...12 volunteers will locked [sic] in an isolation tank for 17 months to simulate a trip to Mars for the European Space Agency.

The aim is to gain insight into human behaviour and group dynamics under the kinds of conditions astronauts would experience - "crowding, lack of privacy, high workload, mechanical breakdowns, boredom with available food, and limited communication with mission control, family and friends," the agency says in its job advert...

Countless studies attest to the ennui stalking our lives, and psychologist Sandi Mann claims that "boredom is the second most commonly suppressed emotion at work." [emphasis added]