Attempting a polyphasic sleep pattern

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of polyphasic sleep, where individuals attempt to break their sleep into smaller segments throughout the day. Participants explore the implications of this sleep pattern, share activities to engage in during sleep deprivation, and question the healthiness of such an approach.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant describes polyphasic sleeping as a method to achieve restorative REM sleep in shorter sleep durations and seeks engaging activities to distract from sleep deprivation.
  • Several participants question the motivations behind attempting polyphasic sleep, indicating curiosity about the rationale.
  • Suggestions for mindless activities include cleaning, walking, stretching, playing video games, playing guitar, and organizing coins.
  • One participant humorously suggests mathematical activities, such as taking derivatives of polynomials or finding the prime factorization of the time every minute, as potential distractions.
  • Another participant expresses skepticism about the healthiness of polyphasic sleep, citing the body's biological clock and its resistance to rapid changes in sleep patterns, referencing potential cognitive and motor skill declines.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the health implications of polyphasic sleep, with some expressing skepticism about its safety while others focus on practical activities to cope with sleep deprivation.

Contextual Notes

There are unresolved assumptions regarding the effects of polyphasic sleep on health and cognitive function, as well as the effectiveness of suggested activities in mitigating sleep deprivation.

ecneicS
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Polywhatawhosea? Polyphasic sleeping is when u break up your sleep into smaller sections throughout the day. You condition your body to naturally hit REM sleep right when u fall asleep so you get the restorative qualities of REM sleep yet you sleep only a fraction of what you would with one core sleep

. I am attempting this schedule and for the first few days will be completely sleep deprived. I am looking for mindless activities that are not physically or mentally burdening but at the same time engaging and can help me get my mind off sleep. What I have so far is..

Cleaning
Walking
Stretching
Playing video games (but which ones?)o
Guitar
Putting coins in coin sleeves (i have at least 1000 coins)

Let me know your ideas please!
 
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So, why are you wanting to do this?
 
Taking derivatives of simple polynomials?
 
Look at the clock and find the prime factorization of the time every minute. See how long you can keep up.
 
lisab said:
So, why are you wanting to do this?
Good question.
 
micromass said:
Look at the clock and find the prime factorization of the time every minute. See how long you can keep up.

And that, is why I was skeptical about posting this on a physics forum. Any real help?
 
1MileCrash said:
Taking derivatives of simple polynomials?

That's actually a good idea I misread it as a joke initially.
 
What you are attempting is not healthy.
Misconception 3: The body adjusts quickly to different sleep schedules.
The biological clock that times and controls a person’s sleep/wake cycle will attempt to function according to a normal day/night schedule even when that person tries to change it. Those who work night shifts naturally feel sleepy when nighttime comes. A similar feeling that occurs during travel is known as jet lag. (See Major Concepts, section 3.5.) This conflict, set up by trying to be active during the brain’s biological nighttime, leads to a decrease in cognitive and motor skills.

http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih3/sleep/guide/info-sleep.htm
 

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