Interesting, I tend to agree about the cognitive capacity, but raters than focus (as many others here seem to have a problem with under sleep deprivation), I find that the biggest challenge for me is motivation. Any task that is inherently rewarding (coding fun stuff, games,...) is no problem. Anything remotely boring, or just challenging, I just don't find it in me. If push comes to shove I'll do it, but if I'm allowed to procrastinate I will
The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
271–280 of 368 posts
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#272Earlier quoted context omitted.
>I would imagine the group of people who immediately accepted everything this book claimed as fact and went on to immediately adjust their lifestyles to match may have a strong correlation with the group of people who are more susceptible to the placebo effect. This is a very interesting point.
Guzey of guzey_arena fame?
Yes.
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#273Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think the other part to remember is that the author of the article is 22. I didn't need sleep either when I was his age. I don't mean he's naive, just that a 22-year-old can abuse their body without too many negative consequences. As someone in my late 30s, I definitely feel it when I only get 4 hours of sleep.
YES. Becoming a parent in my mid-30s taught me many things, including just how much more energy I had in my 20s
Maybe there is some wisdom in getting married/having kids at an younger age. I know, it is way more complicated than that..
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#274Was his assessment basically just playing video games? I've noticed that's an activity I can do proficiently for an extended duration on very little sleep (along with things like "bulk" coding) but there are others I'm awful at unless I'm well rested (eg. complex planning, creative efforts like songwriting) and I've found my communication skills start to become impaired when I'm really sleep deprived. I'd be curious…
I have exactly what you say. My hypothesis is that your cortex/tertiary brain functions shut down and all that's left is your limbic system and the brainstem. We do a lot of learning in our basal ganglia and cerebellum (pavlov-esque stuff and similar things). That stays more active. I once made a giant switch statement of 150 lines at my first coding job, and I thought I did a job well done. The next day I came back,…
Thanks for sharing! Yep, I can relate to a lot of that.
On occasion I've noticed slight deprivation seem to stimulate my performance in some tasks. It's accompanied by a feeling of being wired and on a roll. That mildly elated "let's get 'er done!" ferver. I always assumed it was adrenaline pumping through my system to keep me going, as a (poor?) substitute for rest. Like the body's coffee.
Also seen cases where it similarly lowered my inhibitions (almost like a mild buzz). But once I'm significantly deprived, my vocabulary starts to become reduced - I have trouble remembering the word I really want (I know it's there, just not what it is), and resort to a more basic one that's less precise. It's generally the "outbound" side that suffers. I think it's also in part that my multitasking gets worse. In a normal conversation I'll be listening, and at the same time processing what's being said in the context of the conversation and my own experiences, as well as thinking ahead to formulate the phrasing for my response. When I'm really tired, I don't multitask as well (it takes more focus to perform the primary task I'm doing, e.g. listening and retaining short-term memory, and if I try to juggle too many things at once I'll lose concentration). I've learned when it's a better time to go get some rest than get pulled into a discussion about that complex $100 million merger or a deep dive talking about feelings with my partner ;-).
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#275I find it concerning how many people in this thread immediately jump from believing Why We Sleep is truthful to the book is complete bullshit because guzey says so. Indeed, some good points are raised by him but at the end of the day he's just another fucking guy with a blog. The entire field deserves more study but the responses on here feel like Grandma on Facebook passing on something she read because it feels right.
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#276Earlier quoted context omitted.
+1 to a maid. You can get someone to clean, do laundry, and possibly cook 2x a week for less than $10k ($200 week * 50 weeks) a year in a mid-sized metro. Possibly even cheaper. Any couple that bickers about cleaning at all should try a maid before a divorce or couples counseling.
-1 to having a stranger wander through your place and things while you're not at home. As a commenter on this site you should be well aware that any computer security precautions are forfeit when physical access is available. Get a roomba.
Sure ask the roomba to iron clothes too and watch it while it goes up the walls your kids dirtied up. Check with people with kids on the verge of collapse - if you can afford it, its a godsend (in Asia, you probably can afford it atleast part-time).
Nobody said allowing access to the helper while nobody is around. Weekend help for a few hours is a thing. You can rest and relax while they are around. Just don't be dumb enough to tempt them by leaving a purse full of cash on the table. Even the best of the people can fall prey to a moment of weakness.
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#277I've always mused that we could somehow recover some of the "wasted" time of sleeping. 8 hours every night - a third of a human's lifespan - is just so much time. Sadly, I've never found any positive research that there's any way to do it safely. When I was younger I found schedules like the Uberman[0] and was amazed by the claim: only 2 hours of sleep a day required, as long as you stuck to a pretty rigid schedule a…
Have you tried lucid dreaming? I’ve been a lucid dreamer since I was a kid but I didn’t know what it was called and I thought that’s how everyone’s dreams work. Somewhere along the way in law school I started using my dreams to study. I’d slow-walk through hypothetical fact patterns or anticipate getting cold-called to recite a case we’d read. It’s been incredibly helpful and once I realized my classmates had no idea…
Yes, see my comment here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23228264
I use lucid dreaming to simulate various scenarios, sometimes have fun with superpowers, usually telekinesis.
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#27812-14 days sounds like just enough time to finish taking exams, and my study/sleep schedule was rather like his during some periods in university.
Sleep deprivation can lead to me being more creative, particularly with abstract concepts like free will and subatomic physics. I wouldn't want to do it long-term though.
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#279Earlier quoted context omitted.
+1 to a maid. You can get someone to clean, do laundry, and possibly cook 2x a week for less than $10k ($200 week * 50 weeks) a year in a mid-sized metro. Possibly even cheaper. Any couple that bickers about cleaning at all should try a maid before a divorce or couples counseling.
-1 to having a stranger wander through your place and things while you're not at home. As a commenter on this site you should be well aware that any computer security precautions are forfeit when physical access is available. Get a roomba.
-1 to having a robot wander through your place and things while you're not at home. As a commenter on this site you should be well aware that any computer security precautions are forfeit when a robot, capable of interfacing with your computer without even entering a password, is allowed physical access to your home.
Hire a maid.
Re: The effects on cognition of sleeping 4 hours per night for 12-14 days
#280I find the title misleading. The post should add “for me” at the end of the title, or “for me as a young healthy male”.
This is a personal experience written up as a blog post.