(Session held at the 2014 SharpBrains Virtual Summit; October 28-30th, 2014) 3–4:15pm. Max­i­miz­ing the peak per­for­mance of astro­nauts, leaders…and every­one else - Dr. Susan Jew­ell, Pres­i­dent of the Inter­na­tional Space Med­i­cine Consortium - Dr. Robert Bilder, Chief of Med­ical Psychology-Neuropsychology at UCLA Semel Insti­tute for Neuroscience - Dr. Bill Reich­man, Pres­i­dent of Baycrest - Chair: Rajiv Pant, Chief Tech­nol­ogy Offi­cer of The New York Times Learn more here: http://sharpbrains.com/summit-2014/agenda/

1. Maximizing the peak performance of
astronauts, leaders…and everyone else

2. Sponsors
Welcome!

3. Maximizing the peak performance of
astronauts, leaders…and everyone else
Chaired by: Rajiv Pant,
Chief Technology Officer of
The New York Times
Dr. Susan Jewell,
President of the International
Space Medicine Consortium
Dr. Robert Bilder,
Director of the Tennenbaum Center
For The Biology of Creativity
Dr. Bill Reichman,
President of Baycrest

4. Maximizing the peak performance of
astronauts, leaders…and everyone else
Dr. Susan Jewell,
President of International
Space Medicine Consortium

5. THE INTEGRATION OF YOGA AND MINDFULNESS MEDITATION AS
COUNTERMEASURES FOR MAINTAINING ANALOG ASTRONAUTS
MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLNESS DURING ISOLATION AND
CONFINEMENT IN AN EXTREME ENVIRONMENT
Susan Jewell MD
SharpBrains Virtual Summit 2014
28th October 2014
Contact: drjewellmd@gmail.com

6. NASA MISSION OBJECTIVE
NASA has a crew health risk mitigation directorate for a
human performance and operational readiness need for
technology (Technology Readiness Level, TRL) that
address the serious adaptive changes in:
- psychological (fatigue, sleep disorder, stress,
depression)
- physiological (eg cardiovascular function, muscle
atrophy and deconditioning, bone loss) in crew
members engaged in long-duration missions.

7. Research Objectives
 A qualitative, anecdotal protocol development and
feasibility pilot study assessing utility and benefits of yoga
and meditation as possible countermeasures to maintain
mental health and wellness with MarsCrew134 during a
two-week Mars simulation Analog Astronaut Expedition at
MDRS.
 Conduct further iterations of the study to include
quantitative data collection and to test the integration of
technologies, ie, VR and Google Glass, as potential yoga
and meditation delivery platforms for training mental
resilience and maintaining wellness with
MarsWithoutBorders, MWOB, MarsCrew145 during a two-week
Mars simulation Analog Astronaut Expedition at
MDRS.

8. PHYSIOLOGICAL DECONDITiONING: SPACE AFFECTS ALL SYSTEMS IN THE HUMAN BODY
FACE: bodily fluids migrate upwards , facial swelling,
sinus congestion, bulging veins, increases ICP vision
changes
HEAD: Inner ear sensors misinterpret motion causing
nausea, vertigo
SPINE;: reduce spinal compression causes elongation
of spine ( 2-3 inches)
STOMACH: motion sickness causes queasiness and
vomiting
KIDNEY: Bone loss raises calcium levels and spurs
growth of kidney stones
BONES: vertebrae, hips, femur lose 1 percent of mass
per month
MUSCLES: weight-bearing muscles atrophy due to
lack of use
LEGS: fluid redistribution causes leg shrinkage
FEET: touch & pressure receptors no longer signal
which way is down causing disorientation
Image : US News Special edition

9. PSYCHOLOGICAL “SPACE STUPIDS”
Article published BBC Online Report, 7th October 2014, entitled
“Why astronauts get the ‘space stupids” ( Author Dave Robson):
wrote
“…Life on the International Space Station can be
discombobulating (SPL)…Space can do strange things to the
mind, from warped thinking to eerie feelings of disorientation..”
- “Strange experience faced by astronauts: spatial disorientation,
distorted vision, duller thinking, hallucinations and mood
disturbances. Such experiences or “Space Stupids” could
potentially put future missions in jeopardy…”
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20141007-why-astronauts-get-space-stupid

