one (small) benefit of sleeping is that days have definite ends and starts. and psychologically I find that helpful. makes life feel like it's composed of bite-sized chunks that I can tackle
This assumes that more waking time automatically means more valuable time. Maybe sleep’s value isn’t in experiencing it, but in the rhythm and boundaries it gives to waking life.
As a night owl who resists going to bed till the last second, I would take this drug. If you could take it as a maintenance drug that let you skip a day, it could be handy to skip for something like sleeping on a 14-hr international flight.
I'm a "no". While the pill itself may not have any side effects, not sleeping likely would-just to be clear about the initial claim. I believe that we are still in a nascent state of understanding the various sleep stages and the role that they play in our physiology.
I had a vague intution that sleep may have some other functions than removing tiredness and indeed quick consultation with ChatGPT confirms that sleep plays some role in memory formation and metabolism. Of course we assume no such side effects, but as with neuroimplants I will let others check safety first :P
I say no to the pill because I intuitively feel the need for the rhythm of the wake-sleep cycle. The contrast between the boundaries of states of consciousness/physical and psychic are the experiences we perceive. Also, I don’t want the continuous effort of filling my days with activities. I want my day to end and look forward start to starting a new day.
Off the cuff: I'd want the pill to be accompanied by a way to reproduce the delightful feeling of being 105% physically relaxed and 95+% psychologically relaxed. This combination comes to me only after a good sleep. Can I have it for my weekends please?
If you assume away all the deleterious effects, physical and mental, the question comes down to whether I would miss sleeping. So define “sleep”. Does it include dozing? Or is the definition limited to that period of deep sleeping in which one is entirely unconscious? If I could keep the ability to doze I might be happy to do without sleep. But if I would lose what might be described as the peripheries of sleep - dozing off in my easy chair, the slow morning awakening - yeah, I would miss it and might not want to give it up. How about a pill that significantly reduces the need without entirely eliminating it?
The story to read here is Manhole 69 by J.G.Ballard. In this story, three volunteers undergo an operation intended to eliminate their need for sleep. The experiment promises more usable life, but the central problem becomes what happens to their sense of self when they can never switch off.
This would just make it impossible not to take it. People would be working 16 hour days to make more money. In order to keep up and make as much as those taking it, you’d essentially be forced to take it.
I used the polyphasic sleep cycle when I worked third shift for over 7 years. It worked great, but I hated it purely because I missed dreaming and I missed the simple pure relaxation of waking up, rolling over, and going right back to sleep.
This is a great question! Sara Protasi has a wonderful article in the Journal of the APA (as well as an Aeon piece) exploring this topic -- both are open access. She argues (I think quite convincingly) for the non-instrumental value of sleep and against the magic sleep pill approach.
one (small) benefit of sleeping is that days have definite ends and starts. and psychologically I find that helpful. makes life feel like it's composed of bite-sized chunks that I can tackle
This assumes that more waking time automatically means more valuable time. Maybe sleep’s value isn’t in experiencing it, but in the rhythm and boundaries it gives to waking life.
As a night owl who resists going to bed till the last second, I would take this drug. If you could take it as a maintenance drug that let you skip a day, it could be handy to skip for something like sleeping on a 14-hr international flight.
I'm a "no". While the pill itself may not have any side effects, not sleeping likely would-just to be clear about the initial claim. I believe that we are still in a nascent state of understanding the various sleep stages and the role that they play in our physiology.
I had a vague intution that sleep may have some other functions than removing tiredness and indeed quick consultation with ChatGPT confirms that sleep plays some role in memory formation and metabolism. Of course we assume no such side effects, but as with neuroimplants I will let others check safety first :P
Have you read Beggars in Spain? Its a near future sci-fi novel that takes on exactly these questions.
I haven't! I will check it out -- thanks!
I imagine it would entirely change our experience of reality, time, and consciousness, so I would certainly think twice.
I say no to the pill because I intuitively feel the need for the rhythm of the wake-sleep cycle. The contrast between the boundaries of states of consciousness/physical and psychic are the experiences we perceive. Also, I don’t want the continuous effort of filling my days with activities. I want my day to end and look forward start to starting a new day.
Off the cuff: I'd want the pill to be accompanied by a way to reproduce the delightful feeling of being 105% physically relaxed and 95+% psychologically relaxed. This combination comes to me only after a good sleep. Can I have it for my weekends please?
If you assume away all the deleterious effects, physical and mental, the question comes down to whether I would miss sleeping. So define “sleep”. Does it include dozing? Or is the definition limited to that period of deep sleeping in which one is entirely unconscious? If I could keep the ability to doze I might be happy to do without sleep. But if I would lose what might be described as the peripheries of sleep - dozing off in my easy chair, the slow morning awakening - yeah, I would miss it and might not want to give it up. How about a pill that significantly reduces the need without entirely eliminating it?
The story to read here is Manhole 69 by J.G.Ballard. In this story, three volunteers undergo an operation intended to eliminate their need for sleep. The experiment promises more usable life, but the central problem becomes what happens to their sense of self when they can never switch off.
This would just make it impossible not to take it. People would be working 16 hour days to make more money. In order to keep up and make as much as those taking it, you’d essentially be forced to take it.
If people could work more hours the result might be that wages would go down. It would be likely be doubling the number of people seeking work.
Wow, super interesting!
I would try it out, cause as an Autist I am always too exhausted & don‘t have enough time
I used the polyphasic sleep cycle when I worked third shift for over 7 years. It worked great, but I hated it purely because I missed dreaming and I missed the simple pure relaxation of waking up, rolling over, and going right back to sleep.
I would much rather have a pill that helps me sleep longer or stronger.
I believe sleep is as important as nutrition. Fuel for our bodies.
Nap time is so important for babies and even older adults.
Taking a pill to stop sleep is like taking the nighttime and turning it into day!
This is a great question! Sara Protasi has a wonderful article in the Journal of the APA (as well as an Aeon piece) exploring this topic -- both are open access. She argues (I think quite convincingly) for the non-instrumental value of sleep and against the magic sleep pill approach.
JAPA article is here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-american-philosophical-association/article/value-of-sleeping/C82D95292E5A4B797705D05580C6D4A2
And the Aeon piece: https://aeon.co/essays/sleep-is-not-just-a-physical-need-but-a-delicious-pleasure
oh very cool! I will read -- thanks!!