Mogilever Nicolette B, Zuccarelli Lucrezia, Burles Ford, Iaria Giuseppe, Strapazzon Giacomo, Bessone Loredana, Coffey Emily B J
Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Department of Medicine, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
Front Hum Neurosci. 2018 Oct 30;12:407. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2018.00407. eCollection 2018.
Renewed interest in human space exploration has highlighted the gaps in knowledge needed for successful long-duration missions outside low-Earth orbit. Although the technical challenges of such missions are being systematically overcome, many of the unknowns in predicting mission success depend on human behavior and performance, knowledge of which must be either obtained through space research or extrapolated from human experience on Earth. Particularly in human neuroscience, laboratory-based research efforts are not closely connected to real environments such as human space exploration. As caves share several of the physical and psychological challenges of spaceflight, underground expeditions have recently been developed as a spaceflight analog for astronaut training purposes, suggesting that they might also be suitable for studying aspects of behavior and cognition that cannot be fully examined under laboratory conditions. Our objective is to foster a bi-directional exchange between cognitive neuroscientists and expedition experts by (1) describing the cave environment as a worthy space analog for human research, (2) reviewing work conducted on human neuroscience and cognition within caves, (3) exploring the range of topics for which the unique environment may prove valuable as well as obstacles and limitations, (4) outlining technologies and methods appropriate for cave use, and (5) suggesting how researchers might establish contact with potential expedition collaborators. We believe that cave expeditions, as well as other sorts of expeditions, offer unique possibilities for cognitive neuroscience that will complement laboratory work and help to improve human performance and safety in operational environments, both on Earth and in space.
对人类太空探索重新燃起的兴趣凸显了在低地球轨道以外成功进行长期任务所需的知识差距。尽管此类任务的技术挑战正在被系统地克服，但预测任务成功的许多未知因素取决于人类行为和表现，而这方面的知识必须通过太空研究获得，或者从人类在地球上的经验推断而来。特别是在人类神经科学领域，基于实验室的研究工作与诸如人类太空探索等实际环境联系并不紧密。由于洞穴具有太空飞行的一些物理和心理挑战，最近地下探险已被开发为用于宇航员训练目的的太空飞行模拟环境，这表明它们也可能适用于研究在实验室条件下无法充分检验的行为和认知方面。我们的目标是促进认知神经科学家与探险专家之间的双向交流，方法包括：（1）将洞穴环境描述为适合人类研究的有价值的太空模拟环境；（2）回顾在洞穴内进行的关于人类神经科学和认知的研究工作；（3）探索这个独特环境可能具有价值的一系列主题以及障碍和局限性；（4）概述适用于洞穴使用的技术和方法；（5）建议研究人员如何与潜在的探险合作者建立联系。我们相信，洞穴探险以及其他各类探险为认知神经科学提供了独特的可能性，将补充实验室工作，并有助于提高地球上和太空中实际操作环境下的人类表现和安全性。
