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Business Wire
22 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- Business Wire
How Your Device Can Help You Make It Through Mercury Retrograde
BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--No matter what your particular astrological beliefs, if any, there's no denying when things seem to go a little crazy in our lives and the world at large, a lot of us run to Google to look up whether Mercury retrograde is in effect. Well, if things are feeling a little funky right now, let us be your search engine: Mercury is indeed in retrograde, from July 17 until Aug. 11. In astrology, Mercury is the planet that rules communication among people and in technology. So when retrograde starts, some believe, mishaps tend to happen and electronics seemingly go haywire, says Susan Miller, the founder of two astrology-focused apps and the popular website Astrology Zone, which boasts 13 million unique readers. Crowned the " queen of astrologers" by The New York Times, Miller has written 18 books on various astrology topics and contributes her advice to national publications like Us Weekly. 'This phenomenon is one of the few that affects everyone in a fairly uniform way, and its effects are always obvious, especially in the days leading up to and on its official start,' Miller explains. Miller says there's no need to hide in fear during Mercury retrograde. Instead, people can revisit some mindful tips on communication skills to increase productivity and avoid some of the frustration that can arise from miscommunication, both IRL and on your device. Plus, if you do it right, your device — especially when it's powered by America's Best Mobile Network and comes with Magenta Status — can be an essential tool to combat the craziness the universe might send your way. (We helped you navigate the solar eclipse safely, didn't we?) No need to pull out your star chart — we spoke with Miller to bring you the expert advice you need to make it through with confidence and clarity. Can you explain Mercury retrograde to us? If you were in a car and another car passed you, you could tell it was going faster than you. But if it slowed down and you then passed it, it would appear that car was going backward. Then when the other car speeds up and passes you again, it kicks up all the dust in the road. Mercury retrograde happens when the other car speeds up and lifts the dust, causing turbulence and disruption to what we feel on Earth in our everyday lives. Because Mercury is the planet situated closest to the sun, its orbit is much shorter than Earth's. About three or four times a year, Mercury speeds past Earth, and that is when we experience a Mercury retrograde period. In 2025, we will experience this in July through August and Nov. 9 through Nov. 29. When a planet is in retrograde astrologically, it is in a resting or sleeping state. Therefore, while Mercury 'naps,' the activities it governs don't have the benefit of a well-functioning, wide-awake planet to supervise them. Expect a certain degree of pandemonium to ensue. Our devices are a lifeline of communication. What should people look out for when using their phones during Mercury retrograde? Mercury retrograde is known for creating confusion, which is not ideal for most communication. Friendships and romances tend to go haywire. People aren't always thinking straight during these phases and tend to create miscommunications that can in turn cause a domino effect of errors. Try not to jump to conclusions and keep striving for clarity. Be even more vigilant and double-check your text conversations to root out flaws or incorrect assumptions. Always go the extra mile to find errors during retrograde. These periods demand a slow and deliberate approach. Keep summarizing what you think the other person has just told you. I know we are in the 'just text me' era, but I recommend following up texts with a phone call if you can stomach it. Putting in a little extra attention to the emails you are sending can also go a long way to alleviate any larger problems. How can we prepare our devices — and ourselves — ahead of this astrological event? Mercury retrograde periods are notorious for causing computers to crash and for other electronic devices to show signs of wear, requiring urgent repair. I suggest people back up their devices or at least check when you installed the latest necessary software updates to keep yourself safe from cybersecurity issues. If you're buying a new phone, be sure to invest in some kind of phone protection plan should you accidently drop or lose it. Likewise, if you're traveling, be wary of delays and have essentials on hand including a portable charger to keep your devices powered up and a 5G hotspot. If you are driving any significant distance during Mercury retrograde, make sure your GPS is up to date or even print a hard copy of directions as a backup. I recommend you prepare to protect