Thread: Paige's Workbook :)

Had a sleepover at my cousin's place. I had some really weird dreams, which I only recalled halfway throughout the day. It really threw me off because I usually remember dreams when I wake up, and the ones I remember at random times in the day are very few.

Which makes me wonder: why do you guys think we have a sudden change in dream activity and recall when we don't sleep at home?

I just had a totally random thought today. So basically I've been listening to this science podcast, and it said something about sleep. In one example, they studied 4 ducks. They would line up and face the same way. The ducks in the inner side would close both eyes and go to sleep. The ducks on the outer side would have one of their eyes open (the one farthest from the middle of the line). Then the two ducks in the middle would wake up, and switch places with the outer ones. This time they will be the ones with one of their eyes open. They do this continuously.

So they said it has something to do with survival instincts. Whenever they sleep, they have one side of their brain awake, because if it was completely shut down, they are in danger for predators. Dolphins do the same too. Since they need to surface every so often, whenever they sleep, they have half their brains awake as well. One half sleeps, while the other maintains motor control so they kinda float at the surface to breathe throughout sleep. Apparently this is the case for all types of animals, though some are more obvious than others.

So now the question is, what about humans? What happened? Well apparently, they have a theory. Animals have half their brain awake for survival reasons– being out in the wild is very dangerous. But over time, humans evolved and found safety and comfort in their own homes – with locks and walls and a roof. This could be why humans learned to sleep more fully, and don't require one eye open while sleeping (lol imagine that). Though, technically we are not absolutely unaware. There is a small part of us that can pick up on external noises and stimuli, and why sometimes a faint sound of an alarm wakes us up right away. These are for survival too. If we were completely knocked out, we would be attacked easily because we had no survival instincts.

Okay that was sooo long, but that made me think. Could that be the reason why we sleep uneasily in other people's homes? And could that be why we always seem to sleep lightly and wake up at the smallest sounds? Because to me, that makes sense. If we're not used to a certain place, then it stands to reason that we get hyper aware of our surroundings when sleeping, due to survival reasons.

Mehh I dunno. What do you guys think?