Sleep

Sleep

A blue-walled hallway with white trim features several doorways in a row, with large fluffy clouds filling the rooms beyond.
4mins
Have you ever woken up after a dream and thought to yourself, “That made absolutely no sense”? According to modern neuroscience, there’s a reason why dreams feel so abstract and bizarre. Two sleep experts discuss.
Unlikely Collaborators
Aerial view of a river delta with branching waterways, shaped by natural intelligence, flowing into the sea and surrounded by green and brown land.
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
A digital illustration of a human brain next to a crescent moon on a dark background.
3mins
Sleeping better helps you think better, which helps you live better. Three experts explain why quality sleep is imperative to brain function, problem solving, communication, and more.
Unlikely Collaborators
Two grayscale portraits of men are shown in a four-panel grid, alongside blue and white arrow graphics and blue diagonal shapes.
Members
Deepak Chopra and Harvard neurobiologist Rudolph Tanzi advocate for "radical well-being," emphasizing that optimal health relies on proactive measures—such as sleep, nutrition, exercise, and emotional regulation—rather than reactive responses to health issues.
Elderly man with long curly hair and a full white beard, centered in a pink-tinted square frame with a pink background.
Members
This class explores the link between neurobiology and productivity, teaching participants to optimize willpower and focus through strategies like meta-awareness, the Pomodoro Technique, and the importance of rest, while experts share insights on achieving peak performance amidst modern distractions.
A red door with a gold doorknob is floating in the middle of a blue sky surrounded by white clouds.
"Ordinary dreams are, perhaps, the clearest articulation of what it is like to be."
Silhouette of a person standing with hands in pockets, surrounded by concentric oval lines resembling tree rings that symbolize lifespan, in various shades of brown.
Living longer is only half the equation. Here’s how to stay healthier for more of those years.
A child rests peacefully on a bed adorned with red and white striped sheets, wearing a blue outfit. It's as if their dreams are in sleep replay, caught in the tranquil rhythm of slumber, lying contentedly on their stomach.
Participants’ brains revealed they were doing a kind of “neural replay” of the game they had been manipulated to win.
A collage featuring a sleeping person, a 3D-rendered hand, and various graphs with dates and "gpt-4" labels, overlaid by the text "The Nightcrawler," subtly highlights themes of the attention economy.
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
Illustration of a prehistoric scene with a rodent-like mammal, possibly experiencing animal sleep deprivation, perched on a branch. In the background, two elephants are walking while a flying reptile soars under the moonlit sky.
Scientists still aren't sure how they perform without those restorative Z's.
Close-up of a hand holding a blue object, with a digitally altered, grainy effect and a circular line overlay on the image. The background features a mix of white, red, and pink hues.
GLP-1 agonists may be able to treat addiction, prevent Alzheimer’s, and more.
a collage of photos of people talking on their cell phones.
The Human Chronome Project finds that the average human sleeps for 9 hours but only works for 2.6 hours.
A woman's feet in a hammock on the beach.
It may seem as though top performers are always on, but the secret to their success is taking the time to recharge.
A collage of images capturing a woman with her eyes closed, hinting at the possibility of sleep deprivation.
Big Think recently spoke with sleep psychologist Dr. Jade Wu about the surprising consequences of forgoing sleep.
A close up of a fish's eye, revealing its intriguing anatomy.
Researchers are finding signs of multiple phases of sleep all over the animal kingdom. The ‘active’ sleep phases look very much like REM.
A group of people sleeping on a train.
Lucid dreamers may have “privileged access to their inner world,” with “heightened awareness... to the outside world.”
Two people laying down in a field, reflecting on their habits and contemplating their battles with depression.
A healthy lifestyle even protects those who are genetically predisposed to depression.
The words boost your brain on a yellow background.
3mins
Want to be more intelligent? Here’s why you should hit the gym, according to neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki.
A woman wearing a sleep apnea mask with a bottle of water.
If not treated, the disorder drastically increases one's risk of death.
A painting depicting sleep deprivation and a woman asleep at a table.
Bad news: Sleeping in on the weekends probably won't cut it.
A man napping next to a horse in a painting.
Don't feel compelled to start a napping routine just yet.
A black t-shirt featuring pictures of friends.
Since 2012, the amount of time that teenagers spend socializing in person has plummeted. Is it a coincidence that depression is more common?
A black t-shirt featuring a picture of a man and a woman, causing brain zaps.
Synchronized activity between the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and thalamus plays a role in memory consolidation.
dream advertising
A team of scientists has warned that marketers seek to advertise in our dreams. Will our sleep be commercialized against our wishes?
A surreal painting shows a large distorted human face with closed eyes, supported by sticks, floating above a calm landscape with a boat and building in the background.
4mins
Ancient societies revered dreams. Modern science tells us why.
a blurry image of a man standing in front of a blue background.
A recently identified stage of sleep common to narcoleptics is a fertile source of creativity.
a collage of a woman sleeping on a pillow next to a bowl of food.
More than a third of Americans don’t get enough sleep. Diet is an important, under-recognized culprit.
Silhouette of a person with outstretched hands pressed against a red, translucent surface.
6mins
This is not your average dream interpreter. Nightmares, as explained by a neuroscientist.