yourself against bad actors as well because Mercury always seems to retrograde during the holiday shopping season when scammer activity increases. Everyone needs to be extra vigilant against phone scammers and digital fraud at a time when people are in online holiday shopping mode, and tools like T-Mobile's Scam Shield can help keep you safe. What ways can your device help you prepare for Mercury retrograde? A lot of my advice during this period is what not to do. But I also believe there are things you can start doing leading up to Mercury retrograde that can be incredibly impactful, especially because people can feel the effects two weeks ahead of its official start. Since communication can become muddy, make sure your autocorrect is turned on when writing emails or preparing documents on your computer. Mercury rules the mail and the conveyance of information, so be extra careful with important documents. If you send documents through emails, be sure to call the people at the other end to ensure their receipt. Use your device to snap photos of important documents or correspondences as backups in case they become lost. It also might not hurt to have a meditation or therapy app installed if you feel you will need mental health support during this often stressful time. Though I have a lot of cautionary tales, I want to reiterate that not everything goes wrong during Mercury retrograde. Sometimes things work in your favor. Mercury rules anything that begins with 're:' redo, reassess, repair, repeat, redesign or revisit. I find people reconsider their stance when Mercury is in retrograde, and in some cases, conditions turn out to be more favorable to you than they might have been before. Perhaps a job you thought you didn't get comes back into the picture, or you take time to organize things around you and find something special that had been previously lost. It's always human nature to want to hear that new opportunities are coming our way, but we need to focus on the quality of our work and improve it to the best it can be. Often this is a better use of our time than continually chasing the newest idea. Mercury retrograde allows you to be thorough and to perfect your performance — and that's certainly not a bad thing. Follow the T-Mobile Newsroom on X and Instagram to catch the latest company updates. About T-Mobile
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Mercury Retrograde Begins Soon—Here's What That Actually Means
Starting July 17, Mercury will be retrograde until August 10. During these three and a half weeks, many people expect life to go haywire—phones will break, contracts will fall through, you'll accidentally hit "Reply All" on a company-wide email. Mercury retrograde is blamed for all kinds of problems, but what is actually happening with this planet, and should you be worried? We talked to Jackie Faherty, an astrophysicist, and Susan Miller, an astrologer, to break down the science and the Faherty, PhD, senior research scientist and senior education manager at the American Museum of Natural History Susan Miller, creator of the Astrology Zone website and the apps Astrology Zone Horoscopes and Moonlight PhasesRetrograde means "backward," and during Mercury retrograde, the planet appears be moving backward in the sky. Typically, like the other planets in our solar system, Mercury moves west to east. If you were to make note of Mercury's position in the sky every evening, it would seem to be journeying a little more eastward night after night. Three or four times a year, however, it follows an east-to-west path for about three weeks, appearing to move backward. That's Mercury 14 to April 6 July 17 to August 10 November 9 to November 29All the other planets go retrograde too, though less frequently than Mercury—between once a year and once every two years. Also, the farther away a planet is from the sun, the longer the retrograde period lasts (Neptune, the most distant planet, stays retrograde for over five months). That backward movement is an optical illusion, Faherty says. "Imagine the planets are on a racetrack around the sun," she explains. "We're all moving, but we're moving at different speeds. The closer you are to the sun, the faster you go around the track." Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, moves faster than Earth. It orbits the sun in 88 days, as opposed to our 365. So about every four months, "Mercury laps us on the track, and that makes it appear to shift direction," Faherty says. "It's just a trick of perspective." Venus, the second planet from the sun, passes us every 18 months, which is when it goes retrograde (lasting about 40 days each time). As for the outer planets—Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune—they move more slowly than Earth does, and about once a year or (in the case of Mars) every two years, we pass one of them. That's when they appear to move backward. None of it has any deeper meaning, Fahery says. "The planets are just going around the sun, and we're looking up at the sky and seeing a visual projection of it. That's it. It's a misunderstanding to think that the location of Mercury is going to change your day." Modern-day astrologers understand that the planets aren't actually moving backward, but they still believe that the apparent motion of the planets affects us. In the world of astrology—much of which is based on Greek myth—the planets rule different areas of life. When they're retrograde, it means they're in a resting state and not in control of their domain, Miller says. As a result, those areas of life fall out of whack for humans. "We're used to getting the planets' help, but when they're retrograde, we make mistakes," she says. "Mercury is the planet of communication and travel," Miller says, explaining that anything related to these areas can get messed up during Mercury retrograde. "You shouldn't sign contracts or accept a new job or a new apartment, for example. Sometimes you have to because you can't stop your life, but keep your antenna up and ask a lot of questions." In addition to Mercury retrograde, "we feel Venus and Mars retrogrades strongly because they orbit close to Earth," Miller says. Venus rules love, beauty, and affection, according to astrology. "Don't make dramatic changes to your appearance during Venus retrograde," Miller says. Mars, which retrogrades every two years for 8 to 11 weeks, "is the energy planet. He's the gas you put in the car to make it go. When he retrogrades, everything seems to take longer and require more money." Venus next retrogrades from October 3 to November 13, 2026, and Mars retrogrades from January 10 to April 1, 2027. Miller has all the dates through 2050 on her website. There's no scientific reason to believe the planets alter the course of our lives. "Astrology does not take into account any fundamental law of physics," Faherty says, noting that astrology developed thousands of years ago, before people knew that the sun was the center of our solar system and the planets revolved around it. Mercury retrograde—or any planet appearing to move backward—would have seemed like a mysterious and even mystical phenomenon back then. "At this point, we know so much, the principle of retrograde motion is completely outdated," she adds. Also, psychologists warn about confirmation bias: the tendency to interpret information in a way that aligns with our worldview. So if you expect Mercury retrograde to affect you, you might start noticing a lot of communication- and travel-related problems over the next few weeks. But keep in mind that those are very broad categories, and issues that fall under those umbrellas are likely to occur at any time. It's just life! A 2024 Pew Research Center survey found that almost 30% of U.S. adults believe in astrology, but most of those people engage with it for fun and don't make major decisions based on it. That seems like a wise approach to Mercury retrograde—we can enjoy the myth and storytelling around it without taking it too seriously. Read the original article on Real Simple
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The Potentially Deadly Mistake People Make When Returning From Vacation
Whether you're walking around Disney World, swimming in the ocean or taking a mountain trip, it's needless to say that many vacations — while tons of fun — can also be tiresome. After packing in as much as possible on your days off, exhaustion may set in as you rush back home to prepare for going back to work or school. It's important to be aware of a danger that comes with this: drowsy driving. Defined as driving while sleepy, it's more common than you think. According to a Centers for Disease Control survey, about 1 in 25 adult drivers reported falling asleep while driving within the past 30 days. According to a study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 21% of fatal crashes involved a drowsy driver. So, while you may feel like you're in control and can keep yourself awake, remember that probably everyone in that situation also felt the same. Tiredness can affect your mind and ability to drive in a slew of ways, too, so there's no one way in which an accident will happen. According to Susan Miller, a lead researcher and certified sleep expert at being sleepy can impair your judgment and decision-making, reduce awareness of your surroundings (from cars to road conditions to traffic signals), and affect your coordination, balance and fine motor skills. 'Even a momentary lapse of attention can be dangerous while driving, so prioritizing safety is important,' she added. Jeff Kahn, a sleep expert and the CEO and co-founder of Rise Science, agreed. 'Microsleeps, in particular, are a cause for alarm, as they can last only a few seconds and occur unknowingly,' he said. 