TIL in the "hope experiment", individual rats were placed in a cylinder of water with an open lid. On average they drowned within 15 minutes. But the rats which were picked out right before drowning survived for more than 60 hours when placed back in the water because there was still "hope".

TIL in the "hope experiment", individual rats were placed in a cylinder of water with an open lid. On average they drowned within 15 minutes. But the rats which were picked out right before drowning survived for more than 60 hours when placed back in the water because there was still "hope". https://www.penpenny.com/jivan-ghadage1/The-HOPErdquo-Experiment-During-a-brutal-study-at-Harvard-in-the-1950s-Dr-Curt-Richter-placed-rats-in-a-pool-of-water-to-test-how-long-they-could-tread-waterOn-average-theyd-give-up-and-sink-after-15-minutesBut-right-before-they-gave-up-due-to-exhaustion-the-researchers-would-pluck-them-out-dry-them-off-let-them-rest-for-a-few-minutes-and-put-them-back-in-for-a-second-roundIn-this-second-try-how-long-do-you-think-they-lastedRemember-they-had-just-swam-until-failure-only-a-few-short-minutes-agoHow-long-do-you-thinkAnother-15-minutes10-minutes5-minutesNo60-hoursThats-not-an-errorThats-right-60-hours-of-swimmingThe-conclusion-drawn-was-that-since-the-rats-BELIEVED-that-they-would-eventually-be-rescued-they-could-push-their-bodies-way-past-what-they-previously-thought-impossibleI-will-leave-you-with-this-thoughtIf-hope-can-cause-exhausted-rats-to-swim-for-that-long-what-could-a-belief-in-yourself-and-your-abilities-do-for-youFootnoteThe-experimenthttpci RaunakA_ July 18, 2021 at 08:37AM