***an internal clock that regulates our 24-hour cycle.**
I have read that it regulates a 25 hour cycle, not 24. I spent 32 years working in a plant as a reverse 8 hour rotating shift worker. It was hell. When it went to a forward 8 hour rotating shift, much better. When they changed from an 8 hour rotating shift to a 12 hour rotating shift I decided to bail out as I would not be alive today if I had stayed.
In my late teens I worked in a office at a different shift each week.
they though it was fair,
I could have sworn is was most UNATURAL and completely insane!
I left after three months of that..
We werent blessed with an internal clock to learn how to abuse that gift.
The natural progression of daylight.and darkness....worked well for thousands of years.
When ashore doing military comms we had a shift called "two, two, two and 80"
Two days shifts, double-back (8hrs off), two mid shifts, double back, two eve shifts...then 80hrs off and start all over again.
That sir, was hell. It took the full 80hrs to recover.