'While this might not seem like much, on a highway traveling at 65 miles per hour, those seconds can mean the difference between life and death.' Further, the dangers of driving while sleepy are often compared to the dangers of driving drunk. Kahn said 24 hours worth of sleep deprivation — at once, or accumulated over time — results in the same cognitive impairment equivalent as a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.10%, which is higher than the legal limit. And again, he added, it's unsafe to drive even before you reach that point. He pointed to the concept of 'sleep debt,' or not getting enough sleep cumulatively. 'If you regularly miss an hour of sleep for 10 consecutive nights, your cognitive impairment can be as severe as if you hadn't slept for 24 hours straight,' he explained. One of the two time ranges when this occurs may surprise you. According to the Department of Health of New York State, most sleep-related crashes occur between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m., and 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. So yes, driving in the early morning isn't a great idea, but that 'afternoon slump' period isn't either. This is when bodies are typically the most tired. 'Importantly, these are the times when you're biologically-inclined to be more drowsy, thanks to the peaks and dips of your circadian rhythm (your internal body clock),' Kahn said. 'Your circadian energy dips will happen regardless if you had enough sleep or not, but sleep deprivation will make you feel drowsier at these times than you otherwise would.' Unfortunately, many factors can contribute to this, though some may be more common than others. Here are a few of the most common ones: 'One of the biggest contributors to drowsy driving is sleep deprivation,' Miller said. 'This can lead to difficulty concentrating, slower reaction times and even falling asleep at the wheel.' While the amount of sleep each person needs will vary, most adults need seven to nine hours a night, she added. (BTW, 'junk sleep,' or low-quality sleep, doesn't count.) A bigger sleeping issue may be going on, so checking with a doctor is smart. 'Some disorders, like obstructive sleep apnea, cause low-quality sleep as sleep is often interrupted or restricted, thus low-quality and less restorative,' said Nicole Eichelberger, a sleep expert at Mattressive. What's even scarier is that it's not always noticeable. 'Unfortunately, most people who suffer from sleep disorders are unaware,' she continued. 'Therefore, it is essential to seek medical help if you notice excessive daytime sleepiness.' Miller also listed alcohol and medications, such as antihistamines or benzodiazepines, as contributors to drowsiness and impaired cognitive function. So if you're enjoying a few cocktails by the pool, for example, be cognizant of this. 'Even small amounts of alcohol and certain drugs can cause drowsiness, poor coordination and slower reaction times, making driving dangerous,' she said. To avoid this, Eichelberger urged reading the side effects listed on the medicines you take, and to avoid driving if drowsiness is listed. The time of day and distance matter, too. Many of us road trip to our vacation destinations and often power through the drive in order to get there or get home. 'Driving overnight (which can be tempting to avoid traffic) increases the risk of experiencing sleepiness, even if you think you are well-rested,' said Holly Milling, a clinical psychologist, behavioral sleep medicine specialist and director of The Sleep Practice. 'Driving for long periods of time, at any time of day, is also tiring, and driving without a break can increase vulnerability to sleepiness.' Simply put, you shouldn't drive while sleepy, even if you think you can make yourself stay awake. More specifically, here are some other danger signs these experts listed: Being unable to remember driving for the last few minutes Struggling to focus your eyes and concentrate Drifting into another lane Head bobbing Yawning Feeling easily frustrated Rubbing your eyes or struggling to keep them open Following cars too closely Getting restless or fidgeting Not keeping a consistent speed Braking too late Missing signs and exits 'Even if you don't feel like you'll fall asleep, these signs indicate that your driving ability is impaired and that it's unsafe to continue driving,' Kahn said. As tempting as it sounds, the answer isn't louder music, colder air or talking to someone. 'The only cure for sleepiness is sleep,' Milling said. While napping in public may feel uncomfortable, it's crucial. You can take a nap at a rest area, gas station or other place you feel safe. And hey, only a short nap is needed. 'Ideally, you should take a 20 to 30 minute nap to feel refreshed, but not so long that you enter a deep sleep cycle and wake up feeling groggy,' Miller said. 