- Email: [email protected]
Dream on
Last words past and present at newscientist.com/lastword
THE LAST WORD
sponsored by
Chaotic kip Last night I slept really well but today I have spent the whole day feeling tired. On the other hand, I sometimes have a poor night’s sleep and I am just fine the next day. How can this be?
overnight blood sugar. This is more likely after a physically active day because the muscles will take more sugar from the blood to replenish their glycogen store. Alcohol consumption earlier in the evening can cause overnight lows through its delayed effect on glucose release by the liver. To combat this have a light carbohydrate snack or non-
n Your brain may have slept well last night, but did your body get adequate rest, especially if you went to bed tense with worry? In her book Stress and Relaxation, “Insomniacs who complained of lying awake Jane Madders talks of people who go to sleep so keyed up, with their were actually observed to have spells of sleep” jaws and fists clenched tightly, that it’s no wonder they wake up exhausted. stimulant milk drink before bed Studies looking at the electrical to trigger an insulin surge, but conduction system of the heart make sure you avoid sugar. during physical workouts have On the other hand, did you shown that muscles have plenty really sleep poorly when you felt of reserve for continued fine the next day? In one study, contraction even after a person feels they have reached their limit. And it’s common for athletes to experience a “deep tiredness” after very intensive training – even at times in the circadian rhythm when the brain is set for wakefulness. It transpires that feelings of tiredness are a brain construct, which is separate from the hardwired daily sleep cycle. Indeed we might make some sense of the chaos we sometimes feel by thinking of sleep as a means of refreshing the brain itself, and tiredness as a separate function that protects the body and organs from genuine overwork by forcing us to rest. A related factor behind feeling drained the next day is low
The writers of answers published in the magazine will receive a cheque for £25 (or US$ equivalent). Answers should be concise. We reserve the right to edit items for clarity and style. Include a daytime telephone number and email address if you have one. We are pleased to acknowledge financial support from Statoil in producing The Last Word. New Scientist retains total editorial control over the content. Reed Business Information Ltd reserves all rights to reuse question
and answer material that has been submitted by readers in any medium or in any format. Send questions and answers to The Last Word, New Scientist, Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS, UK, by email to lastword@newscientist. com or visit www.newscientist.com/topic/ lastword (please include a postal address in order to receive payment for answers). Unanswered questions can also be found at this URL.
insomniacs who had complained of lying awake all night were actually observed to have had several spells of sleep. Nothing has caused more sleep loss than fretting over whether you are getting enough, but it has been shown that bright awakenings depend more on the phase in the sleep cycle you wake from than on the total amount of sleep you get. You will emerge fresh from the lightest phase of sleep, called type 1, and from the light dreaming sleep that intersperses successive sleep cycles. A night dotted with catnaps each shorter than 15 minutes (ending before you enter deeper sleep), or a single stretch of one-and-three-quarter hours (thus ensuring you have returned to type 1, having gone
through the deeper and restorative types 2, 3 and 4), may provide all the sleep and bodily rest you need. But an alarm clock that wakes you during type 4 sleep could see you groggy and grouchy all morning. Waking with the feeling you need more and more sleep – known as “sleep fat” – can sometimes result from too much sleep. In these ways, sleep and rest, and shortfalls thereof, can act either for or against us. Len Winokur Leeds, UK
This week’s questions Dream on
Why do I have recurring dreams, years after I left university, of being about to sit an exam but knowing nothing of the subject matter? I’m not alone, lots of people I speak to have the same. Guy Jones Altrincham, Cheshire, UK Fingers of Sol
Can anyone explain the pattern seen here in the sky (left)? It was spotted in the Pyrenees at about 8 am. We were heading east and although it gradually faded, it lasted for some time. The mountain pass over which the light is shining is at an altitude of 2000 metres and there is nothing in the next valley or mountain that could explain the pattern. Simon Houghton San Sebastian, Spain
The last word on energy Win £100 by answering our monthly question about energy issues A lot of nuclear waste generates large amounts of energy. Why can’t this stuff, which has to be kept underwater to stop it catching fire, be used to generate heat or electricity? Answers should reach us by 23.59 GMT on 11 March 2014 to [email protected] or visit www.newscientist.com/topic/ energy. Terms and conditions are also at this URL.
