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No more G.I. joe
Sleepy soldiers have something new to chew on: Caffeine gum
http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/TorontoSun/News/2003/10/29/240148.html
By Thane Burnett
CFB PETAWAWA -- Canadian and American scientists are gathered here today, evaluating a seventh-generation bit of military technology, which could help soldiers win over the night. The code name for the three-day test -- which began yesterday inside this large Royal Canadian Regiment barracks with about 30 jittery volunteers -- is Operation Nighthawk: Sustained Vigilance.
And it might be one of the only times in the history of modern military engineering when blowing every piece of software is expected.
Officials with Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) (which, in the past, boasted of putting together a Canadian Integrated Biological Detection System and advanced 3D modelling for urban warfare) are now testing sticks of Wrigley-made 'Stay Alert' chewing gum, laced with ordinary caffeine.
Complete with camouflaged wrappers, they're like a James Bond gizmo -- an ordinary bit of gum, that turns out to be, well, gum.
The tinfoil wrapped candy may help the average soldier stay awake longer than the enemy.
"The motto is, if you own the night, you (win) the war," Dr. Tom McClelland, a researcher with DRDC told the army volunteers, who sat on bleachers in their combat gear -- many with their morning coffees resting at their feet.
Behind him on a large screen, flashed data, which chronicles the price of a tired soldier.
NOTHING NEW
Tests done on U.S. Army Rangers with only a few hours of sleep over a 74-hour period, found that their mental state was the same as if they were more than three times the legal driving limit for alcohol.
"Why are we here? We're here to give you something to help reduce that ... impairment," McClelland said.
Caffeine -- the most widely used stimulant in the world -- is nothing new for soldiers. Since before the average Joe in the foxhole of World War II was brewing up cups of hot joe, infantrymen have counted on the kickback of coffee to stay alert.
Whenever they can't find a pot, they simply rip open a bag of ground coffee and chew it down.
But that ingested caffeine takes about 45 minutes to work. A stick of caffeinated gum takes just five minutes to filter through the tissue of the mouth.
The results, officials hope, will be eye-opening.
"When you're tired, lapses in concentration could cause ... death," Lt.-Col. Bernd Horn, director of Land Strategic Concepts for the Canadian military, told the men. "That is why this experiment is so important."
Last night, the volunteer soldiers here were given only three hours of sleep, after running 5 km, taking target practice on a nearby range and undergoing tests to gauge their mental prowess.
Tonight, as they continue their physical maneuvers and military mind games, they will go without sleep.
To combat fatigue, they'll each be given six pieces of gum in the double-blind exercise, where some sticks will be laced with caffeine -- each one equals about a small cup of coffee -- or regular gum.
Only one person involved in Operation Nighthawk, which also involves scientists from Washington's Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, knows who's chewing on placebos and who's gumming the real thing.
DELIVERY DIFFERENT
To help monitor the group over three days before Operation Nighthawk ends Thursday morning, Walter Reed researcher Dr. Gary Kamamori, plans to chew on a few sticks himself.
The spearmint taste (it also comes in mocha) is not the greatest, he noted.
"Caffeine is caffeine," American Col. Greg Belenky, head of the U.S. Army Sleep Lab, told the group, when one soldier asked if the sticks were addictive.
"What's different is its delivery."
There is a fine print warning on the gum that points out: "Too much caffeine may cause irritability, sleeplessness, and nervousness, and occasionally, rapid heartbeat." Its fair warning for men with guns.
In Desert Storm, Belenky watched as soldiers ripped open packs of Taster's Choice, and gobbled them down.
A few sticks of gum -- researchers have gone through six previous prototypes, trying to pin down the right chew -- may make that maneuver obsolete.
The cost of an average five-pack of gum is around 88 cents. The army gum costs about a dime more.
"It's not a budget-buster," Belenky pointed out.
For being military pioneers and doing without sleep, more than a tired jaw awaits the volunteers at the end of Operation Nighthawk tomorrow.
As well as trophies, defence officials are expected to bring in boxes of doughnuts.
And large cups of Tim Horton's coffee.
OK I'm curious about two things:
Are the wrappers in CADPAT?
How many Sgt. Majors are going to find this hard to swallow? (sorry couldn't resist that one)
Seriously anybody on the board involved in this test?
