Poor Sleep Prevents Brain From Storing Memories 180
jjp9999 writes "Recent findings published on Jan. 27 in the journal Nature Neuroscience may inspire you to get some proper sleep. Researchers at UC Berkeley found that REM sleep plays a key role in moving short term memories from the hippocampus (where short-term memories are stored) to the prefrontal cortex (where long-term memories are stored), and that degeneration of the frontal lobe as we grow older may play a key role in forgetfulness. 'What we have discovered is a dysfunctional pathway that helps explain the relationship between brain deterioration, sleep disruption and memory loss as we get older – and with that, a potentially new treatment avenue,' said UC Berkeley sleep researcher Matthew Walker."
This explains (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Electrically activating memory pathways (Score:5, Funny)
So what kind of voltage, current, and signal sequence would you use for this?
Ever put a 9v cell on your tongue? Do you remember that? Would you remember 120v to your genitalia? That's the miracle of electric pathways, my friend!
Re:Yeah, but how to get sleep (Score:5, Funny)
I just use a lot of alcohol. Drink a 5th of rum every night and you sleep like a baby until morning, unless you have to wake up to puke, but if you did it right you don't even wake up for that.
it's a species survival adaptation (Score:5, Funny)
I'm actually only about half-joking here. When you have a newborn, you get practically no sleep for months at a time, and yet people still have multiple kids. Why? Because nobody clearly remembers those early terrible sleepless months!