TOULOUSE, France – Whoever said that rolling back the frontiers of science involves hard work?
Over the coming months, 14 European male volunteers will prove that indolence also has a key role to play in the quest for knowledge.
The volunteers are about to spend three months lying in bed in a scientific experiment designed to mimic the effects of weightlessness on the human body during long-haul space flights.
It’s not purely for the glory of science: Each participant that lasts the pace receives about $10,000 for his effort.
The study – the longest and most complex ever carried out in Europe – is being conducted in two phases at the Medes Space Clinic in Toulouse.
Scientists are keen to discover the optimal regime of drugs and exercise to keep astronauts in shape during long missions to the International Space Station or future manned missions to Mars.
Previous long-stay missions in space show that life in zero gravity can cause muscle wastage, disrupt the blood circulation and alter bone structure.
The current experiment, sponsored by the European (ESA), French (CNES) and Japanese (NASDA) space agencies, is also expected to yield direct benefits in caring for people afflicted with osteoporosis or muscle-wasting diseases.
While three months in bed might sound like a loafer’s ideal job, organizers are quick to acknowledge that such an extended lie-in is not for the faint-hearted.
"It might sound an easy way to make money, but the truth is that the participants endure a good deal of mental strain being confined to bed for three months," said Benny Elmann-Larsen, a project leader with the European Space Agency.
"I think the psychological pressure of not being able to do simple things that we all take for granted is what most of the participants find hardest to come to terms with."
To mimic the effects of weightlessness, volunteers rest in bed in the classic "tilt position," with the feet raised slightly, at an angle of 6 degrees. One group does periodic exercise, a second is given a course of drugs and a third – the control group –- does nothing.
All of their daily tasks, including eating, washing (using a specially adapted shower) and going to the toilet, are carried out in the tilted position.
Because the study has to be as homogenous as possible, only male candidates aged between 25 and 45 were selected. While this attracted some accusations of sexism, Benny Elmann-Larsen says that the only considerations in drawing up the lists were scientific.
"What’s important is what we can learn from these studies –- and the experts agreed that the best way to proceed was to select a clearly defined group of subjects. We would very much like to conduct similar studies using exclusively female volunteers in the future," he said.
When not directly involved in medical experiments, the test subjects are able to read, play games, watch TV and use computers. They can also talk to loved ones, relatives and friends on the telephone, although no personal visits are allowed.
Elmann-Larsen says that applicants are motivated to become volunteers by a number of factors, but money is never the main reason.
"If money is their main motivator, then they won’t last the pace, and we’ll usually spot those kind of applicants early in the screening process. I think most of them do it for some kind of personal challenge or as a change from their usual routine or because it fits in well with their schedule." he said.
Pascal Delavaux, a French teacher who was one of the first batch of volunteers to complete the program, agreed that staying in bed for three months forced participants to test their powers of endurance. "I like this kind of thing. A few years ago, I did the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela (in northern Spain) on foot. It was 1,500 kilometers and a fantastic inner voyage. This was a bit the same," he said.