Maasha’s experience with NASA wasn’t the only thing that came in handy that day, the engineer first fell in love with aviation (航空) as a teenager growing up near an airport in Monrovia, Liberia. “Looking back, I guess I had the perfect sets of circumstances to recognize the issue that day,” he said. “Since I was a kid, I’ve always tried to sit in a window seat near the wing, and as I grew up, I am determined to run after my dream during my university years. That’s not the first time I’ve noticed something. I’m sure it won’t be the last.”

Five years ago, French navy officer Jérôme Chardon was listening to a radio program about the journey of the bar-tailed godwit, a bird that migrates 14,000 kilometers between New Zealand and Alaska. Chardon understood how treacherous the journey would be, as heavy storms frequently hit Pacific island communities. Yet, somehow, bar-tailed godwits routinely pass through the area uninjured. Chardon wondered whether learning how birds traveled could help coastal communities avoid natural disasters.

A 34-year-old mother has spoken of how she woke up thinking she was 15 years old and living in 1992.

Naomi Jacobs, from Manchester, was convinced she was still a teenager. In her mind, John Major was Prime Minister and George Bush Sr. was running the White House. She also showed how she screamed when a boy appeared and called her “Mum”. Mobile phones and e-mails were puzzling and Google, Facebook and YouTube sounded like made-up words, she said.

Ms. Jacobs, who had no memory of the years, was told by doctors that she had Transient Global Amnesia (TGA). She has now written a book about the experience which happened in 2008.

“I fell asleep in 1992 as a brave, very confident know-it-all-15-year-old, and woke up as a 32-year-old single mum living in a rented house,” Ms. Jacobs said. “The last thing I remember was falling asleep in my bed, dreaming about a boy in my class. When I woke up, I looked in the mirror and had the fright of my life when I saw an old woman with wrinkles staring back at me. Then a little boy appeared and started calling me Mum. That’s when I started to scream. I didn’t know who he was. I didn’t think he was much younger than I was, and I certainly didn’t remember giving birth to him. I began sobbing uncontrollably. I just wanted my mum. I couldn’t get my head around going to bed one night and waking up in a different century.”

TGA is a rare type of amnesia which can occur suddenly, affecting around three people per 100,000 each year. Fortunately, permanent memory loss is rare. Ms. Jacobs’ memory started to return after eight weeks.

Some people who often suffer from migraines (偏头痛) also appear to be more likely to have TGA. The cause of TGA is unknown. Some think that it may be caused by a temporary cut of blood flow to parts of the brain involved in memory.