DEEP TIME
An expedition beyond time
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Deep Climate
For 40 days, 15 people at the heart of an unprecedented expedition
During an exceptional period, an extraordinary expedition, in France: 40 days underground to learn the links between our brains and time, as well as with the capacity of functional synchronization within a group. This is a fundamental need for our future.
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On April 24, one of the most incredible human scientific expeditions of recent years ended: DEEP TIME “an exceptional scientific experiment never before carried out in a group” says Christian Clot. 15 team members who came to live in the Lombrives cave in Ariège, without access to sunlight or any time indicator, left the cave this morning at 10:30 am, after 40 days underground.
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“The announcement of the exit was for the team members, most of whom were only at the 30th cycle, or 30 days for them. ".
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The goals of this mission:
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understand the adaptation of cerebral plasticity linked to time, the impacts of desynchronization in the face of a new life situation and the ability of a human group to find functional synchronization, when immersed in a totally new universe and in the absence of one of its major landmarks: time.
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“To date, there are no studies that allow us to know what is really going on in our brains in real life when they are living it. There were few opportunities to carry out scientific experiments, in conditions as specific as this one, ”Christian Clot reminds us. “This requires very specific experimental protocols, outside the laboratories, with innovative but well-tested methodologies” according to Stéphane Besnard, one of the scientific directors of the project.
It is a success in several respects. On the one hand, during the 40 days, more than 50 scientific protocols were carried out, from genetics to olfactory perceptions. On the other hand, despite difficult environmental conditions (10 ° C and 100% constant humidity, without natural light or time indicators), the design of the mission made the life of the group possible and to show the evolution of '' a collective synchronicities allowing the realization of the various works of the mission. The energy and will of Christian Clot and his teammates did the rest. This is how they arrived together at the end of the mission with a certain pleasure and the collective desire to continue it.
In addition to this, you will need to know more about it.
In addition to this, you will need to know more about it.
Conceived and directed by explorer-researcher Christian Clot for the Human Adaptation Institute, which was among the 15 underground, this mission brings together around thirty scientists from a dozen organizations, which conducted dozens of protocols before, during and after this voluntary confinement. Neurobiologist, ethologist, geneticist, cardiologist, psychologist and others, they will study this group both individually (cerebral plasticity, rhythm of life, biology, chronobiology, emotions, etc.) and collectively (group functioning, synchronicity, organizational systems, etc.).
WHY DEEP TIME?
Following the confinements and restrictions due to covid-19, which plunged 70% into states of mild or profound mental fatigue and caused nearly 40% of people to lose track of time (covadapt, 2020), and so As the changes will be more profound and numerous in the future, it is necessary to better understand human adaptive mechanisms in real life situations. This is the goal of the Grande Missions Adaptations, of which DEEP TIME is one.
While the work carried out by the precursor Michel Siffre has made it possible to better understand the human biological rhythms in isolated individuals, this research expedition will make it possible to study the human brain and its relationship to time and its plasticity in the face of a new situation of life as well as a mixed group rather than an isolated person, which has never been done in these conditions before. New living conditions, installation on new planets, work in restricted conditions, and more generally management of the profound changes that ecological changes or new technologies could make us undergo are possible applications of the results of the studies carried out during DEEP TIME.
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A scientific and social necessity
Today, it is necessary to carry out studies in a real situation, in which the subjects are evaluated before, during and after, allowing a precise evaluation of their evolution in the face of these new conditions. In a natural environment, we keep the fine perception of a real life translated via the emotions provoked by the environment, our sensoriality and our aptitude for wonder!
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These contextualizations, in concreto, allow more precise observations, taking into account the sensory and emotional set that influences our decisions and actions at every moment of our lives. The chosen setting is not trivial since it brings natural sensations that are essential when studying humans when they are placed in new living conditions, fundamentally confusing for the mind and body.
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The base camp, a true demonstrator of the means of installing a place of life in improbable places, makes it possible to carry out our protocols by considering many key scientific parameters. Likewise, we benefit from the most advanced tools to carry out this project, as well as all the rigor necessary for the collection of data that will advance research, particularly in the axis of a better understanding of a potential future. more and more linked to the confinements of society.
A mixed and non-professional group
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Led by Christian Clot, they were 7 women and 7 men from 27 to 50 years old to lead the adventure. Chosen after a rigorous process, they are neither professional nor specialist in difficult conditions, and come from different socio-professional backgrounds: communication manager, jeweler, rope access technician, analyst, teacher, biologist… It is essential today to carry out this work on mixed groups, still too absent from scientific protocols.
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Why a cave, why Lombrives?
Rather than a laboratory or a bunker, a natural environment makes it possible to experience sensory emotions and a real relationship with an ecosystem while guaranteeing the absence of temporal benchmarks. Lombrives, the largest cave in Europe, also allows you to move around and explore a vast territory. Fundamental concepts for our adaptability.
Inside, places of life, science and basic habitats have been installed in order to create possible living conditions, and the cave itself is an important ground of discovery.
