Last month an experiment was carried out by British Airways to study the reaction of people on the night flights over changing time zones. Special types of high-tech blankets were used to perform this experiment. The blankets were given the name of “happiness blankets”. We tell you more about this study.
Last month an experiment was conducted to study the reaction of the people on long haul flights, involving changing time zones. The experiment was conducted on British Airways 189 Dreamliner flight from Heathrow airport to the New York. The volunteer passengers were given high-tech blankets named as happiness blankets. In fact these blankets did not actually make passengers happy rather they were used to measure as to how relaxed the passengers were feeling and how to tackle the issue of jet lag.
The passengers who fly frequently are mostly affected by the jet lag. The internal clocks of the human try to catch up with the shift in the day’s natural rhythms with changing time zones. The experiment tells us that in fact it is the totally controlled nature of the flights from the moment we enter the boarding airport and the moment we get out of the landing station that makes the experience stressing. The solution is to tweak these rules and let the passengers relax and even sleep. The purpose of the experiment is to make the people more comfortable when time zone is changed.
The blanket measures the mood of the passenger which is achieved by the neurosensors embedded in the headband of the passengers. The neurosensors basically read the brain waves with the red indication of least relaxation and blue meaning maximum relaxation. It looks as if these blankets are more of a marketing stunt than a science jargon. As it is a nice way to attract. In this way, the British Airways can also learn how to make the passengers more relaxed and happy by adjusting different factors in cabin. The company wants their customers to enjoy the sleep during the journey.
Getting a sleep in a long journey is an effective requirement to reset the internal body clock and passengers feel much more relaxed and happy on arrival. The recommendation of the british airways to the passengers are not to eat too much before boarding, no use of caffeine and they must be hydrated. The passengers should avoid the alcohol, playing games and work. These recommendations are made to nullify the effect of the jet lag. To have a relaxing sleep, the light must be put off from the face, the sleep mask must be used and to improve the circulation, the shoes must be removed. To keep the noise out of the ears, ear plugs must be used.