1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:11,000 Hi, I'm Lynn Swann, formerly of the Pittsburgh Steelers. 2 00:00:11,000 --> 00:00:16,520 On this episode of NASA Connect, astronauts and NASA researchers will help you learn why 3 00:00:16,520 --> 00:00:20,320 having the right ratio of rest is important. 4 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:26,000 Students will construct a tool for visualizing fractions as they learn about rational numbers, 5 00:00:26,000 --> 00:00:27,480 all on NASA Connect. 6 00:00:27,480 --> 00:00:34,480 The right ratio of rest, proportional reasoning. 7 00:00:57,480 --> 00:01:13,480 R.J.? R.J., wake up. 8 00:01:13,480 --> 00:01:17,480 Oh, hey, Jen. 9 00:01:17,480 --> 00:01:20,480 How you doing? 10 00:01:20,480 --> 00:01:22,480 R.J., I'm doing fine. 11 00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:23,480 The question is how you're doing. 12 00:01:23,480 --> 00:01:24,480 You look beat. 13 00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:25,480 Are you okay? 14 00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:27,480 I've just been really tired lately. 15 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:29,480 I even fall asleep in class. 16 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:30,480 You know what? 17 00:01:30,480 --> 00:01:31,480 Today my teacher had to wake me up. 18 00:01:31,480 --> 00:01:32,480 You're kidding me. 19 00:01:32,480 --> 00:01:33,480 That's not good. 20 00:01:33,480 --> 00:01:34,480 R.J., what's going on? 21 00:01:34,480 --> 00:01:37,480 Uh, track meets and practice keep me pretty busy, and I have to stay up late every night 22 00:01:37,480 --> 00:01:38,480 doing my homework. 23 00:01:38,480 --> 00:01:41,480 I mean, it's hard for me to get up in the morning, and I can't seem to keep my head 24 00:01:41,480 --> 00:01:42,480 up during class. 25 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:43,480 I mean, I'm beat. 26 00:01:43,480 --> 00:01:46,480 R.J., you know, if you keep going like this, you're going to burn out. 27 00:01:46,480 --> 00:01:49,480 You know, have you ever heard of the term biological clock? 28 00:01:49,480 --> 00:01:51,480 Isn't that where your body has to be in sync? 29 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:52,480 Sort of. 30 00:01:52,480 --> 00:01:57,480 A more scientific way of talking about your biological clock is the term circadian clock. 31 00:01:57,480 --> 00:02:03,480 Now, this is when your sleep period and your activity period are coordinated with the environmental 32 00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:05,480 dark and light cycle. 33 00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:11,480 The circadian clock acts as a master control to ensure that the various systems of the 34 00:02:11,480 --> 00:02:16,480 body, the nervous system, the respiratory system, the cardiovascular system, and others 35 00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:18,480 work together. 36 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:23,480 Now, if your clock is out of sync, your health and performance will be negatively affected. 37 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:32,480 Now, R.J., from what you're telling me, it sounds to me like your lack of sleep is affecting 38 00:02:32,480 --> 00:02:35,480 your ability to stay awake in class and focus. 39 00:02:35,480 --> 00:02:39,480 We've already talked about how NASA is researching good nutrition and exercise, remember? 40 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:43,480 Well, you know, NASA's also researching sleep as well. 41 00:02:43,480 --> 00:02:48,480 Astronauts on the International Space Station work long hours performing critical tasks. 42 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:51,480 A lot of attention is paid to their sleep schedule. 43 00:02:51,480 --> 00:02:56,480 Astronauts don't experience normal dark and light cycles like we do on Earth. 44 00:02:56,480 --> 00:02:57,480 How so? 45 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:02,480 Well, in order to stay in orbit around the Earth, the ISS travels close to 17,500 miles 46 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:06,480 per hour, or 27,880 kilometers per hour. 47 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:11,480 The ISS orbits the Earth about 16 times every 24 hours. 48 00:03:11,480 --> 00:03:15,480 That means the astronauts experience a sunrise every 90 minutes. 49 00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:19,480 Now consider what astronauts will face when we return to the moon. 50 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:22,480 Once the sun rises on the moon, it won't set for a week. 51 00:03:22,480 --> 00:03:25,480 And then it will be dark for an entire week. 52 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:26,480 Get this. 53 00:03:26,480 --> 00:03:31,480 During missions into space, astronauts can lose up to two hours of sleep per night. 