'If you're unable to nap, simply resting your eyes or having a break from driving for a few minutes can also be helpful.' While caffeine can help, Miller continued, it's a short-term fix and it can't cure severe fatigue. She recommends drinking about 200mg of caffeine (equivalent to a cup of coffee) 30 minutes before getting back on the road. Having a coffee between napping and driving also adds time between waking up and driving, which Kahn said is important. He encourages having that buffer time 'to ensure the post-nap grogginess doesn't affect your driving skills (even if you've only napped for less than 20 minutes).' Combining the two can eliminate mid-afternoon sleepiness for up to an hour, according to a study in the journal Psychophysiology. But again, these experts say a nap comes first and foremost. 'Whether you include caffeine or not, though, the most important ingredient is the nap,' Milling emphasized. 'Never skip sleep in favor of a double espresso.' Lastly, while it may seem counterintuitive, some movement (along with the nap) can help. 'A short burst of exercise can wake you up and increase your alertness,' Miller said. She encouraged light stretching or a short walk. You could even get some errands done during this time, like walking around the grocery store. If these options feel undoable or aren't cutting it, don't let that deter you. 'Call someone to drive you home or the rest of the way,' Eichelberger urged. 'You can also find a motel [and] rest for the night, or get a cab and head home.'While a Lyft ride or motel stay won't be inexpensive, it is cheaper — and safer — than the alternative. Long-term, Eichelberger recommended maintaining good sleep habits. If you notice excessive fatigue often, she added, consider talking to a sleep doctor so you can avoid car accidents (and various other problems). Being proactive is always smart, too. Milling mentioned not driving if you've been awake for 18+ hours and scheduling breaks every couple of hours, to start. This way, you're less likely to get caught in a drowsy driving situation. While vacations and life can keep us busy, sacrificing sleep isn't a great idea — especially if you're ever behind the wheel. The Time It Takes To Fall Asleep Can Reveal A Lot About Your Health How To Change Your Default Sleeping Position To A New One The 1 Habit Doctors Say Is Secretly Making You Tired The Next Day
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Students aren't cheating because they have AI, but because colleges are broken
In recent weeks, a plethora of news and opinion articles have warned that college students are cheating en masse by using artificial intelligence to write their papers, and that higher education is overall in peril. While the details of these arguments vary, many of the articles and the people who comment on them seem to converge on the same solution: Let's return to the Old Days of essays and declamations, when students wrote in blue books and took oral exams. As a writing scholar, I'd like to encourage us all to take a deep breath. Alarms about the illiteracy of American youth and the end of writing as we know it are as old as writing itself, and resurface every time a new tool emerges. Pencils with erasers? The death of writing. Spell check? The death of writing. Word processors? The death of writing. More: AI in the classroom: Cheating, learning, and the new academic gray zone | The Excerpt In the United States, alarm about writing skills has been on a regular cycle of what writing scholar Susan Miller ironically called "nostalgia for the recently lost excellence of student discourse." Remember the "Johnny Can't Write" Newsweek cover in the 1970s? That wasn't the first American literacy crisis by any means. In the late 1800s, journalist and editor-in-chief of the New York Evening Post, E.L. Godkin, made numerous alarming claims about the "illiteracy of American boys." He was especially concerned about all the "evil influences" on their poor writing, which included street slang, the bad writing in newspapers, and popular novels ("the better the novel, the more evil the influence," he claimed). We tend to imagine a previous golden age of writing where Johnny could read and write perfectly and in plain English. But that golden age never existed. Our current challenge is not a new one. Students are what they have always been: learners. And writing continues to be what it has always been: hard. There is no going back to a golden moment when everyone wrote eloquently and students never cheated. Thus, the solution is not to embrace blue book essays, as so many columns advise. More: Professors are using ChatGPT detector tools to accuse students of cheating. But what if the software is wrong? For one thing, our classes are too big. If we really want students writing by hand and giving speeches with feedback and assessment by expert faculty, the first thing we must do is fund public higher education again with tax dollars (we clearly can't raise tuition any further). That does not seem to be the direction that this country is moving. (For a good account of where free, publicly funded higher ed fell apart, take a look at Chris Newfield's