Earning Over €18,000 by Staying in Bed for 60 Days: The Unconventional Job Opportunity

A Unique Job Opportunity: Getting Paid €18,000 to Stay in Bed for 60 Days

A recent job offer coming from Germany is as peculiar as it is tempting: a compensation of €18,000 to stay in bed for 60 days.
The request comes from the German Aerospace Center (DLR), which is looking for 12 people for a bed rest study that simulates space flight, conducted in collaboration with NASA in order to find the causes of some conditions that astronauts experience after missions and to improve the tools to correct them.

The Job Description

The selected 12 subjects will be divided into 4 groups to experiment the different impact of space flight depending on the countermeasures adopted.
One group will undergo proprioceptive training, while the second group will also perform strength and endurance exercises.
The third group will receive muscle stimulation through electrical impulses.
The last group, instead, will not receive any additional support, in order to measure the impact of no preparation.

Throughout the study, participants will remain lying on the “gravity bed,” which simulates gravity differences thanks to an air cushion.
For all 60 days, daily activities will be carried out while lying in bed, including personal hygiene and nutrition, which will be delivered in calibrated meals according to individual needs.
There will also be room for recreational activities, such as board games and watching television, by moving the bed to a common room.

Requirements and Application Process

The beds are inclined by 6 degrees to obtain a similar effect to the one experienced in space regarding the movement of body fluids towards the upper body.
Essentially, participants will lie with their heads lower than their legs, without significant health compromises (thus under careful monitoring) but experiencing some effects of space flight: increased pressure on the head, muscle and bone pains, lack of balance.

For this reason, the last two weeks of the project are dedicated to physiotherapy, in order to restore normal bodily functions and eliminate disturbances.
Participants will undergo control exams again after 3 months.

Age between 18 and 55 years old; height between 1.53 and 1.90 meters; body mass index between 18 and 30; non-smoker; good knowledge of German; excellent health conditions.

To apply as a participant in the German Aerospace Center’s bed rest study, you must first register for free on the official website and then fill out the online questionnaire, which includes sections such as personal data, contacts, residential address, and some health information.
Subsequently, you will receive an invitation to an informative online event.

Those who meet the minimum requirements, which are however verified during the selection phase, will have to go through further steps for the evaluation of physical and psychological suitability through questionnaires, phone interviews, preliminary medical visits, and finally a full day dedicated to evaluation.
These final in-person activities will take place in Cologne.
At the end of the selection process, 12 people will officially become part of the research project, obtaining the €18,000 job.