54 00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:36,480 Now, after a two-week mission of orbiting in space, they've accumulated such a sleep deficit, 55 00:03:36,480 --> 00:03:39,480 they are fighting for a bed when they get home. 56 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:44,480 You see, R.J., your extreme schedule has you facing a circadian challenge, much like the 57 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:47,480 astronauts do, on a much smaller scale. 58 00:03:47,480 --> 00:03:48,480 Wow. 59 00:03:48,480 --> 00:03:50,480 I'm facing a challenge like the astronauts. 60 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:52,480 You know, R.J., I have a great idea. 61 00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:56,480 Why don't you search the Internet for some more information on the circadian clock? 62 00:03:56,480 --> 00:04:00,480 And make sure your information comes from reliable sources, like the NASA portal. 63 00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:04,480 You know, speaking of NASA, I bet you could contact some NASA researchers and find out 64 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:06,480 what NASA is doing in this field. 65 00:04:06,480 --> 00:04:08,480 I bet you could get some really great information. 66 00:04:08,480 --> 00:04:10,480 Okay, Jen, I'll get on it when I get home. 67 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:12,480 Don't forget your homework, and please get some rest first. 68 00:04:12,480 --> 00:04:13,480 Oh, sure. 69 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:14,480 Yeah, I'll let you know what I find out. 70 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:15,480 See you later. 71 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:16,480 Okay. 72 00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:20,480 You know, lack of rest and sleep is an issue for many people. 73 00:04:20,480 --> 00:04:23,480 Think about spring and fall when we change our clocks. 74 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:26,480 Do you have difficulty adjusting to the new time? 75 00:04:26,480 --> 00:04:31,480 How about when you go from your summertime routine to your fall school routine? 76 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:34,480 Now, if you're like most kids in the summertime, you stay up late at night, 77 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:36,480 and you might sleep later in the morning. 78 00:04:36,480 --> 00:04:40,480 Do you have trouble adjusting your biological clock for school? 79 00:04:40,480 --> 00:04:45,480 A University of Michigan medical study found teachers report that 10 percent of their students 80 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:48,480 have trouble staying awake in their class. 81 00:04:48,480 --> 00:04:50,480 Are you one of these students? 82 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:55,480 Well, while RJ does his research, here are a few things you and your teacher need to know 83 00:04:55,480 --> 00:04:57,480 about today's NASA Connect program. 84 00:04:57,480 --> 00:05:00,480 During the course of the show, your teacher will stop the program 85 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:03,480 and ask you several inquiry-based questions. 86 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:07,480 This is your time to explore and become critical thinkers. 87 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:10,480 And here is Derek with your first question. 88 00:05:10,480 --> 00:05:13,480 Our friend Norbert is from the planet Norbania, 89 00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:18,480 where a normal day, or a light-dark cycle, is 24 hours, just like it is here on Earth. 90 00:05:18,480 --> 00:05:23,480 One day, he and his dog, Zot, decided to visit other bodies in our solar system on their space scooters. 91 00:05:23,480 --> 00:05:26,480 They visited Mars, Europa, and Neptune. 92 00:05:26,480 --> 00:05:29,480 Mars has a light-dark cycle close to that of Earth. 93 00:05:29,480 --> 00:05:33,480 Europa, a moon of Jupiter, has a light-dark cycle of about 85 hours, 94 00:05:33,480 --> 00:05:37,480 and Neptune has a light-dark cycle of about 16 hours. 95 00:05:37,480 --> 00:05:41,480 Norbert and Zot are from a planet with a 24-hour light-dark cycle. 96 00:05:41,480 --> 00:05:45,480 So what are some of the sleep challenges they will face as they explore these other bodies? 97 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:49,480 Teachers, now it's time to pause the program and discuss this with your class. 98 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:51,480 So, how'd you do? 99 00:05:51,480 --> 00:05:54,480 We'll get back to Norbert and Zot a little bit later in the show, 100 00:05:54,480 --> 00:05:56,480 but first, let's see how RJ's doing.