10. EARTH MARS ANALOG ENVIRONMENTS
NASA FUNDED HISEAS: Hawaii Space Exploration Analog Simulation
FMARS:Flashline Mars Artic Research Station, Mars Society
Concordia Station, Antarctic: ESA / Italian /French Polar Institutes
Credit: Mars Society/ HISEAS / ESA/ IPEV

11. Space and Mind
Problems in Space Flight and Terrestrial Analog Environments
(Anecdoctal and Reported)
Anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, communication problems,
boredom, restless, performance decrement, Interpersonal conflicts,
Decline in group compatibility
(Adapted from P. Santy (1997) Fundamentals of Space Life Sciences. Churchill S (ed) Malabar FL: Krieger)
Adaptation to Isolation:
4 Phases of Isolation Adaptation
- 1st quarter: acute adaptation to the unusual environment
(hyper-excitation)
- 2nd quarter: stable adaptation (with fluctuation of the
psychological state)
- 3rd quarter: unstable adaptation (accompanied by accumulation
of fatigue, narrowing of the interests sphere, decrease of activity,
irritability, aggressivity)
- 4th quarter: “ final effort” period (euphoria, lack of self-control)
- end of isolation period is followed by “depressional state”
(extracted from The Mind in Space (Gilles Clement –ISU)

12. MARS ANALOG ENVIRONMENT
Mars Desert Research Station, MDRS
Credit: Staats/Jewell/Mars Society

13. Mars Desert Research Station, MDRS
Credit: Staats/Jewell

14. Mars Desert Research Station MDRS
• Total immersive Mars simulation
• Crew live, work, sleep, eat as Analog Astronauts
• Don and Duff Mock Spacesuits for EVAs
• Conduct Scientific Research, Beta-test concepts
• Develop technologies and capabilities
• Develop Mitigation Countermeasures
• Conduct Physiological, Psychological, Human
Factor Studies ( eg, crew cohesion Crew
selection)

15. MarsCrew134 Analog Astronaut Expedition
MDRS FIELD SEASON 2013-2014
Credit: MarsCrew134 / Staats/Jewell

16. Credit: Staats/Jewell

17. ASTRO-PSYCHOLOGY:
Qualitative Pre-pilot Study: YOGA as possible countermeasure
for Analog Astronaut mental health and wellness
Credit: Staats/Jewell

18. AIM: The aim was to develop countermeasures and “tools" for
maintaining psychological health and wellness and increase mental
resilience of crews living in extreme environments and during long
duration space missions.
METHOD:
- Participants were introduced to two “familiarization" sessions for the
meditation sessions and two basic yoga exercises sessions prior to
start of simulation.
- An initial baseline status was determined for each crew member prior
to mission insertion.
MEDITATION:
- The project used the online pre-programmed Mindfulness Meditation
audio guided meditation programs from Mindful Awareness Research
Center (MARC).The Mp3 recordings were downloaded to crew
computers.
- - The daily 20 minute sessions were conducted in the evenings and led
by a crew medical officer.

19. YOGA
A crew member experienced in yoga was assigned to lead the daily morning
sessions. Each session lasted 30 minutes.
EVALUATION /ASSESSMENT:
- Crewmembers completed daily questionnaires after each session to document
subjective feedback and self-evaluation and data was collected for analysis.
- Debriefing video interview recordings were obtained at the end of the
mission.
The information gathered were qualitative, nonsystematic, voluntary subjective
reactions. The anecdotal observations could provide the basis of future
systematic studies in longer duration analogue simulations. The long-term
objective was to develop and expand the project into a more comprehensive
research study and collation of quantitative data measurements.

20. “NAO” humanoid Robotic Yoga Teacher
Credit: Staats

21. “Dying Fly” Pose for Space Exploration
Credit: Staats

22. MINDFULNESS MEDITATION
during Analog Astronaut Mars Simulations
Credit: Staats /Jewell

23. Mars Analog Astronaut Expedition
MDRS FIELD SEASON 2014-2015
13th December – 29th December
Crew Commander *Remote Mission Support team
Crew Health & Safety Officer, HSO *Remote Researchers /Collaborators
Crew Executive Officer, XO /Geologist
Crew Scientist/ Filmmaker
Crew Scientist/Astronomer
Crew Engineer/Robotics
Crew Artist-in-Residence

