Every night, humans wind down from a day filled with stimuli and activity to rest for a period of about six to eight hours. In this sleep, we recharge and rejuvenate ourselves for what the next demands. But this sleep is not the only method of resting known to man. Many other animals follow a polyphasic sleep schedule (sleeping many times throughout the day) as opposed to monophasic (prolonged sleeping, once a day), and some humans follow this schedule as well. Few research studies have been done on the effects of polyphasic sleep, but individuals that experiment and adapt to a polyphasic sleep pattern often report very positive side effects. Monophonic sleep, however, is practiced by the vast majority, and thus most all social conventions are based around a 6-8 hour sleep period and 16-18 waking period.
Is this prolonged, once daily sleep the most beneficial to human beings, or is it merely what we have become accustomed to?
That is the question I would like to have answered. Many animals are polyphasic sleepers, and I wonder if monophasic sleep is actually a natural trait of the human species or instead a social adaptation we are tied to. Oddly enough, we are all polyphasic for a time, when we are first brought into the world. Babies are naturally polyphasic beings, sleeping multiple periods throughout the day. Eventually, most come to rest on a biphasic sleep pattern (two sleep periods, composed of a core period and nap period). Many cultures have sleep patterns that m culture might find strange. And seafarers have known the stress of needing to constantly be awake, many adapting a polyphasic lifestyle out of neccessity.
I initially planned to do a polyphasic schedule following the Dymaxion or Uberman method. However, subsequent research has lead me to believe that while a polyphasic schedule is indeed possible, it may not have the benefits that are widely spoken of in the polyphasic forums and blogs. Furthermore, research is very scarce, leaving possible health concerns unanswered. I have decided to instead do a biphasic pattern of sleep, sleeping in multiples of 90 minute increments. The reason that the schedule is formed around 90 minute increments is in accordance with research that indicates humans usually take about 90 minutes to pass through the five stages of sleep (Stage I, II, III, IV, and REM), and other research that has found the interruption of this sleep cycle can be as exhausting on the body as not sleeping whatsoever.
The first week is known to be the most difficult for one attempting a biphasic sleep schedule, as this conditioning stage is essentially sleep deprivation, though less than that of established polyphasic cycles. I will attempt to follow the schedule of sleeping from 3:00am - 6:00am for core sleep and from 4:30pm - 6:00pm for nap sleep. I will keep track of the actual sleeping times. Though set times are in place, there may be instances in which I oversleep, get to sleep later, or am unable to sleep for social interaction, and such instances will be noted. If a nap is missed completely, I will add that time to my core sleep for that night. However, sleeping over will not result in a "sleep penalty" and deduct time from my next scheduled sleep period. This information will be made available to the public upon the conclusion of the initial experiment.
Given that the experiment is a success and proves beneficial to my health and personal interests, the biphasic sleep schedule experiment will continue until it proves too cumbersome due to social constraints. My 2009 Fall semester has been chosen on the assumption that the experiment is successful, allowing the polyphasic sleep pattern to go one through the semester.
Below is a list of topics I will keep updated daily. If anyone has suggestions of other areas to keep updated, please post your ideas in the comment section (of either blogger or facebook notes). Also, if you have ideas to help certain areas (for example, a puzzle generator online that would create puzzles of similar difficulty), any suggestions are much appriciated. The topics below are ideas and may or not remain with the daily blog.
Mental Clarity
Physical Exhaustion
Sleepiness
Alertness
Creativity
Exercise
Practicality
It is currently 5:10 am, so I am unable to start the experiment tonight. I will start it tomorrow night at 3:00am.
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