Sleepy soldiers have something new to chew on: Caffeine gum
http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/TorontoSun/News/2003/10/29/240148.html
By Thane Burnett
CFB PETAWAWA -- Canadian and American scientists are gathered here today, evaluating a seventh-generation bit of military technology, which could help soldiers win over the night. The code name for the three-day test -- which began yesterday inside this large Royal Canadian Regiment barracks with about 30 jittery volunteers -- is Operation Nighthawk: Sustained Vigilance.
And it might be one of the only times in the history of modern military engineering when blowing every piece of software is expected.
Officials with Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) (which, in the past, boasted of putting together a Canadian Integrated Biological Detection System and advanced 3D modelling for urban warfare) are now testing sticks of Wrigley-made 'Stay Alert' chewing gum, laced with ordinary caffeine.
Complete with camouflaged wrappers, they're like a James Bond gizmo -- an ordinary bit of gum, that turns out to be, well, gum.
The tinfoil wrapped candy may help the average soldier stay awake longer than the enemy.
"The motto is, if you own the night, you (win) the war," Dr. Tom McClelland, a researcher with DRDC told the army volunteers, who sat on bleachers in their combat gear -- many with their morning coffees resting at their feet.
Behind him on a large screen, flashed data, which chronicles the price of a tired soldier.
NOTHING NEW
Tests done on U.S. Army Rangers with only a few hours of sleep over a 74-hour period, found that their mental state was the same as if they were more than three times the legal driving limit for alcohol.
"Why are we here? We're here to give you something to help reduce that ... impairment," McClelland said.
Caffeine -- the most widely used stimulant in the world -- is nothing new for soldiers. Since before the average Joe in the foxhole of World War II was brewing up cups of hot joe, infantrymen have counted on the kickback of coffee to stay alert.
Whenever they can't find a pot, they simply rip open a bag of ground coffee and chew it down.
But that ingested caffeine takes about 45 minutes to work. A stick of caffeinated gum takes just five minutes to filter through the tissue of the mouth.
The results, officials hope, will be eye-opening.
"When you're tired, lapses in concentration could cause ... death," Lt.-Col. Bernd Horn, director of Land Strategic Concepts for the Canadian military, told the men. "That is why this experiment is so important."
Last night, the volunteer soldiers here were given only three hours of sleep, after running 5 km, taking target practice on a nearby range and undergoing tests to gauge their mental prowess.
Tonight, as they continue their physical maneuvers and military mind games, they will go without sleep.
To combat fatigue, they'll each be given six pieces of gum in the double-blind exercise, where some sticks will be laced with caffeine -- each one equals about a small cup of coffee -- or regular gum.
Only one person involved in Operation Nighthawk, which also involves scientists from Washington's Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, knows who's chewing on placebos and who's gumming the real thing.
DELIVERY DIFFERENT
To help monitor the group over three days before Operation Nighthawk ends Thursday morning, Walter Reed researcher Dr. Gary Kamamori, plans to chew on a few sticks himself.
The spearmint taste (it also comes in mocha) is not the greatest, he noted.
"Caffeine is caffeine," American Col. Greg Belenky, head of the U.S. Army Sleep Lab, told the group, when one soldier asked if the sticks were addictive.
"What's different is its delivery."
There is a fine print warning on the gum that points out: "Too much caffeine may cause irritability, sleeplessness, and nervousness, and occasionally, rapid heartbeat." Its fair warning for men with guns.
In Desert Storm, Belenky watched as soldiers ripped open packs of Taster's Choice, and gobbled them down.
A few sticks of gum -- researchers have gone through six previous prototypes, trying to pin down the right chew -- may make that maneuver obsolete.
The cost of an average five-pack of gum is around 88 cents. The army gum costs about a dime more.
"It's not a budget-buster," Belenky pointed out.
For being military pioneers and doing without sleep, more than a tired jaw awaits the volunteers at the end of Operation Nighthawk tomorrow.
As well as trophies, defence officials are expected to bring in boxes of doughnuts.
And large cups of Tim Horton's coffee.
OK I'm curious about two things:
Are the wrappers in CADPAT?
How many Sgt. Majors are going to find this hard to swallow? (sorry couldn't resist that one)
Seriously anybody on the board involved in this test?