24. Upcoming MDRS 2014-2015 Field Season:
A Quantitative Study using Yoga and Meditation in Analog
Astronauts during isolation and confinement
• Aim 1: test feasibility, utility and benefits of yoga and meditation
• Aim 2: test feasibility, utility and benefits of delivery of yoga and meditation
as a Virtual Instructor using Virtual Reality (VR) and Google Glass
• Collect quantitative data: EEG, Thermal Imaging, Biometric data, Biological
Samples ( saliva, Urine) for biomakers of stress (cortisol) and inflammatory
responses ( IL6, IL8, TNF)
Credit: NCAM

25. 3D Holographic Instructors
Yoga & Meditation Assistance Avatar
Credit: Forever Identity

26. TAKE HOME MESSAGES:
Currently, major limiting factors for success criteria in any long-duration human exploratory
mission beyond low-earth-orbit (LEO) is the psychological and physiological components of
the mind and body in microgravity and extreme environments of Space including the
negative mental health effects of isolation and confinement. Maintaining astronaut mental
health and wellness and mitigation countermeasure development is an important “gap”
that needs to be addressed and resolved for successful long-duration exploratory space
missions and future colonization of world planets, such as, Mars.
Development and Integration of Yoga and Mindfulness Meditation Astronaut Training
Program to maintain health and wellness during long-duration missions, in isolation and
confinement, can potentially increase positive group interactions, improve crew selection
process, increase the psychological training of “mental resilience”, and provide
psychological support to astronauts. More research is needed to be done in this area of
mental health.
Development of a totally integrated human-computer–interface and incorporation of
cutting-edge technologies to provide a VIRTUAL Avatar will allow an independent,
autonomous crew to become untethered to Earth.
Terrestrial ”spin-off” benefits can apply to many populations living in isolation and
confinement on Earth, such as, military soldiers pre-post engagement; controlling
aggression and violence in prison inmates; support for elderly and infirmed ( geriatric
population); natural disaster areas and remote regions.

27. We would like to thank the following:
MarsCrew134 Team
MarsCrew145 Team MWOB
Mars Desert Research Station, MDRS
The Mars Society
Emotiv
Neuroelectric
Aldebaran, Inc
Robotslab
FOREVER Identity
Contact Information:
Susan Jewell MD email: drjewellmd@gmail.com
cell: 310-909-4894 skype: drjewellmd
www.MarsWithoutborders.org
www. spacemedicineconsortium.org
www.MarsCrew134.org

28. Maximizing the peak performance of
astronauts, leaders…and everyone else
Dr. Robert Bilder,
Director of the Tennenbaum
Center for the Biology of Creativity

29. Brain Optimization and the
Neuroscience of Creativity
Robert M Bilder, PhD
Director, Tennenbaum Center for the Biology of Creativity
Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior
UCLA

30. personal brain management
technology and design for health and happiness
Robert M Bilder PhD
Michael E. Tennenbaum Family Chair of Creativity Research
Professor of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Professor of Psychology, UCLA College of Letters & Science
Director, Consortium for Neuropsychiatric Phenomics
Director, Tennenbaum Family Center for the Biology of Creativity

31. http://ctn.uwaterloo.ca/
Next stage of human
evolution:
Using what we
know about the
brain to change
how it works.

32. brain-mind-wellness
personal brain
management
UCLA Summer Institute: 2012 - present

35. UCLA Brain Fitness Center Program
• Personalized LifeMapping
– History, stress/trauma mapping, “Mind Sherpa”
– Assess long-term values, goals, objectives
– Assess current brain, coping, relationship assets
– Catalog current daily, weekly cycles, sleep, nutrition
– Create future-directed trajectory, visualization
– Specify concrete action plans, implementation
• Comprehensive customized program: cognitive
exercise, physical exercise, nutrition, medications,
sleep, supplements, bio/neurofeedback …

37. UCLA Stress &
Resilience
Assessment
Supported by:
The American
Association of Colleges
& Universities, and the
UCLA Healthy Campus
Initiative

