been studied.
The study in question tested Syrian hamsters due to their precise circadian rhythms making them good control subjects. The results showed that effects persisted for a month for the single flight, but when I think of professions that involve frequent air-travel it made me wonder how that lifestyle would be. I work with many students who aspire to work in the aviation industry and I worry that they might end up stressed and depressed on a daily, anxiety-filled basis. But no job's perfect, eh?
If crossing time-zones that differ in mere hours has such effects on the body and mind, what would time-traveling to a different year or era have? There are various stories that talk about time-travel and explanations for possible obstacles we'd have to overcome in order to achieve it. When I think of them it makes me think that perhaps we have found a way to time-traveled in a controlled manner but haven't perfected a method of protecting us from the (potentially irreversible) effects such travel would have on us.
Looking beyond profession, I'm reminded of how Einstein theorized time to be relative. In a way we're all time-travelers. We're all just going at different rates, going with the flow at our own pace. Time doesn't even matter. It simply is.
Peace
Any thoughts or stories?
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