THE LAST WORD
sponsored by
Chaotic kip Last night I slept really well but today I have spent the whole day feeling tired. On the other hand, I sometimes have a poor night’s sleep and I am just fine the next day. How can this be?
overnight blood sugar. This is more likely after a physically active day because the muscles will take more sugar from the blood to replenish their glycogen store. Alcohol consumption earlier in the evening can cause overnight lows through its delayed effect on glucose release by the liver. To combat this have a light carbohydrate snack or non-
n Your brain may have slept well last night, but did your body get adequate rest, especially if you went to bed tense with worry? In her book Stress and Relaxation, “Insomniacs who complained of lying awake Jane Madders talks of people who go to sleep so keyed up, with their were actually observed to have spells of sleep” jaws and fists clenched tightly, that it’s no wonder they wake up exhausted. stimulant milk drink before bed Studies looking at the electrical to trigger an insulin surge, but conduction system of the heart make sure you avoid sugar. during physical workouts have On the other hand, did you shown that muscles have plenty really sleep poorly when you felt of reserve for continued fine the next day? In one study, contraction even after a person feels they have reached their limit. And it’s common for athletes to experience a “deep tiredness” after very intensive training – even at times in the circadian rhythm when the brain is set for wakefulness. It transpires that feelings of tiredness are a brain construct, which is separate from the hardwired daily sleep cycle. Indeed we might make some sense of the chaos we sometimes feel by thinking of sleep as a means of refreshing the brain itself, and tiredness as a separate function that protects the body and organs from genuine overwork by forcing us to rest. A related factor behind feeling drained the next day is low
The writers of answers published in the magazine will receive a cheque for £25 (or US$ equivalent). Answers should be concise. We reserve the right to edit items for clarity and style. Include a daytime telephone number and email address if you have one. We are pleased to acknowledge financial support from Statoil in producing The Last Word. New Scientist retains total editorial control over the content. Reed Business Information Ltd reserves all rights to reuse question
and answer material that has been submitted by readers in any medium or in any format. Send questions and answers to The Last Word, New Scientist, Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS, UK, by email to lastword@newscientist. com or visit www.newscientist.com/topic/ lastword (please include a postal address in order to receive payment for answers). Unanswered questions can also be found at this URL.
insomniacs who had complained of lying awake all night were actually observed to have had several spells of sleep. Nothing has caused more sleep loss than fretting over whether you are getting enough, but it has been shown that bright awakenings depend more on the phase in the sleep cycle you wake from than on the total amount of sleep you get. You will emerge fresh from the lightest phase of sleep, called type 1, and from the light dreaming sleep that intersperses successive sleep cycles. A night dotted with catnaps each shorter than 15 minutes (ending before you enter deeper sleep), or a single stretch of one-and-three-quarter hours (thus ensuring you have returned to type 1, having gone
through the deeper and restorative types 2, 3 and 4), may provide all the sleep and bodily rest you need. But an alarm clock that wakes you during type 4 sleep could see you groggy and grouchy all morning. Waking with the feeling you need more and more sleep – known as “sleep fat” – can sometimes result from too much sleep. In these ways, sleep and rest, and shortfalls thereof, can act either for or against us. Len Winokur Leeds, UK
This week’s questions Dream on
Why do I have recurring dreams, years after I left university, of being about to sit an exam but knowing nothing of the subject matter? I’m not alone, lots of people I speak to have the same. Guy Jones Altrincham, Cheshire, UK Fingers of Sol
Can anyone explain the pattern seen here in the sky (left)? It was spotted in the Pyrenees at about 8 am. We were heading east and although it gradually faded, it lasted for some time. The mountain pass over which the light is shining is at an altitude of 2000 metres and there is nothing in the next valley or mountain that could explain the pattern. Simon Houghton San Sebastian, Spain
The last word on energy Win £100 by answering our monthly question about energy issues A lot of nuclear waste generates large amounts of energy. Why can’t this stuff, which has to be kept underwater to stop it catching fire, be used to generate heat or electricity? Answers should reach us by 23.59 GMT on 11 March 2014 to [email protected] or visit www.newscientist.com/topic/ energy. Terms and conditions are also at this URL.