38. The UCLA Brain Grand Challenge:
Eliminating the Burden of Depression

41. Creativity = The Edge of Chaos?
• Creativity = balance between
flexibility (novelty) and stability
(utility or value)
• Edge of Chaos: boundary between
the “chaotic regime” (catastrophic
entropy) and the “ordered regime”
(rigid, constant)
• On the edge of chaos, self-organizing
systems maximize
adaptation to novel environments
• Tennenbaum Center focus – cross-species,
across-modalities:
• Novelty generation
• Response inhibition
• Working memory

42. Functional Mapping from Circuits to Symptoms
Do symptoms or diagnosis add useful prediction over basic measures of circuit,
cognitive or neuropsychological measures?
Disability
(WHODAS 2.0)
Diagnosis
(DSM-V)
Symptom
(CIDI, DSM-CC,
BPRS, PROMIS)
Neuropsych
(5 indicators)
Cognitive
(8 indicators)
Circuit
(5 fMRI, 3 sMRI/
DTI, 6 EEG
indicators)
To avoid extreme group bias,
sampling strategy is agnostic to
diagnosis, and comprises two
groups:
- Care-seeking
- Not Care-seeking
Diagnoses assigned after
enrollment, as one of the
dependent variables under study
Multi-Level Assays of Working Memory and Psychopathology: R01 MH101478

43. Are Big-C creatives outliers?

44. Many thanks!
rbilder@mednet.ucla.edu
310.825.9474
http://www.semel.ucla.edu/creativity
http://healthy.ucla.edu

45. Maximizing the peak performance of
astronauts, leaders…and everyone else
Dr. Bill Reichman,
President of Baycrest

46. Maximizing Peak
Performance across the lifespan
William E. Reichman

47. I want to age with dignity.
I want to live an active life.
I want to live independently.
I want to continue learning new things.
I want to enjoy life to its fullest.
I am age agnostic.
I like nice things.
I love my family.
47
Bryce Rutter

48. • Established 1918
• Headquartered on a 22 acre campus in Toronto, Canada
• An academic continuing care retirement community (800
residents + 300 bed rehab hospital)
• Fully affiliated with the University of Toronto
• Home to the Rotman Research Institute for cognitive
neuroscience
• Serving up to 1500 older adults a day; 2000 active volunteers
• Training provided for 1500 students per year ; global
tele-education
Health Sciences
48

49. Our Vision
We will transform the experience
of aging through leading
innovations in brain health,
wellness promotion, and
approaches to care that enrich
the lives of older adults.
49 49
Health Sciences

50. • Driving innovation through integrated care, research
and education that links patients, family caregivers,
volunteers, healthcare workers, researchers, visiting
scholars and industry (a living laboratory)
• Developing, evaluating, disseminating and
commercializing new models of care and supportive
technologies, for the prevention, early diagnosis,
rehabilitation, and treatment of age-related disorders
• 2 spin-off companies: Cogniciti and Baycrest Global
Solutions
50
50
Health Sciences

51. An Interdisciplinary Team

52. Examples: Product Testing and Technology
Innovation
52

53. 53 53
Examples: Product Testing and Technology
Innovation

54. Art on the Brain
A brain fitness product designed for older adults
experiencing cognitive decline featuring art education,
wordplay exercises, and an online community of users.
54

55. Art in Community:
Mobile Painting
Device
Exploring
Space, Color,
Pattern
55

56. &
Dancers from the National Ballet
School, Dancing with Parkinson’s,
and Dance Exchange conduct
classes focusing on
communication and creative
expression through dance
56

57. Volunteerism:
The Bravo Project
57 57
Health Sciences
 200 people aged 55+
(mostly retirees)
 Studying the effects of volunteering on the physical,
cognitive, and mental health of volunteers
Anderson, N. D., Damianakis, T., Kröger, E. et al. (August 25, 2014). The protective benefits of volunteering
against functional decline and dementia: A critical review and recommendations for future research.
Psychological Bulletin. doi:10.1037/a0037610.

58. 5588

59. Baycrest Learning Academy
59
Courses taught by University
professors and offered weekly for
eight consecutive weeks.
Last semester offerings:
History of American Popular Music
Fashion, Makeup, and Hairstyling,
1900’s – present.
The Archaeology of Israel: from
Abraham to Zedekiah
Women and Cinema: the Enduring
Images of Women in American Films

60. Health Sciences
Come visit us to learn more
www.baycrest.org

61.  To learn more, visit SharpBrains.com