| Okay, there's a story behind the title. It's a running joke | | | | Many scientists and leaders in business and politics |
| between my wife and myself. A few months ago, I | | | | have used and praised the technique. One of the more |
| made a crack about how her hair looked one morning. | | | | famous examples is that of Friedrich August Kekule, |
| Something about Elvis. I didn't get out of the doghouse | | | | who described a major break through in the structure |
| for a week. Fortunately, she has a sense of humor, | | | | of molecules coming to him as he dozed. Some |
| even if it's a little slow sometimes. | | | | studies have even shown the ability of an athelete to |
| I usually get up an hour or two before she does, and | | | | "practice" and improve his or her technique while |
| one morning a few weeks after that faux pas, she | | | | asleep. Such problem solving and nocturnal |
| came out with her hair in wild disarray (as usual). She | | | | improvement in both physical and mental areas is |
| looked sleepily at me and said, "I looked in the | | | | often ascribed to your brain's attempt to "make sense" |
| mirror....God's been arranging my hair again while I | | | | of everything it has encountered during its waking |
| sleep." | | | | periods. Very often, this attempt to "make sense" |
| Since then, we often greet each other with some | | | | manifests itself as a dream. |
| remark about the new hairdo God arranged overnight. | | | | In April, 2004, psychologists at the Western |
| Silly little joke, but it got me to thinking. | | | | Psychological Association's 84th Annual Convention in |
| So often, I will go to bed, puzzling over some problem. I | | | | Phoenix dedicated several sessions to discussing |
| might be working on an article, or even worse, be | | | | sleep, its effects on health and impact on social policy. |
| completely unable to come up with one. I might be | | | | Experts representing such institutions as Scripps |
| worried about the bills, or the kids (even though they're | | | | Mercy Sleep Disorders Center, the University of |
| grown and gone), or retirement (which I'm halfway into | | | | Arizona, and the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic |
| anyway). I'm lost or bewildered when I go to bed, but | | | | discussed many benefits of sleep, including its affect |
| when I wake up in the morning (and have that first cup | | | | on health and memory. One piece of information |
| of coffee), I have a handle on what to do. No matter | | | | presented was that during sleep, information is often |
| how things were when I went to bed, I have a | | | | stored in long-term memory. During sleep, your brain is |
| different, and usually better, take on it when I wake up. | | | | at work replenishing neurotransmitters that organize |
| Now, this is not particularly surprising. For years, many | | | | neural networks essential to remembering, learning, |
| studies have demonstrated the ability of the your brain | | | | performance and problem solving, according to James |
| to solve problems while you sleep. Most commonly this | | | | B. Maas, PhD, former chairman of the psychology |
| consists of one group of people being given a problem | | | | department at Cornell University, and author of the |
| to solve while awake, while another group has the | | | | book "Power Sleep". Dr. Maas went on to state that |
| opportunity to, well, "sleep on it." Many students, | | | | lack of sleep "makes you clumsy, stupid and |
| including myself, have used the technique of reviewing | | | | unhealthy." |
| or studying right before bed. When the material is | | | | While sleep has many benefits which I have not gone |
| scanned shortly after rising the next day, the student | | | | into here, it's good to know that we can learn and |
| often is better able to understand and retain it. | | | | grow each night while God's arranging our hair. |