Sleep

The Science Behind Sleep and Ways to Get More of It

In this anxiety provoking time, many readers have expressed problems with sleep disturbances. A book entitled Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker, PhD. (professor of neuroscience and psychology at UC Berkeley and Director of the Center for Human Sleep Science) offers the reader information on many aspects of… Continue Reading The Science Behind Sleep and Ways to Get More of It

Decisions, Decisions – I Can’t Make Up My Mind. I’ll Just Have to Sleep On It.

What is the best way to make tough decisions? In the February 17, 2006 issue of Science magazine, Ap Dijksterhuis, a Dutch psychologist, published the startling claim that people make better decisions about complex choices if they don’t think too hard about them. He based this counterintuitive conclusion on several studies. In the first study,… Continue Reading Decisions, Decisions – I Can’t Make Up My Mind. I’ll Just Have to Sleep On It.

Sleep as an Altered State of Consciousness

The risks and benefits of losing consciousness while asleep By definition, to be asleep is to be unconscious. From a biological perspective, sleeping would seem like a dangerous thing to do, considering the associated vulnerability to predators or competitors; therefore, from an evolutionary standpoint, it must have some significant survival value. Perhaps there is a… Continue Reading Sleep as an Altered State of Consciousness

Normal Sleep

Consider the modern concept of “normal” sleep. Thanks to artificial illumination, I can stay active in the evening and delay my bedtime until about 11 p.m. I lock the door (to ensure security), turn down the thermostat (for optimal sleeping temperature), and turn off the lights (to eliminate extraneous stimulation). I join my wife (the… Continue Reading Normal Sleep