ABSTRACT
Part I of this book discussed historical and methodological aspects of research in circadian physiology, while Part II examined the phenomenology of circadian rhythms. Endogenous and environmental mechanisms that control circadian rhythms were discussed in Part III. Part IV addressed the cellular and molecular substrates of circadian rhythms. It is now time to try to relate these fundamental principles to the complexity of human life. The four chapters in Part V discuss the optimal time of day for human performance (Chapter 14), the economic and medical implications of shift work and jet lag (Chapter 15), the application of circadian physiology to the diagnosis and treatment of human diseases (Chapter 16), and the application of circadian physiology to veterinary medicine (Chapter 17). In this chapter, the discussion of optimal timing for human performance starts here on Earth (Section 14.1) and later considers the issue of space exploration (Section 14.2).
