No More Interruptions: Freedom from Eating and Sleeping

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the perception of eating and sleeping as interruptions to productivity and activities. Participants explore hypothetical scenarios where these activities could be eliminated or altered, considering both the implications and personal preferences regarding sleep and eating.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express frustration with the time consumed by eating and sleeping, suggesting that these activities disrupt their productivity.
  • Others argue that sleep is essential for mental functioning and productivity, citing studies that indicate well-rested individuals perform better on tasks.
  • A few participants share personal experiences, noting that they often do not feel tired or hungry when engaged in activities they enjoy.
  • One participant mentions the myth of historical figures like Edison needing little sleep, suggesting that such claims are often exaggerated or false.
  • Some participants highlight the social and enjoyable aspects of eating, suggesting it can be more than just a necessity.
  • There is a proposal of an imaginary scenario where humans could choose to eliminate either eating or sleeping, with varying preferences expressed among participants.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally do not reach a consensus on the necessity of eating and sleeping, with multiple competing views remaining. While some emphasize the importance of sleep, others express a desire to minimize or eliminate these activities.

Contextual Notes

Participants reference studies and personal anecdotes, but specific details about the studies are not provided, leaving some claims unverified. The discussion also includes hypothetical scenarios that are not grounded in biological realities.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may interest individuals exploring the relationship between productivity and basic human needs, as well as those curious about the cultural perceptions of eating and sleeping.

Would you rather give up sleeping or eating?

  • Sleeping

    Votes: 8 27.6%

  • Eating

    Votes: 6 20.7%

  • Neither

    Votes: 13 44.8%

  • Both

    Votes: 2 6.9%

  • Other

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    29
0TheSwerve0
Messages
196
Reaction score
0
I've always felt eating and sleeping to be a waste of time, or at least to be an annoying interference for my activities. Just as you get into your groove for something, you have to stop to eat, or have to sleep for 8 hours and loose that special mojo. Why can't we just stay awake for 3 days and then sleep for 1 day? Might as well make it a thorough sleep.
 
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Yeah, you're right. I've always thought sleeping was a waste of time. There's only 56 days left in the year, and I'm going to spend 12-6 hours of the next day doing nothing?
 
When you consider that all the other work we do is primarily so that we have food to eat and a place to sleep, if we could give up eating and sleeping, we could give up working too. :biggrin:

I wouldn't give up sleeping, I like it too much. But, when I'm really busy with something, I don't just stop because it's time to sleep or eat...I don't even notice that I'm tired or hungry if I'm really in a groove working on something.

Though, my day sure would be more productive if I could just skip lunch. The hour before lunch, I start fading as I start getting hungry, and then there's that hour after lunch when you're slow while digesting.
 
We can't give up either one. There are stories that Edison got by on a couple hours of sleep a day, but this turned out to be another erroneous legend. Despite the fact he might be discovered working at any hour of the night, he was frequently found dozing in odd places around the workshop, and all these naps were figured to add up to more than eight hours a day.

The super-energized genius who doesn't need sleep, is a myth. All these stories turn out not to be true, as in Edison's case, or they turn out to be about people in the throes of a manic episode. The post-mania crash into depression pretty much disproves any theories that sleep is a waste of time.
 
Sleep is great! Although your body isn't at work, your mind is busy at work re-organizing it's self.

There was a study that people who get plently of sleep accomplish more than people who don't get enough sleep. They gave a group of people a tough mathematical problem to figure out. One group was aloud to have plently of sleep while the other group wasn't aloud to sleep at all. The test showed that although the sleep deprived people had more time to work on the problem, the people who did sleep finished before the other group. I don't have the name of it or the a link of the experiment, but I'm pretty sure I saw it somewhere!
 
I think I remember a similar study Entropy when I took Psychology.

Personally I feel sleep is very important, I usually get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep every night. I have noticed that once I started doing this I felt much better while at school, and I think it has helped me quite a bit in school.
 
I eat while studying/doing homework...

If somehow I didn't need sleep, that would be awesome. Sure I would sleep sometimes anyway, but it would really help sometimes. As long as it would be safe and I wouldn't get tired... hmm
 
I'm not saying sleep isn't important. The premise was - if you could get away with not doing either, ie in an imaginary world. Though, it seems even if you could, some of you wouldn't want to. I actually wouldn't want to give up sleeping either (again, if I could), but I would rather stay awake for days and then sleep for 1-2 days.
 
Both sleeping and eating are necessary.

Sleeping is downtime, and eating can be enjoyable assuming one knows how to cook tasty or interesting food. Eating can also be part of a social occasion.
 
  • #10
Work and other activities interrupt my sleeping and eating. A perfect world would be one where I would just eat and sleep all day. :approve:
 
  • #11
Evo said:
A perfect world would be one where I would just eat and sleep all day. :approve:
Aren't you forgetting something? :-p
 
  • #12
Danger said:
Aren't you forgetting something? :-p
You are talking about PF right? :wink:
 
  • #13
mattmns said:
You are talking about PF right? :wink:
Ah yes, sleep, eat & PF! :-p
 
  • #14
They are both hobbies of mine, and I am quite skillful...but if I had to choose, it would be eating. I've done it before (I wrestled in high school), so I know I can go longer without food than sleep.
 
  • #15
Danger said:
Aren't you forgetting something? :-p
Poker...? :devil:

[this message is not too short!]
 
  • #16
0TheSwerve0 said:
I'm not saying sleep isn't important.
Then your poll question might better be phrased, "If you could make one human activity biologically unnecessary, would you rather it be sleeping or eating?"
 
  • #17
I wanted to emphasize the sacrifice of one or the other...
 

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