They have created a device that will allow you to get a full 8-hour sleep in just 3 hours.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,300...1264358,00.html

great, then they can extend the working hours for all us not of the upper class.

hmm, sounds like a power nap to me...

anyways, im all for it. my sleep pattern really needs regulating...

Uhh, i would so like that thing
I hope i will not cost 10.000 new yen... hehe

So if you could get all the sleep you need per 24-hour period in just 3 hours, how would you do it? Even though you've had a "full night's sleep" you probably can't stay up for the 21 hours until your next sleep cycle. Well, you could, but I typically get tired after being awake for 21 hours straight. Would you need to sleep 2 hours at night and then have a 1 hour super-siesta, to make it through your day?
Basically, here's what I'm wondering: Assume normal person sleeps for 8 hours and is awake for 16 out of a 24 hour cycle. If you suddenly convert your 8 hours into 3, are you still only good for 16 hours of awake time, or are you good for the full 24 hour cycle so you can function well for 21 hours?
I haven't read any studies about people with a reduced need for sleep to see whether that need to sleep comes back after a set time of being awake, or based on your natural 24 (technically more like 25) hour internal clock.

So is it possible to make some sort of sleep-wave transmitter that could, say, put someone (or many someones) to sleep from a distance?

I recall reading about a woman who volunteered for an insomnia study because she only got 1-3 hours of sleep a night since she was a baby. She wasn't sleep deprived, and seldom took naps. The researchers originally didn't want to study her because she was suffering no ill effects, but basically learned that she went straight to REM and stayed there for the duration of her sleep cycle. When her brain was done recharging or recuperating or whatever she was good for more than 20 hours. If I recall correctly, she was in her 50s or 60s at the time of the study, and in perfect health.

So, no, you probably wouldn't need a nappy-poo.

I would imagine that even with 3 hours of sleep, if you work construction or something, you'll still need more time to rest.

...agreed, it wouldn't do much for physical fatigue. However, I can see it being popular at finals time.

And you dont get the side effects of heavy speed use;) did anyone read that article on del.isi.us btw?

Sound like a device to degauss the brain.

Just the thing we need...

A person needs about 4 hours of slow wave sleep to, as Rotbart van Dainig says, "degauss the brain."

Normally you go through cycles of REM sleep and slow wave sleep, until you've had about 4 hours of slow wave, after which it's basically just REM.

Your brain calibrates itself to the amount of sleep you normally get, making it so that the REM and slow wave cycles are balanced to give you ~4 hours of slow wave regardless of whether you sleep for 5, 6, 9, or 12 hours a day.

You can slowly work your way down by sleeping less each week. Volunteers studied have managed to work their way down to about 4-5 hours a night becore they can't take it anymore. When they stop trying to sleep less each week, they keep the reduction (permenantly) to some extent, usually sleeping 2 hours less than they did before the study.


Anyway, if you use this device you'll never dream.

As an automotive mechanic, getting up sucks, whether Ive had 2hrs sleep or 10. There is never enough. I would still probably sleep as much, though it would be great to have some guarantee that I got all the necissary sleep.

And sleep doesnt help body soreness, as your metabolism is lower than normal. Not sure how the inactivity helps recuperation, but sitting in front of the TV is about as good as that.

So, you're saying this thing might need a REM stimulation mode as well, so that it can let you dream? 'Cause I've always been told that bad things happen to your mind if you don't dream. (No actual evidence, mind you, but the idea does make me nervous.)

given the dreams i have been having lately, i would prefer not to dream while sleeping...

not additction to sleep but to the device, kinda like an addiction to sleeping pills.

True, it's not necessarily going to be like sleeping pills, but I can imagine a situation where the brain sort of forgets how to fall asleep after using this device.
Of course, after a few days of being insomniac and kinda crazy I'm sure you'd fall asleep eventually, and probably get back onto a normal biological track soon enough.

You mean like the problem of staying awake without coffee?

Not sure I'd buy that "death within a few days" thing - after all, there's an Italian bloodline with a genetic mutation that causes fatal insomnia, and that takes years to kill them.

TMS is not considered totally harmless. You're saying you can seriously alter brain functions for positive purposes, but not for other purposes? Riiiight.

I wonder what would happen if you hooked it up to the Frontal Cortex. You could probably simulate drunkeness.

FYI, these aren't approved for CNS stimulation by the FDA. This is like a doctor prescribing cigarrettes for weight loss.