excellent book, "The Great Mistake: How We Wrecked Public Universities and How We Can Fix Them.") At every school I know, including mine, administrators and the legislators who control our "state share of instruction" funds are requiring faculty to raise minimum course sizes and teach more classes − for less and less funding. Unless we change those teaching and funding conditions, there are simply not enough faculty and too many students in our classrooms for blue books and declamations to be a practical solution. We also are not going back because handwritten essays and speeches were part of what college looked like in a very different world: the old liberal arts colleges of the early U.S. were for wealthy boys who would be preachers, lawyers, and gentleman scholars. The specialized workforce of today did not exist, nor did the many specialized work genres of today. If we go backward and assign handwritten essays and speeches, we might avoid cheating, but we are not preparing students for today's world of work. Writing in its many forms is how we get things done in the world (writing scholars say it "mediates activity"). But writing is not simply a final, polished product; it is also a means of learning. Through the act of writing, we come to understand our ideas and audiences in new ways. AI is a tool (or rather, AI presents writers with many tools), but writers need to understand how and why to use them (and when not to). The role of education at this moment is to create broadly literate students. Graduates need AI and technology literacy (among many other kinds of literacy) to understand how things work and why they work that way, and what the consequences are of inventing and adopting new tools (like AI). Providing this kind of education requires rethinking higher education altogether. Educators must face our current moment by teaching the students in front of us and designing learning environments that meet the times. Students are not cheating because of AI. When they are cheating, it is because of the many ways that education is no longer working as it should. But students using AI to cheat have perhaps hastened a reckoning that has been a long time coming for higher ed. Widespread cheating to get good grades, as one recent article alleges, is happening, and is the logical consequence of turning college into a factory that churns out workers. State legislators create policies that pressure colleges and universities to create more and more technical degrees with the sole goal of having majors that align with job titles. State funding models reward schools for producing graduates who have a high salary the first year out (as is the case in Ohio, for example, thanks to recent policy and legislation). These practices have led us all to where we are today. Yes, graduates should be able to get jobs, but the jobs of the future are going to belong to well-rounded critical thinkers who can innovate and solve hard problems. Every column I read by tech CEOs says this very thing, yet state funding policies continue to reward colleges for being technical job factories. College needs to be different. Teaching needs to be different. More: She lost her scholarship over an AI allegation — and it impacted her mental health I spend a lot of time helping faculty reimagine curricula and learning environments. Their sense of urgency for engaging in that work has certainly increased over the past two years. As one example, the center I direct at Miami University has been piloting an AI-informed Pedagogy Program to help faculty members explore what AI is, consider the ethical implications of using and developing it (including on climate and intellectual property), name their principles for using it, and then consider how to integrate it into their courses with clear policies and scaffolding. Faculty are eager to engage in this program. Colleges and universities need more of this kind of faculty development, but the necessary transformation of higher education at scale is going to take much more. Our cultural assumptions and legislative policies for funding higher education must also change. Practice follows policy and reward structures. Like roads and libraries, education is a public good. An educated population makes us all better. As a country, we need to decide if we want to fund that public good. And consider what sort of public good we need future graduates to provide. What do we want college graduates to be able to do and contribute to the world? How will our country support this vision? The days when school was about regurgitating to prove we memorized something are over. Information is readily available; we don't need to be able to memorize it. However, we do need to be able to assess it, think critically about it, and apply it. The education of tomorrow is about application and innovation. Those of us who study teaching, learning, and writing can chart a new path forward. For that to become a reality, however, higher education must be supported and funded to make something new. Elizabeth Wardle has served as the Roger and Joyce Howe Distinguished Professor of Written Communication and the Director of the Howe Center for Writing Excellence at Miami University in Oxford since 2016. She is the author of the book "Writing Rediscovered: Nine Concepts to Transform Your Relationship With Writing." This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cheating in college with AI shows us our systems are broken | Opinion
