If we suddenly lived underground w/ no concept of time or whether it was night or day......?

Question

would we still sleep 8 hrs and eat 3 times a day? Or would we only sleep when tired, staying up for hours and hours at a time? Would it invigorate us or depress us?

WOW!! Such great answers, everybody!!

Answer 1

WOW nice question! It would most definitely depress us for the simple fact of lack of sun light 1st off. Then we would more then likely go nuts without knowing time because our life is based on time and so are animals just because you don't see a clock doesn't mean you can't tell it's noon or 5pm! And that is where the sun comes into play. We have internal clocks but when you lack the sun to base it off it throws things out of whack. Just look at the people who live up near the arctic circle and how they have problems with suicide during the sunless days of winter!

Answer 2

Not seeing light of day - nor sensing the sun rise or sun set - our bodies accept what we give it. It being life, meaning, changes. We adapt to changes and circumstances. Think irregular shift work systems - these require you to sleep duing the day one week, the next to be very much alive and awake. Yer body pushes its confusion through by making you feel ill when you least expect it - You become distanct from others who live by the natural laws and sun up sun down. It is not healthy - it is different and thats a health risk if you try to keep up with day people.
If you are depressed by such confusions in day-night-late-early relations then its best to assess the outcome seriously. Is it good for you? My belief is that it may be good for the economy and the working environment - but no good for the life you dream of and desire as the waking hours are diminished according to the plans made out.
Being capable of handling both is a very rare occurance - though not impossible. Most people adapt with time...it is getting time that is the hardest.

Answer 3

You sleep 8 hours and eat 3 times a day because that is YOUR schedule, not because you live above ground. There are plenty of people that live above ground that live exactly as you put it...they sleep when they are tired, eat when they are hungry, don't work a legit job, etc, ect.

Your schedule comes from self-disipline, not from the rising and setting of the sun.

Answer 4

They've already tested this theory. You would develop your own sleep schedule, but it would still be roughly 8 hours. Most people, without custom, eat twice a day with a couple of snacks. Based on the higher suicide rate in Alaska and in rainy states like Oregon, I would say you would tend to be depressed.

Answer 5

I've heard of an experiment where people were kept in an "ideal" environment (temperature, humidity, etc) with no clocks, and their sleep cycle became shorter and more frequent. I think they were sleeping in 4 hour blocks. Unfortunately, I can't find a web page that talks about this experiment, and I don't think they mentioned eating habits.

Answer 6

Have you ever been to a casino? It is the same environment. No outside lighting, no clocks, just lots of noise, people moving about, and oxygen pumped in to keep you awake. If you let your mind wander, you can be in there for 36 straight hours and not think of anything else, not even eating. They bring you drinks, so you don't have to worry about that. That is why it is so hard to get people who have gambling problems to stop gambling. They just forget about everything else.

Answer 7

well up in parts of alaska during the summer it is pretty much light out there the whole time barley getting dark at night and when you are there you seem to be less tired and able to play sports in the middle of the night so i guess it wouldnt sleep as much but im sure we would still eat as much

Answer 8

it doesn't matter if you live in total darkness without any knowledge of time or not..I'm retired so time means nothing..I get up around 3am and watch TV..have something to eat .later around 7am I go back to bed until 12 noon then have breakfast..do a few chores in the house ..have a meal about 7pm .watch TV until about 10pm -0100am ..awake when I do .and it goes around ..sometimes I've slept all through the day .I don't get depressed or bored..I'm easily pleased..

Answer 9

google circadian rhytms!
but if i remember right - the human clock is just a lil longer than the normal daily cycle so people who are left to 'their own devices' get progressively out of sink by about an hour a day

Answer 10

If in that situation you would fallow what ever your body says. You would sleep when tired and awake when fully rested and eat when hungry.