MSS141 Summer 2003
Physiology of Sleep; History of Sleep Science; Chronobiology

Dement, ch. 1-2 (p.13-50), 4-5 (p.74-124); Lavie, ch. 1-4

Reading Questions

1.  According to Dement, what are the criteria for sleep?  

2.  Summarize and explain most notable ancient and modern theories about sleep up to the present day.

3.  What are some of the principle ways in which scientists study sleep?

4.  What is REM?  How was it discovered?  What are the characteristics of REM sleep and what is paradoxical about it?

5.  Explain the typical sleep cycle.  What are the different stages?  How does the sleep cycle differ with age?

6.  How did Dement come to study sleep?  What were some of the preconceived notions about sleep in the 1950s when he started his work?

7.  What were some of the theories and results of the dream deprivation (or REM deprivation studies)?

8.  What is the biological clock?   What is the circadian rhythm?  What does Dement mean by "opponent process model"?

9.  Explain jet lag using the notions of the biological clock and the sleep drive.  

10.  What have scientists discovered when they measure the sleep of subjects deprived of all external time cues?

11.  How did Thomas Edison influence modern sleep?

12.  In your sleep and dream journal, start to record the number of hours you sleep a day, including naps.  When do you tend to feel drowsy and when are you especially alert?  Start to pay attention to your circadian rhythm.