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
I'm Begging You To Stop Doing This One Thing When You Get Home From Vacation Because It Might Actually End Your Life
Whether you're walking around Disney World, swimming in the ocean or taking a mountain trip, it's needless to say that many vacations — while tons of fun — can also be tiresome. After packing in as much as possible on your days off, exhaustion may set in as you rush back home to prepare for going back to work or school. It's important to be aware of a danger that comes with this: drowsy driving. Defined as driving while sleepy, it's more common than you think. According to a Centers for Disease Control survey, about 1 in 25 adult drivers reported falling asleep while driving within the past 30 days. According to a study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 21% of fatal crashes involved a drowsy driver. So, while you may feel like you're in control and can keep yourself awake, remember that probably everyone in that situation also felt the same. Tiredness can affect your mind and ability to drive in a slew of ways, too, so there's no one way in which an accident will happen. According to Susan Miller, a lead researcher and certified sleep expert at being sleepy can impair your judgment and decision-making, reduce awareness of your surroundings (from cars to road conditions to traffic signals), and affect your coordination, balance and fine motor skills. 'Even a momentary lapse of attention can be dangerous while driving, so prioritizing safety is important,' she added. Jeff Kahn, a sleep expert and the CEO and co-founder of Rise Science, agreed. 'Microsleeps, in particular, are a cause for alarm, as they can last only a few seconds and occur unknowingly,' he said. 'While this might not seem like much, on a highway traveling at 65 miles per hour, those seconds can mean the difference between life and death.' Further, the dangers of driving while sleepy are often compared to the dangers of driving drunk. Kahn said 24 hours worth of sleep deprivation — at once, or accumulated over time — results in the same cognitive impairment equivalent as a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.10%, which is higher than the legal limit. And again, he added, it's unsafe to drive even before you reach that point. He pointed to the concept of 'sleep debt,' or not getting enough sleep cumulatively. 'If you regularly miss an hour of sleep for 10 consecutive nights, your cognitive impairment can be as severe as if you hadn't slept for 24 hours straight,' he explained. When Drowsy Driving Is Most Likely To Occur One of the two time ranges when this occurs may surprise you. According to the Department of Health of New York State, most sleep-related crashes occur between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m., and 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. So yes, driving in the early morning isn't a great idea, but that 'afternoon slump' period isn't either. This is when bodies are typically the most tired. 'Importantly, these are the times when you're biologically-inclined to be more drowsy, thanks to the peaks and dips of your circadian rhythm (your internal body clock),' Kahn said. 'Your circadian energy dips will happen regardless if you had enough sleep or not, but sleep deprivation will make you feel drowsier at these times than you otherwise would.' Unfortunately, many factors can contribute to this, though some may be more common than others. Here are a few of the most common ones: Not getting enough solid sleep on your vacation Related: 19 "Body Changes" That Clearly Indicate A Person Is Not Young Anymore, And I'm Not Ready For This Reality 'One of the biggest contributors to drowsy driving is sleep deprivation,' Miller said. 'This can lead to difficulty concentrating, slower reaction times and even falling asleep at the wheel.' While the amount of sleep each person needs will vary, most adults need seven to nine hours a night, she added. (BTW, 'junk sleep,' or low-quality sleep, doesn't count.) A sleep disorder A bigger sleeping issue may be going on, so checking with a doctor is smart. 'Some disorders, like obstructive sleep apnea, cause low-quality sleep as sleep is often interrupted or restricted, thus low-quality and less restorative,' said Nicole Eichelberger, a sleep expert at Mattressive. What's even scarier is that it's not always noticeable. 