You Can Live With Two Hours' Sleep
Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2008 7:39 am
According to an article by Mathew Honan in last month's WIRED print magazine (yes, I just got around to reading it...ok parts of it...tonight) ...
[quote]Don't waste time snoozing the night away. Turn your waking day into a 22-hour party by getting your shut-eye polyphasically - in a few quick bursts. Studies by the Chronobiology Research Institute show that for those on round-the-clock schedules - sailors, astronauts, gamers - it's more effective to recharge in short stints. For survival, the brain will eventually adapt by entering the REM state much faster. The cumulative result: a higher percentage of the best kind of Z's.
The most time-efficient strategy, dubbed the Uberman (what else?), calls for a 20 minute nap every four hours. (Warning: the long term side-effects are unknown. But with only two hours of sleep a day, you'll have plenty of time to worry about it.) Here are three tips for streamlining your sleep regime:
1. Invest in an office couch. You'll need to zonk at least twice during an eight-hour workday.
2. Use an alarm (or three). Oversleeping will turn you into a zombie.
3. Stick it out. The first seven days of deprivation will be sheer misery, but stay on track. Once you start dreaming during naps - a sign you've hit REM - you'll begin to feel better.[/quote]
Source: [url="http://www.wired.com"]WIRED[/url] print edition 16/01/08 Page 50
[quote]Don't waste time snoozing the night away. Turn your waking day into a 22-hour party by getting your shut-eye polyphasically - in a few quick bursts. Studies by the Chronobiology Research Institute show that for those on round-the-clock schedules - sailors, astronauts, gamers - it's more effective to recharge in short stints. For survival, the brain will eventually adapt by entering the REM state much faster. The cumulative result: a higher percentage of the best kind of Z's.
The most time-efficient strategy, dubbed the Uberman (what else?), calls for a 20 minute nap every four hours. (Warning: the long term side-effects are unknown. But with only two hours of sleep a day, you'll have plenty of time to worry about it.) Here are three tips for streamlining your sleep regime:
1. Invest in an office couch. You'll need to zonk at least twice during an eight-hour workday.
2. Use an alarm (or three). Oversleeping will turn you into a zombie.
3. Stick it out. The first seven days of deprivation will be sheer misery, but stay on track. Once you start dreaming during naps - a sign you've hit REM - you'll begin to feel better.[/quote]
Source: [url="http://www.wired.com"]WIRED[/url] print edition 16/01/08 Page 50