'Unfortunately, most people who suffer from sleep disorders are unaware,' she continued. 'Therefore, it is essential to seek medical help if you notice excessive daytime sleepiness.' Medications or alcohol Related: 25 Life-Changing Habits People Added To Their Everyday Routines To Improve Their Lives For The Better Miller also listed alcohol and medications, such as antihistamines or benzodiazepines, as contributors to drowsiness and impaired cognitive function. So if you're enjoying a few cocktails by the pool, for example, be cognizant of this. 'Even small amounts of alcohol and certain drugs can cause drowsiness, poor coordination and slower reaction times, making driving dangerous,' she said. To avoid this, Eichelberger urged reading the side effects listed on the medicines you take, and to avoid driving if drowsiness is listed. When and how long you're driving The time of day and distance matter, too. Many of us road trip to our vacation destinations and often power through the drive in order to get there or get home. 'Driving overnight (which can be tempting to avoid traffic) increases the risk of experiencing sleepiness, even if you think you are well-rested,' said Holly Milling, a clinical psychologist, behavioral sleep medicine specialist and director of The Sleep Practice. 'Driving for long periods of time, at any time of day, is also tiring, and driving without a break can increase vulnerability to sleepiness.' Signs You Should Pull Over Immediately Simply put, you shouldn't drive while sleepy, even if you think you can make yourself stay awake. More specifically, here are some other danger signs these experts listed: Being unable to remember driving for the last few minutes Struggling to focus your eyes and concentrate Drifting into another lane Head bobbing Yawning Feeling easily frustrated Rubbing your eyes or struggling to keep them open Following cars too closely Getting restless or fidgeting Not keeping a consistent speed Braking too late Missing signs and exits 'Even if you don't feel like you'll fall asleep, these signs indicate that your driving ability is impaired and that it's unsafe to continue driving,' Kahn said. What To Do If You're Tired At The Wheel As tempting as it sounds, the answer isn't louder music, colder air or talking to someone. 'The only cure for sleepiness is sleep,' Milling said. While napping in public may feel uncomfortable, it's crucial. You can take a nap at a rest area, gas station or other place you feel safe. And hey, only a short nap is needed. 'Ideally, you should take a 20 to 30 minute nap to feel refreshed, but not so long that you enter a deep sleep cycle and wake up feeling groggy,' Miller said. 'If you're unable to nap, simply resting your eyes or having a break from driving for a few minutes can also be helpful.' While caffeine can help, Miller continued, it's a short-term fix and it can't cure severe fatigue. She recommends drinking about 200mg of caffeine (equivalent to a cup of coffee) 30 minutes before getting back on the road. Having a coffee between napping and driving also adds time between waking up and driving, which Kahn said is important. He encourages having that buffer time 'to ensure the post-nap grogginess doesn't affect your driving skills (even if you've only napped for less than 20 minutes).' Combining the two can eliminate mid-afternoon sleepiness for up to an hour, according to a study in the journal Psychophysiology. But again, these experts say a nap comes first and foremost. 'Whether you include caffeine or not, though, the most important ingredient is the nap,' Milling emphasized. 'Never skip sleep in favor of a double espresso.' Lastly, while it may seem counterintuitive, some movement (along with the nap) can help. 'A short burst of exercise can wake you up and increase your alertness,' Miller said. She encouraged light stretching or a short walk. You could even get some errands done during this time, like walking around the grocery store. If these options feel undoable or aren't cutting it, don't let that deter you. 'Call someone to drive you home or the rest of the way,' Eichelberger urged. 'You can also find a motel [and] rest for the night, or get a cab and head home.' While a Lyft ride or motel stay won't be inexpensive, it is cheaper — and safer — than the alternative. Long-term, Eichelberger recommended maintaining good sleep habits. If you notice excessive fatigue often, she added, consider talking to a sleep doctor so you can avoid car accidents (and various other problems). Being proactive is always smart, too. Milling mentioned not driving if you've been awake for 18+ hours and scheduling breaks every couple of hours, to start. This way, you're less likely to get caught in a drowsy driving situation. While vacations and life can keep us busy, sacrificing sleep isn't a great idea — especially if you're ever behind the article originally appeared on HuffPost. 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